Man accused of murdering highway maintenance worker, shooting LMPD officer refuses to show up to court again

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - The man accused of killing a highway maintenance worker and shooting an officer in the face has skipped court for the second time since his arrest.

Keyshaun Stewart, 25, is charged with murder, attempted murder of a police officer, wanton endangerment, fleeing and evading police, and having a firearm in the possession of a convicted felon.

He is accused of fatally shooting Fred O’Bannon, a father of five who was working at a construction site on I-264 and the Dixie Highway overpass, while sitting in his car. Stewart then allegedly walked over to the vehicle of an off-duty LMPD officer, Sgt. Chris Lane, and shot him in the face, according to investigators. Lane survived and underwent surgery to repair his shattered jaw.

Lane, despite his own injuries, chased and stopped Stewart.

Stewart was scheduled to appear in court on December 1st. Stewart, who is being held on a $1 million bond at the Louisville Metro Corrections Department, refused to show up. It’s still unclear why he refused to appear in court and why he wasn’t forced to do so.

That arraignment was then re-scheduled for Dec. 9. Stewart, however, failed to show up again.

Circuit Court Judge Audra Eckerle rescheduled the arraignment for a second time. She stated that she did not want to delay another trial that was starting right after the scheduled arraignment.

Stewart will be forced to attend the next hearing, which has been set for Dec. 14.

In 2018, Stewart was seen by police loading a stolen gun case into a car. The gun case contained 12 firearms as well as the ashes of a robbery victim’s wife. According to reports, the victim’s home had been ransacked and suffered $10,000 in damages. In their attempt to escape the police, Stewart and his accomplice crashed their car before being caught on foot.

Despite being given a five year sentence, Judge Olu Stevens gave Stewart five years of probation, stating that he didn’t think prison would help Stewart.

Stewart then stopped attending meetings with his probation officer and stopped returning his calls. A bench warrant for his arrest was later issued by the court.

Stevens has not responded to phone calls for comment on this case, which has been reopened for another violation of Stewart’s probation.

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