Framed to Take the Fall for the Police Protected Murderer? - The Charles Troupe Story

By Charles Troupe

Edited by Natalie Smith Parra, JD Editor

Justice:Denied magazine, Issue 25, page 4

On October 18, 1994, Tina Kirkpatrick was found murdered. Prior to this Tina and I had dated for a while. The relationship ended but we remained friends. After our relationship ended Tina became involved intimately with Gill Bybee and he started her using crack cocaine and forced her into prostitution to support both of their habits. He also physically abused her. Tina also knew William Allen and he got her involved in various paper hanging scams that eventually got both of them arrested. Allen was the leader of these scams and the police got Tina to make a statement agreeing to testify against him. The trial was scheduled to start a few months after her death. Without Tina’s testimony the case was dismissed and Allen was released.

Tina and Bybee lived in a house with Allen for a time before her murder. On October 16th, Tina called me from Bybee’s house in Cleveland and asked me to pick her up because she had just had a fight with Bybee. I picked her up at Bybee’s house and dropped her off on E. 131 st around 7:00 p.m. I called Bybee about a half an hour after dropping Tina off and told him that I had given her $100.00 and dropped her off at E. 131 st . The following morning at 2:00 a.m. Bybee called me and asked about Tina. Then he said, “She’s probably somewhere dead.” That remark sounded odd. Later, Tina's body was found dead on a lot on Allen's street. The official report says that Tina died on October 18, 1994 at 12:36 p.m. According to the coroner, Mr. Summers, Tina's body had been in that field for close to 30 hours.

The original coroner's report said that Tina died of blunt trauma and that before her death she had recently had sex. The DNA tests said that she had had sex with two people. I submitted to a DNA test and it came back negative. Bybee had to be court ordered to take the DNA test and his came back positive. None of the fibers taken from the victim's body matched anything in my home, car or clothing. There was no reason to believe that I committed this crime. The victim's mother even thought that Bybee had killed her daughter because he was always beating her. The autopsy also listed acute intoxication by heroin as a cause of death. They tested and found heroin in the stomach but they did not test the mucous membranes of the nose. Why wasn't this done?

During this time, Phil Evans was arrested for dealing drugs. In an attempt to release pressure from himself, Evans told FBI Agent James Harnett that I had 4 kilograms of cocaine that belonged to him. Agent Harnett contacted me and demanded that I return the drugs. When I denied having any knowledge of the drugs Agent Harnett became hostile and began to threaten me. Agent Harnett told me that he didn't care where he got the four kilos, that he didn't care what it took, that he was going to get me, and that he would call back in 48 hours and I better have the drugs. This scared me because I did not have and never had the drugs. I waited for the agent to call back. When Agent Harnett called back I was ready with a recorder because of the threats and accusations the agent had made. I asked the agent why he was threatening me and saying he would do anything to get me. On tape Agent Harnett said that he knew he had threatened me and that he was sorry. He said that he was mad and sorry that he had continued to try to coerce me to give him drugs I didn't have. Not knowing that I was recording the conversation of the agent threatening to set me up “no matter what,” Agent Harnett started to amass a group of false witnesses.

Allen, whose DNA matched the DNA recovered from Tina’s body, stated in writing that he didn’t believe I had anything to do with Tina's death. Then he made a deal with the FBI to testify against me. His statement changed at that time to a claim that I asked for his help. Both of these statements are a matter of record and can be checked. In the sworn statement of Allen, he says that his attorney informed him that the prosecution knew he had not been involved with Tina Kirkpatrick's murder, but they had received information saying that he helped with the disposal of the body. He would not be indicted for the murder. Allen also says that his attorney told him that according to the prosecution, Charles Troupe was trying to frame him for the murder. Mr. Allen also says that he was offered a low degree felony if he would make a statement and testify at the Troupe trial. In response to this offer, Allen requested a proffer letter to the deal and was told that the defense would use it to discredit his testimony. Allen's attorney advised him to make a statement “...with the assurance that the prosecution would honor their word.” Allen has sworn out a criminal complaint charging Prosecutor Dever with suborning perjury and Patrick McCarthy with perjury.

Another witness, a felon, made the statement that I was upset with Tina over an incident that happened in Las Vegas. The statement claims I said I was going to get her because she made a statement against me to the Las Vegas police. But Tina did not have anything to do with the Las Vegas incident and, according to the Las Vegas Police Department, she was never questioned or charged. This Las Vegas officer testified on the stand to this and said that he didn't trust the FBI.

On or about October 30, 1998, I was arrested for the murder of Tina Kirkpatrick. I claimed to having been set up. On reviewing the evidence, the prosecutor Mr. Dever, asked my attorney, “Who is pushing this case?” Mr. Dever told my attorney that he knew that I didn't commit this murder, but that William Allen, the man making the false statement, told him he had committed the crime. The prosecutor asked who was doing this and I told him the FBI. Two days later the prosecutor did a 180 degree turn, and after talking to Agent Harnett, now believed I did this.

The detective, Mike Burger, who worked on the case, claimed that he threw away his notes about the case. He did this before trial. This is ridiculous. Why would he throw away the notes of a murder investigation? The Cuyahoga County Coroner was called to the stand. His story changed; he now said that the cause of death was a heroin overdose. When he was cross-examined he admitted that the FBI asked him to change the cause of death to help them with their case. He said he did so even though he knew it was wrong.

There was still a witness that could clear me. Ms. Rosheena Battista knows Mr. Allen and he had told her that he killed Tina. Ms. Battista told my sister Charlen Peavy that when Allen realized what he had said to Ms. Battista he tried to kill her also. She told Ms. Peavy that she was afraid for her life. She was put on the list of witnesses, but she did not testify. It may sound farfetched to people who haven’t experienced being prosecution, but it is my understanding that the FBI called her, and in a very persuasive manner, told her not to to testify.

This whole outrageous incident is not an isolated one. At

this time there is an investigation underway by the media. There are at least four other cases that have been manipulated by the FBI and Prosecutor Steve Dever. The tape that I recorded of Agent Harnett threatening me was put into evidence and the prosecutor convinced my attorney not to play it. This tape should have been played and would have resulted in a dismissal of my case. Most of the testimony at my trial were vague and conflicting and contained outright lies. All of this information is a matter of public record.

Besides convicting me of a crime I didn't commit I've been harassed and threatened by those who swore to uphold the law and protect citizens against this type of official crime.

Thank you for taking the time to read about my case. You can write me at:

Charles Troupe 368-807

LCI

2075 S. Avon Belden Rd.

Grafton, OH 44040

My mother is my outside contact:

Janice Caldwell

3971 Suffolk Rd.

South Euclid, OH 44121