Bevin Wants Judge Dismissed From Teacher 'Sick-Out' Case After Facebook 'Like'

WUKY | By Josh James

Published August 27, 2019 at 5:43 PM EDT

Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear speaks to a group of several hundred teachers and their supporters gathered to protest perceived attacks on public education at the Capitol, in Frankfort, Ky, Tuesday, March 12, 2019.

Gov. Matt Bevin is asking that the judge overseeing a lawsuit challenging the Kentucky Labor Cabinet’s “sick-out” investigation be removed from the case – and he’s pointing to a Facebook “like” as evidence of bias.

Bevin hasn’t pulled any punches when talking about Franklin Circuit Judge Philip Shepherd, labeling him the “most incompetent hack of a judge” in a 2018 interview.

Now, the Republican's general counsel, Steve Pitt, is arguing Shepherd should be disqualified from hearing Attorney General Andy Beshear’s case against the state Labor Cabinet after Shepherd allegedly “liked” a pro-Beshear Facebook post by a Democratic lawmaker.

Bevin and Beshear are facing off in this year's gubernatorial race.

In a motion, Pitt argues Shepherd has shown an "inability to set aside politics to preserve the integrity of the judiciary.” Beshear is calling the motion "yet another absurd attack by an out-of-control governor."

The motion could be heard in Franklin Circuit Court as early as Sept. 4.