Kentucky lawmaker facing assault allegations kills himself

A Republican lawmaker in Kentucky facing sexual assault allegations has killed himself.

Bullitt County Coroner Dave Billings says Johnson died from a single gunshot Wednesday night on Greenwell Ford Road in Mount Washington, Kentucky. Billings said Johnson stopped his car at the end of a bridge in a secluded area and got out. Billings says it was "probably suicide." He said an autopsy is scheduled for Thursday morning.

The 57-year-old Johnson was elected to the state legislature in 2016. On Monday, the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting published an account from a woman saying Johnson sexually assaulted her in the basement of his home in 2013. Louisville police investigated the matter but closed the case and did not file charges.

Johnson told reporters Tuesday the accusations were "totally false." He posted a message on Facebook Monday night saying that PTSD was "is a sickness that will take my life, I cannot handle it any longer. It has won this life, BUT HEAVEN IS MY HOME."

President Michael Skoler from Louisville Public Media, which owns the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting, released a statement after Johnson's death.

“All of us at Louisville Public Media are deeply sad to hear that State Representative Dan Johnson has died, apparently of suicide. We grieve for his family, friends, church community and constituents. Our Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting released a report on Johnson this week. Our aim, as always, is to provide the public with fact-based, unbiased reporting and hold public officials accountable for their actions. As part of our process, we reached out to Representative Johnson numerous times over the course of a seven-month investigation. He declined requests to talk about our findings.”