Caleb Mullins Waives Preliminary Hearing in Murder of Karen Mullins

Caleb Mullins waived his right to a preliminary hearing today in Jackson City Court. The case will next be heard by the Madison County Grand Jury. He is charged with second degree murder, theft over $10,000 and tampering with evidence in connection with the murder of his aunt, Karen Mullins, inside her home at 21 Copper Ridge Drive. Mullins, 19, remains in custody at the Madison County Jail in lieu of $ 500,000 bond.

At 9:52 p.m. on Nov. 11, Jackson police received a call from Sharon Mullins in Louisville, Ky. after she had not heard from her twin sister, Karen Mullins, in over 20 hours. According to Sharon Mullins, it was uncharacteristic for so much time to pass without them talking. Officers responded to Karen Mullins' home. Through the window, police saw a woman lying on the kitchen floor. Officers forced entry into the home and found Mullins, 43, dead. Foul play was apparent. Investigators and an assistant county medical examiner were summoned to the scene. The preliminary cause of death was ruled a homicide due to multiple stab wounds. Police investigators determined that

Karen Mullins' nephew, Caleb Mullins, and her SUV were both missing.

Investigators received information from Karen Mullins' family in Louisville about a possible location of Caleb Mullins in Louisville. Jackson police contacted Louisville police, and they located him and her SUV around 1 a.m. on Nov. 12. He was taken into custody, and the SUV was impounded by Louisville police as a crime scene.

The investigation revealed that Caleb Mullins fatally stabbed Karen Mullins, inside the home, on the evening of Nov. 10. He then took her Toyota Rav4 and drove to Louisville.

Jackson investigators also recovered the murder weapon and a bloody shirt in a dumpster at Camellia Trace Apartments.

Caleb Mullins refused to waive extradition and was held in a Louisville jail for a month awaiting a hearing. He later waived extradition on Dec. 12, and Jackson police transported him back to Tennessee on Dec. 18. He was formally arraigned in Jackson City Court and bond was set on Dec. 19.

Karen Mullins moved to Jackson from Louisville in March 2012, and Caleb Mullins came from Louisville to live with her in early October 2012.