By JAMES BROWN
Glasgow News 1
Mediation in the case where three teenagers were killed in a crash last October has failed. On Monday afternoon, Barren Circuit Judge John T. Alexander set a trial date for Asa R. Howard, 19, of Edmonton, for March 16-19, 2027.
The judge told Commonwealth’s Attorney John Gardner and Howard’s defense attorney Ken Garrett that full week is open, and that they had indicated the trail could take as many as four days. The judge also set a pretrial conference for Dec. 7, 2026.
Howard was the driver of a 2016 Nissa Altima that allegedly ran a stop light at the intersection of Veterans Outer Loop and U.S. 68/Ky. 80 on the night of Oct. 17, 2025. The Altima collided with a 2017 Toyota Highlander and three teens in Howard’s car died in the collision.
Howard was indicted in December on three counts of murder, in the deaths of Emily Corbin, 18, William T. Moore, 17, and Charley L. Fancher, 14. He also has three counts of first-degree wanton endangerment and one count of first-degree assault. He remains in the Barren County Detention Center on a $750,000 cash bond.
Between the time of his indictment and Monday’s court appearance via Zoom from the detention center, a mediation order had been entered to be heard before retired Circuit Judge Phil Patton. The mediation process is designed to facilitate settlement discussions, but any party may decline a proposed resolution, and the case can still move forward to trial.
On Monday, Gardner told the court “… mediation was not successful.”
Garrett said, “We’re in agreement with that.”
Family members for Corbin, Moore and Fancher sat in the front row of the courtroom gallery with T-shirts that read, “Their Stories Matter. Don’t Drink and Drive. Be Wise.”
The photos of the three teenagers were on the shirts inside heart frames.
