re: Justified Season 4, Episode 5 "Kin"

It's unlikely he is Thompson. He's not rich. He's not successful. He was a security guard at a mine. Now, he's a sheriff in a piece of shite, poor-arse county.

This does not fit the narrative at all.

Also, Shelby does not appear to have any problem with his legs. You snap both legs and rehab on the side of a mountain with the hill folk and your legs will never be quite right again.

There are too many things against the theory that Shelby is Thompson.

It's likely we have seen Thompson before, but he was probably a relatively minor character.