Licking County Court Workers Suspended In Wake Of Kirkersville Shootings

Four Licking County Municipal Court workers are being suspended for the early release of a domestic violence suspect who killed three people, including the Kirkersville police chief, on May 12. The suspensions announced Friday come after a review of how 43-year-old Thomas Hartless got out of jail in April. He fatally shot the police chief and his ex-girlfriend and her co-worker at a nursing home before killing himself. Two probation department employees have been suspended three weeks without pay while two others got two-week suspensions. The court says one of the employees failed to completely review the court files involving Hartless and made an unsupported recommendation for his early release.