MARION, Ky. – A case involving Kent Withrow, who recently filed as a write-in candidate for Crittenden County judge-executive, is expected to be formally resolved Wednesday in Crittenden District Court.
The case involves Withrow’s Alford plea entered a year ago to a misdemeanor charge of falsely reporting an incident to law enforcement.
Court records show Withrow entered the plea Sept. 3, 2025. An Alford plea allows a defendant to maintain innocence while acknowledging that prosecutors have sufficient evidence to obtain a conviction. It carries the same legal effect as a guilty plea.
Special District Judge Brandon Knoth of Eddyville has presided over the case, with special prosecutor Lee Riddle of Madisonville representing the Commonwealth. No appearance by Withrow, Knoth or Riddle is expected Wednesday because the final order has been prearranged, barring further issues in the case. Details of the final order should be available following court proceedings Wednesday.
Kentucky State Police charged Withrow in March 2025 after investigating his claim that Crittenden County Attorney Bart Frazer grabbed him by the neck during an encounter at the Crittenden County Office Complex in December 2024.
Withrow also faced charges of criminal coercion, harassing communications and harassment without physical contact involving another man and woman. Court records show prosecution of those charges was deferred for two years as part of the September 2025 disposition.
Withrow has recently used the social media identity “Jebediah Yoder” to criticize local officials, government and other individuals. He publicly connected himself to that identity when the account announced that Kent Withrow, “Jeb Yoder,” had filed as a write-in candidate. The Crittenden Press has not independently confirmed that Withrow controls every account or authored every post attributed to assumed identities, including a previous social media page named Crittenden County for Change, which apparently no longer exists.
Crittenden County Jailer Athena Hayes also has named Withrow and others as defendants in a pending defamation lawsuit. Withrow previously sued the county over the awarding of a roofing contract, but Circuit Judge Daniel Heady dismissed that case. A separate open-records case filed by Withrow against the county concerning records related to the office-complex incident remains pending in Crittenden Circuit Court.
Links below are to surveillance footage from the 2024 county office complex incident, Withrow’s 911 call reporting the incident and the original article about the incident.























