Whitley woman in critical condition after savage attack early Sunday; boyfriend kills self

A Whitley County woman is clinging to life after her boyfriend allegedly beat her severely early Sunday morning before taking his own life.

Police say Samantha Miller was brutally attacked by her live-in boyfriend Kenneth Ingram some time around 8:00 a.m. Sunday at the couple’s home on KY Hwy. 779. After the attack, Ingram then rode his motorcyle to his parent’s house about four miles away on Maple Creek Road, grabbed the family’s 12-guage shotgun, loaded a round and shot himself in the face.

Whitley County Sheriff’s Detective Chuck Davis, who is investigating the case, said it appears as though Miller was asleep when Ingram attacked her. He would not say if a weapon was used in the assault.

"She’s in pretty bad shape," Davis said. "She had about a three inch laceration above one of her eyes, a broken right and left arm, a broken ankle and a broken jaw. It was a very serious assault."

Davis said Miller has two children, not by Ingram, who were at home at the time of the attack but did not witness anything because they were asleep. He said he has been unable to speak with Miller yet because of the severity of her injuries. He added that a cursory check of court records showed no active emergency protective orders in place, but he said he plans to look more closely this week to see if they have a history of domestic violence.

Davis said Whitley County Sheriff Lawrence Hodge had an altercation with Ingram about six or seven months ago, but was not sure if the man had a criminal record.

Miller was transported to the Baptist Regional Medical Center emergency department before being taken to the University of Kentucky Medical Center in Lexington where she is currently in critical condition.

Ingram’s body has been taken to Frankfort for an autopsy.

See more information on this story in Wednesday’s edition of the News Journal,