ADAIR COUNTY: Today, February 10th, 2009 at 1 p.m., a status hearing was held before Circuit Judge James (Jimmy) Weddle regarding the pending murder charges against Willie Paul Grant.
Grant, 71 of Adair County is being held without bond for the murder of the late Rex Coffey, a lifelong resident of Adair County and business owner of Rexs Cycle Shop.
At the hearing today a number of people, including Rex Coffeys widow, Tammy Coffey were present. The Court set a definitive date of March 4th, 2009 at 1 p.m. to hold a competency hearing regarding Grants legal ability to stand trial.
According to the report, the Psychologist who conducted an examination of Grant states that he diagnosed Grant with dementia, both as a result of Alzheimers disease and as a result of cerebrovascular disease which possibly affect his memory and mood symptoms that include possible delusions and hallucinations.
Apparently when Grant was examined, Grant had no memory problems or hallucinations when he recited the details of the night he admittedly murdered Rex Coffey. The report is clear that if Grant were to be released he was a danger to the community and to himself.
In the report from the Kentucky Correctional Psychiatric Center (KCPC) by Psychologist Stephen H. Free, Free detailed Grants depiction of the horrific series of events which led up to and included his long time dispute with the church and Rex Coffey. Grant further detailed to Free how he first confronted Coffey and others then according to Grant, he returned to his home only to reappear at the site of the victim with a rifle sometime later where according to Grant, I shot him. I didnt mean to kill him. I just wanted to wing him and show him he couldnt do anything he wanted to me.
The version of the events Grant described are far different than what the numerous witnesses sitting with Rex Coffey stated happened at the time he was shot. According to witnesses Grant sat on the blacktop road for a while and then yelled out to Coffey and the group at the church outing that it was bedtime. According to the surviving witnesses, Rex Coffey told Grant it was not bedtime at his house or this house, at which time Grant shot and killed Rex Coffey.
USJW interviewed Widow Tammy Coffey today. She said it was a daily struggle to deal with the absence of Rex (who she was married to for 25 years) and that they took my life from me. Tammy Coffey and her family want this behind them and realize that no matter the outcome, nothing will ever repair what has happened and that justice finally be done.
