Tigue Charged With Child Abuse Months After Prison Release

From WRIL The Big One -

Shawn Tigue - KCDC

A former Bell County man once at the the center of a murder trial and spending over twenty years in custody, is back behind bars after being arrested in Knox County just months after his release.

On Friday June 13, 2025, 44-year-old Shawn Tigue was arrested at a residence in Barbourville after it was reported to social services that a child of his girlfriend had marks on his body consistent with child abuse. In a citation from the Knox County Ky. Sheriff's Department, Tigue admitted to spanking the child with a belt two weeks prior to his arrest.

Tigue was lodged in the Knox County Ky Detention Center charged with assault 4th degree (child abuse).

In 2003, Tigue plead guilty to murdering an elderly woman, Bertha Bradshaw, in her home in April of that year. The indictment against Tigue resulted in a guilty plea. During final sentencing, Tigue requested to withdraw his guilty plea, which the trial court denied.

After finding a first-degree burglary conviction to be an aggravator, the jury recommended a sentence of life without the possibility of parole, which the trial court adopted.

On appeal, the Kentucky Supreme Court found Tigue's counsel to have been ineffective, reversed his murder conviction, and remanded the case to the trial court for a new trial. He was facing other charges which were upheld and he was sentenced to 20 years for a first-degree burglary conviction, 12 months for two possession convictions, and 90 days for an improper-container conviction.

In an agreement with Bell County Commonwealth Attorney Mike Taylor, Shawn Tigue was released from custody in March of this year with his sentence expiration of 23 years.

While Tigue had filed separate lawsuits against the courts, they were dismissed prior to his release.