A Barren County teenager accused of shooting his father to death appeared in Barren Circuit Court Monday for a status conference.

Jared A. Upton, 18, of Smiths Grove, was indicted by a Barren County grand jury on Dec. 19, 2008 on charges of murder and tampering with physical evidence for allegedly shooting his father, John Upton, with a 12-gauge shotgun multiple times at his home on Old Bowling Green Road on Oct. 31, 2008.

Upton has undergone two psychiatric evaluations. One evaluation was requested by his attorney, the other by Karen Davis, commonwealth’s attorney for Barren and Metcalfe counties.

The teenager was transferred from the Adair County Juvenile Detention Center in Columbia to the Kentucky Correctional pyschiatrist Center in La Grange for the second competency evaluation in early August. Davis anticipated a report regarding the evaluation to be returned by mid-September. A competency hearing had originally be set for Oct. 15, but was postponed until Dec. 22 at 9 a.m. A hearing on a motion to suppress statements Upton made

A hearing regarding Upton’s competency and a hearing on his motion to suppress statements he made at the time of his arrest were set Monday for Dec. 22 at 9 a.m. In addition to the hearings, a trial date of March 24-26 was also set.

Two arrested for meth lab

Glasgow police officers arrested a pair of Barren County residents on Monday after officers discovered several items used in the manufacturing of methamphetamine in their Glasgow hotel room.

Billy “Dewayne” Butler, 31, 600 N. Race St. Apt. 1, and Ashley Nicole Butler, 21, 45 Mammoth Cave Ave., Park City, were passengers in a 1996 GMC sports utility vehicle that was travelling on Cherry Street near North Race Street when Sgt. Chris Wyatt stopped the vehicle for driving carelessly, according to a GPD report.

The two had been reported as suspicious after buying a bag of ammonium nitrate at a farm supply store, and Ashley Butler admitted during the traffic stop that she and Billy Butler had purchased the ammonium nitrate for the manufacture of meth, according to the report.

She further admitted that she and Billy Butler were cooking meth Sunday night in a room at the Happy Valley Inn. Ashley Butler gave written consent for officers to inspect the room, and the officers discovered several items used in the making of meth inside the room, according to the report. Billy Butler stated to officers that he was the only one manufacturing meth in the hotel room.

Police charged each individual with manufacturing meth first offense, knowingly possessing anhydrous ammonia with intent to manufacture meth first offense, unlawful possession of a meth precursor first offense and possession of drug paraphernalia first offense.

Both were lodged in the Barren County Correction Center. The Barren-Edmonson County Drug Task Force and the Office of Probation and Parole assisted GPD in the investigation.

The driver of the vehicle was not charged by police.