Warren grand jury indicts man accused of killing KSP trooper
Branch was scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing Friday morning.
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — A Warren County grand jury has indicted the man accused of shooting and killing Kentucky State Police Trooper Hayden Phillips.
Emonnie D. Branch, 51, was formally charged with murder of a first responder, possession of a handgun by a convicted felon and tampering with physical evidence.
Phillips, 28, was killed Sept. 28 during a traffic stop near mile marker 38 on Interstate 65 near Smiths Grove.
According to a complaint warrant filed in Warren County, Phillips approached Branch’s vehicle from the passenger side before two shots were fired. Phillips collapsed backward, and the vehicle then continued north on I-65.
Branch was arrested about four hours later in a Louisville neighborhood. Investigators said the vehicle he was found in matched the one captured on Phillips’ dash-camera video.
Branch was scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing Friday morning. Warren County Circuit Clerk Brandi Duvall said the hearing remains scheduled but is no longer considered a preliminary hearing.
A preliminary hearing is not required if a grand jury indicts a defendant before the hearing takes place, allowing the case to move directly from district court to circuit court.
Branch is expected to appear for an extradition hearing related to an outstanding Tennessee warrant that was active at the time of his arrest. He was wanted in Tennessee for a probation violation, according to court records.
Branch was serving a five-year probation sentence stemming from fraud charges.
What happens next
The indictment moves Branch’s case from district court to Warren County Circuit Court.
The murder of a first responder is classified as a capital offense under Kentucky law. Kentucky law allows courts to deny bail in capital cases when the proof is evident or the presumption is great.
A Warren County judge denied Branch bond during his Sept. 29 arraignment. He remains in custody at the Warren County Regional Jail.
Kentucky law provides for either the death penalty or life imprisonment without the possibility of probation or parole for a person convicted of murder of a first responder.
Branch is expected to appear before Judge J.B. Hines at 1 p.m. Oct. 12 for arraignment in Warren County Circuit Court, where the case will continue toward trial or another resolution.
The investigation
The Kentucky State Police Critical Incident Response Team is leading the investigation into Phillips’ death.
KSP previously said investigators used Flock cameras and other technology to track Branch as he traveled north following the shooting.
According to the complaint warrant, investigators later found a shell casing in the back seat and blood on the passenger side of the vehicle where Branch was arrested.
Brennan Crain
KSP and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were also seen conducting searches along I-65 near the shooting scene, the interchange of the interstate and Cumberland Parkway and at Mammoth Cave National Park in the days following the shooting.
Authorities have not publicly explained why those areas were relevant to the investigation. KSP Commissioner Phillip Burnett Jr. said investigators were continuing to work to recover evidence in the case.
Phillips had served with Kentucky State Police for three years. He was a Barren County resident and leaves behind a wife and three children.
