A grand jury indicted Joseph Eli Bearden, 21 (left), and William David Brown Jr., 20, on charges of first-degree murder and robbery with a deadly weapon in the death of Wahneta resident Ryan Skipper.
The pair could face the death penalty if convicted of the brutal stabbing and robbery of Skipper, whose body was found by a passing motorist at 1:20 a.m. March 14 near Morgan Road and Logan Lane.
Skipper had been stabbed at least 20 times, and his car and laptop computer were stolen.
Skipper's 2007 Chevrolet Aveo was located shortly before 6 p.m. March 14 in Winter Haven at a boat ramp on Lake Pansy, according to sheriff's spokeswoman Carrie Rodgers.
The Sheriff's Office has described Skipper's killing as a hate crime because Skipper was a homosexual.
This murder has been filled with inconsistencies, indirectly blaming Ryan for his own murder.
It is extremely unusual for the arrest record of a murder victim to be released, but when Bearden and Brown were arrested, Sheriff Judd announced that Ryan Skipper had been arrested twice as a juvenile on minor marijuana charges. Conversely, he glossed over the alleged killers’ records, describing them as nonviolent.
If he had been more forthcoming, it would have been clear that these two young men have been up to no good for a while.
Joe Bearden, 21, has seven prior arrests in Polk County, including one for grand theft auto.
William Brown, 20, had been arrested just six days before the murder on cyberstalking charges. He has at least four prior arrests in Polk County.
Finally, Sheriff Judd suggested that while no one deserved to be murdered, Ryan Skipper had it coming. He told the Lakeland Ledger, "What we do know is that Ryan was looking for someone to pick up that evening. And unfortunately for Ryan, he picked up the wrong person."
2 comments:
Well surely you know, Dondon, that the Polk County Sheriff's office is just taking a page out of the Detroit Police Department's playbook. Somehow put the blame on the victim that cannot speak for themselves. In this case Ryan. By bringing up that he was arrested for pot he is simply trying to imply that he was a druggie. There is no other reason to bring it up. Just like Andrew Anthos in Detroit. Since Andrew could not defend hiself it was all too easy to simply say he fell. Therefore when he relayed the story of being beaten he comes off as a liar.
And in the end, that is what this is all about. Paint the homosexual with a brush that brings out the most negative light possible.
Disgusting!
Oh and let's not forget the hit piece 20/20 did on Matthew Shepard basically saying his killing was all about the drugs
Thank God the jury saw through it.
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