(LEX 18) — A man involved in the murder of a University of Kentucky football player 30 years ago appeared before a judge in Franklin County to face new charges.
Shane Ragland was arraigned before Chief District Judge Kathy R. Mangeot, appearing via video from jail. Ragland is charged with assault (domestic violence) and terroristic threatening. This after allegedly using his wheelchair to run into his mother and her friend and then threatening to kill them.
Ragland was previously charged with the murder of UK Football player Trent DiGiuro at a birthday party in 1994. His conviction in that case was overturned, and he eventually pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter, serving five years. According to police, Ragland was arrested again on Tuesday for the crimes against his mother.
Trent's father, Mike DiGiuro, spoke with LEX 18 News on Thursday over the phone about Shane Ragland's latest involvement with the law.
DiGiuro says that he has gotten used to receiving these kinds of calls from the media. He says, "That Shane Ragland is involved with a violent situation is not surprising. He's been involved in several of these over the years. In Lexington and Louisville and San Diego where he lived for a while...every place he goes he just seems to perpetrate these kinds of crimes."
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During today's proceeding, Ragland interrupted the judge and stated, "My mom has a serious case of dementia," before he was advised to not speak any further.
"Let me stop you. I don't want you to say too much, and if you had already retained counsel, they would advise you in that way," stated Judge Mangeot. The judge set Ragland's bond at $2,000 for each case. If he does bond out, the judge told him he cannot return to his mother's home and he cannot possess firearms. He is due back in court for a pretrial conference in July.
For Mike DiGiuro and family, having to continue to hear Shane Ragland's name is "Kind of a kick in the gut, but we're well beyond that. We're trying to do some good deeds and try not to let him affect us much." The good deeds DiGiuro speaks of involve awarding scholarships to students in Kentucky. Through the Trent DiGiuro Foundation, the family has handed out more than $318,000 in scholarships, plus a $100,000 grant to South Oldham High School for the renovation of their field house. The foundation is currently holding a charity bourbon raffle to raise funds to provide for future deserving students. Details on the raffle can be found by clicking here.
