PRESTONSBURG, Ky. — A judge has denied a Floyd County man’s request for a lower ahead of his upcoming murder trial.

Larry Johnson, 68, of Auxier, is charged with murder for the April 25 shooting death of Steven Adkins near the Auxier bridge.

He has been held on a $1 million cash bond since his arrest, but his attorney filed a motion last month asking for that to be reduced. She argued that he does not have the financial means to afford that sum.

But prosecutors objected to that request, saying Johnson is a danger to the community and poses a significant flight risk.

They pointed out that Johnson initiated the altercation that resulted in Adkins’ death, then fled the scene and had his wife drop him off in an area where he could continue to flee. He was not arrested until almost 24 hours later.

They also note that Johnson placed his home up for sale immediately after his arrest, and that sale was completed last month.

“Based upon not only the violence of the initial crime and the immediate flight therefrom and the continuing plans to liquidate and remove connections to the jurisdiction for himself and his family. the Commonwealth asserts that … the defendant is a risk to the community at large and poses a risk of flight if released short of the initial bond as set by this court,” Assistant Attorney General Floyd Anthony Skeans wrote in his response to the motion.

During a hearing on the matter Thursday, Floyd Circuit Judge Johnny Ray Harris denied the bond reduction.

Johnson remains incarcerated on a $1 million cash bond.