North Kentucky Ave. murder case to be heard by grand jury

More arrests are possible in connection with the October 12 fatal shooting of Calvin “Cue” Taylor at his home on North Kentucky Avenue and police believe he was murdered during a robbery involving drugs.

Forty-seven-year old Larayna Manning is charged with complicity to murder and robbery and appeared in Christian District Court for a preliminary hearing Friday morning.

Hopkinsville Police Detective Eugene Trumble testified Taylor was found dead inside his kitchen with gunshot wounds to the back of his head and to his abdomen after a blood trail and witness account led officers to check his home.

Detective Trumble says Manning had her son, 24-year old Anthony Manning, drive her to Taylor’s home and Anthony said he went inside to check on her when he heard gunshots.

A car believed to be a 2003 to 2005 silver Saturn Ion was captured on video surveillance arriving and leaving the scene at approximately the same times as the Mannings’ van. Detective Trumble says it’s not certain Larayna Manning fired the shots that killed Taylor and there are other persons of interest.

The Saturn still hasn’t been located and no gun was recovered in Taylor’s house or in the Mannings’ van. Drugs, cash and a safe were missing from Taylor’s home when police began the investigation Taylor’s mouth and wrists were duct-taped, indicating there had been a robbery.

Larayna Manning allegedly had drugs in her van and told police she went to Taylor’s home to buy drugs.

She reportedly said she didn’t remember much of what happened at the home because she was under the influence, though witnesses who saw her leave her home reportedly disputed she was intoxicated.

District Judge Foster Cotthoff ruled there was probable cause to send the case to a grand jury and kept her bond at $250,000. Anthony Manning is in a Texas jail, awaiting extradition to Kentucky on charges of complicity to murder and robbery.