Jurors hear taped interrogation as Gulley questioned about 1975 Indiana slaying
Anne Warfield
Jurors hear taped interrogation
Police questioned Gulley about 1975 Indiana slaying
August 13, 2003
By The Associated Press
VINCENNES, Ind. - Jurors in the trial of a Peoria man accused of a
1975 murder on Tuesday heard more of a taped statement the man gave to
police in which he mentions his disbelief over his ex-wife fingering
him in the crime.
Wayne G. Gulley, 61, gave the taped statement to Indiana State Police
Sgt. Larry Eck, who traveled to his Peoria home to question him about
his alleged involvement in the March 1, 1975, slaying of Sherry Lee
Gibson shortly after his ex-wife approached police in 2001 claiming
the couple had killed Gibson.
Ella Mae Dicks, 47, pleaded guilty to the murder last week and
testified at length during Gulley's trial in Knox County Circuit
Court. She said he coerced her into abducting, raping and stabbing the
23-year-old Gibson.
On the tape, Gulley repeatedly denied any involvement in the Gibson's
death but said it was possible Dicks killed her. He described Dicks as
an "insanely jealous" person who had threatened people with knives.
As the interview continued, Gulley suggested he may have been there
but had subconsciously blocked it from his memory.
"I can't imagine me standing there and watching her do something like
that," Gulley said. "She may be telling the truth. I don't know that
she's lying.
". . . I'm not a hero, but I think I would have grabbed her and tried
to stop her," he said later.
Several times during the interview, Gulley asked if he should have an
attorney present, but he stopped short of requesting one.
Eck is an important witness for Knox County Chief Deputy Prosecutor
Hal Johnston because he will attempt to tie together a host of
circumstantial evidence the state alleges to have against Gulley. More
than 150 pieces of evidence, mostly photographs and police logs, have
been introduced.
On the tape, Eck lays out the facts supplied by Dicks, including her
descriptions of the abandoned farmhouse and Gulley's car with damage
to the passenger side as well as the robbery of a fruit stand on the
same night of Gibson's slaying. The fruit stand was less than two
miles from the slaying scene and places Gulley and Dicks in the area.
Gibson's body was found in a burning farmhouse near Monroe City, about
45 miles northeast of Evansville.
Gulley was indicted in the murder last year. His attorneys have argued
that Dicks is mentally ill and implicated Gulley because of a vendetta
involving their failed marriage.
Gibson's last known address was 443 High St., Apt. F.
The defense could open its case this morning in the trial, now in its
third week.
http://pjstar.com/news/local/g171353a.html
--
Anne Warfield
indigoace at goodsol period com
http://www.goodsol.com/cats/
Anne Warfield
Murder suspect lived in Peoria
August 14, 2003
By DAVE HANEY
of the Journal Star
PEORIA - The faded, handwritten name of a 61-year-old man accused of a
1975 murder in Indiana remains posted to a mailbox of the High Street
apartment he resided in a year ago.
It’s unclear how long ago or why Wayne G. Gulley moved to Peoria, but
local and Indiana authorities say he resided here only a short time
with a woman in an apartment at the Italiante-style Joseph M. Quinn
Mansion at 443 W. High St.
"His only Peoria connection may be that he laid his head here for
awhile," a Peoria police detective said Wednesday.
Gulley, who has no criminal record here, much less a traffic citation,
is currently on trial in Indiana for the murder of Sherry Lee Gibson,
found 28 years ago in a burning farmhouse near Monroe City, about 45
miles northeast of Evansville.
Wednesday, the prosecution presented an expert to explain the lack of
DNA evidence. The defense then called its first witness, a former
Gulley employer.
Indiana State Police Officer Greg Winkler concurred with local police,
"(Gulley) was not a permanent resident of Peoria . . . he had only
recently lived there."
Neither officer could give specific dates, but Gulley may have been
living here from sometime in spring 2002 until August of the same
year.
According to Peoria police, Indiana authorities phoned them sometime
last summer, asking if they could locate Gulley, who had previously
resided around suburban Chicago and in southern Illinois. Local police
tracked Gulley down through the woman he was living with at the High
Street apartment.
City police watched Gulley’s movements, noting his habits and keeping
a schedule of when he would regularly come and go, police said.
Indiana State Police later came and interviewed him, but returned
without the murder suspect. Indiana police then phoned Peoria in
August to inform them an arrest warrant had been issued, but again
called just days later because Gulley had turned himself in to
authorities there on Aug. 27.
http://pjstar.com/news/local/g160055a.html