Republican Kentucky State Senator Dies After Driving Lawnmower into Empty Pool

Kentucky State Senator Johnnie Turner passed away on Tuesday from injuries caused by driving his lawnmower into an empty pool.

Turner, 76, was a US Army veteran serving in the state senate since 2021. He also served in the Kentucky State House from 1999-2003.

The accident on the lawnmower occurred last month, and he has been battling the injuries ever since.

The Associated Press reported on September 16, “Turner was injured when he drove his mower into the deep end of the pool, Kentucky State Police said. Authorities received the 911 call shortly before 8 p.m. Sunday. State police had no details about what caused the accident. Turner was taken to a local hospital and then transferred to UT Medical Center.”

Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers announced news of Turner’s death on Thursday.

“It is with heavy hearts that we share the news of Sen. Johnnie Turner’s passing Tuesday evening, following a hard-fought battle with injuries sustained in his recent accident,” Senate President Stivers wrote in a press release on behalf of the Senate Majority Caucus. “Over the past weeks, his remarkable resolve and strength filled the Turner family—and all of us—with optimism, making this loss all the more difficult to bear.”

“This loss is deeply personal to me, as I have known Johnnie long before our paths crossed in public office. I will miss my friend; my heart breaks for his wife, Maritza, and his children. The love and admiration I, along with so many others, feel for Johnnie is immense, but I know it pales compared to the depth of love held by those closest to him.”

Stivers continued, “Johnnie spent his life lifting others—whether through his service in the U.S. Army, as a member of the State House of Representatives and State Senate, or in his private legal practice. His unwavering commitment to the people of Eastern Kentucky—his constituents, brothers and sisters in Christ, whom he so fondly referred to as ‘his people’—was at the heart of everything he did.”

The lawmaker was running for a second term after winning the Republican primary. His name will still appear on the ballot, as the election is less than two weeks away.