On the afternoon of Saturday, December 20, 2025, the body of 51-year-old Crystal Sexton was found inside a home on Left Fork Holly Road in Booneville, Owsley County, Kentucky. The Owsley County Coroner pronounced her dead at the scene; court documents state she suffered a fatal gunshot wound to the head.

Kentucky State Police and the Owsley County Sheriff’s Department detained 55-year-old Cloyd Burkhart at the residence. Investigators say an altercation occurred between Sexton and Burkhart; the arrest citation alleges they argued over a firearm, that Sexton pointed the weapon at Burkhart, and that Burkhart disarmed her and shot her as she was turning away. Burkhart was arrested without incident and lodged in the Three Forks Regional Jail on charges of murder, tampering with physical evidence, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, with bond set at $2 million.

The investigation remains under the direction of the Kentucky State Police. Did anyone in Booneville see or hear anything that afternoon that could help clarify what happened?