Trooper Franklin 'Joe' Ryle Jr Pleads Guilty to Plotting to Kill Trucker

Claiming he wanted to clear his conscience, a former state trooper admitted Monday to arresting a truck driver as part of a scheme to kill him, stage a crash and collect settlement money.

Former Wyoming Highway Patrol trooper Franklin "Joe" Ryle Jr., 42, told a federal judge he didn't follow through with the plan because he couldn't bring himself to kill the trucker.

"There is no way I could harm that guy," Ryle said.

Ryle made the admissions as part of a plea deal with federal prosecutors that came six months after he stopped Wal-Mart trucker Richard Smidt while patrolling near Douglas. The trooper planned to murder Smidt and stage a crash with his patrol vehicle in order to collect a settlement from the corporate giant.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, which was laid out during a hearing in U.S. District Court, Ryle pleaded guilty to depriving the truck driver's civil rights and carrying a pistol during the Jan. 8 crime. The government will dismiss a third charge that alleged Ryle solicited a second trooper to participate in the plot.

Prosecutors will recommend Ryle serve a prison sentence of 19 to 22 years. Ryle's attorneys are free to argue for a lesser sentence.

U.S. District Judge Clarence Brimmer asked Ryle why he was pleading guilty, knowing that it will result in a long prison sentence.

"Because that's everything I did," the 12-year patrol veteran replied.

Speaking in a calm voice, Ryle for the first time publicly recounted the traffic stop that led to his arrest and indictment.

Ryle, who lived in Douglas and patrolled the surrounding area, told the court he was on duty when he stopped the Wal-Mart truck outside of town. He handcuffed Smidt and drove him to his house.

Once there, Ryle told his wife he had found a dead Wal-Mart truck driver and wanted to crash the truck into his patrol car.

"Was the basis of the whole scheme to get a lot of money?" Brimmer asked.

"Yes sir," Ryle answered.

"And you were going to have to kill the truck driver?" the judge replied.

"Yes sir," Ryle answered again.

Ryle said he never took his gun out during the encounter but did touch it at one point. He ultimately drove Smidt back to his truck and let him go.

A week after the traffic stop, Ryle's brother-in-law -- a Casper police officer -- told the highway patrol about the incident. Smidt reported the encounter to patrol officials around the same time.

The patrol put Ryle on leave in mid-January. He was arrested two months later following a state and federal investigation. A federal grand jury indicted him on three charges in May.

Ryle's wife told investigators she suspected he might have been planning to kill her as part of the scheme. He was never charged with plotting to kill her.

She filed for divorce in February.

After the hearing, one of Ryle's attorneys said the former trooper suffered from serious depression and has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. The disorder came as a result of Ryle's experiences in the U.S. Marines and with the highway patrol, as well as in his personal life, Assistant Federal Public Defender David Weiss said.

"Joe was kind of a mess," Weiss told reporters.

Police officers should be offered more help to deal with mental health issues that come from their work, the attorney added.

"These guys are under a lot of stress," Weiss said.

Jim Barrett, another federal defender who also represents Ryle, said his client has been depressed for a long time. However, evaluations performed after Ryle's arrest did not show he suffered from a serious enough psychiatric issue to render him incompetent for trial.

Justice Department attorney Edward Caspar, who is prosecuting the case, declined to comment after the hearing and referred questions to his agency's public affairs office.

Ryle will remain in federal custody until sentencing, which is a few months away. He is being held in Scottsbluff, Neb.
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http://www.thetrucker.com/News/Stories/2009/7/21/FormerWyomingtrooperpleadsguiltyinplottokilltrucker.aspx

Trooper Franklin Joseph Ryle Waves Right to Hearing

CASPER, Wyo.

A Wyoming state trooper accused of federal civil rights violations will remain in custody.

Trooper Franklin Joseph Ryle on Tuesday waived his right to a preliminary hearing that would have forced the federal government to lay out its case against him in court. Ryle also waived his right to a detention hearing, meaning that he will remain in custody until he's arraigned later.

Ryle, 41, wore an orange jail jumpsuit and was led into the courtroom in handcuffs by officers during his appearance before U.S. Magistrate R. Michael Shickich.

Shickich told Ryle that he had a right to force the government to present evidence why the case against him should proceed. Ryle declined to do that.

Ryle also declined when Shickich asked him if he wanted a hearing on whether he should stay in custody.

"That being the case, the implication is that Mr. Ryle will remain in the custody of the United States," Shickich said.

Last week, U.S. Justice Department lawyer Edward G. Caspar filed papers in court asking that Ryle be jailed until a detention hearing could be held. Caspar indicated that Ryle faced the possibility of a life sentence in prison if convicted and indicated that there was a serious risk he would flee if allowed out of custody.

Ryle's decision to waive his preliminary and detention hearings means that details of the government's case against him remain secret to the public.

The Justice Department last week charged that Ryle, a 12-year veteran of the Highway Patrol, had violated a person's civil rights in January by kidnapping him at gunpoint and unlawfully arresting him. The complaint states that Ryle was acting "under color of law" during the incident.

In response to a request from the Justice Department, Shickich last week ordered some of the criminal complaint against Ryle and all of an FBI agent's affidavit supporting the complaint to be sealed.

Caspar declined comment on the government's case against Ryle after Tuesday's court hearing. He referred questions to a Justice Department public information officer in Washington. The public information officer said he could give no details of the government's case because the records remain sealed.

Records from the Justice Department Web site show that Caspar has been involved in several civil rights prosecutions around the country in recent years involving claims that police or correctional officers have brutalized people in custody.

Casper lawyer John Robinson represented Ryle in court. However, Robinson told Shickich that Ryle will apply for a public defender. Robinson said that once Ryle gets a public defender, Robinson will no longer be involved in the case.

Robinson declined comment after the court hearing.

State officials, including the governor's office and Wyoming Attorney General Bruce Salzburg, have declined comment on the case against Ryle.

Col. Sam Powell, administrator of the Highway Patrol, said last week that Ryle was on paid administrative leave.

Ryle was involved in an on-duty shooting in 2006 that prosecutors later determined was justified. Prosecutors
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http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2009/03/31/news/casper/2e0fcae2a4963e768725758b00009546.txt

Two Troopers on Leave in Conjunction with Franklin Ryle Jr Investigation

Two state troopers put on leave in conjunction with the investigation of former trooper Franklin Ryle Jr. no longer work for the Wyoming Highway Patrol.

As of Tuesday, Adam Longo and Devan Henderson were no longer employed by the patrol, said the agency's top administrator, Col. Sam Powell.

Powell said he couldn't go into further detail because it was a personnel matter. However, he did say the patrol is swiftly working to fill the vacancies with two recruits who've already accepted positions with the patrol.

Longo and Henderson had been stationed in Casper.

"We are going to move as quickly as we can to fill those vacancies," Powell said.

Longo had been on leave since Feb. 5. Henderson was put on leave Feb. 19.

The men were unavailable for comment Tuesday. Neither has a listed phone number.

In May, the patrol disclosed that both men were on paid leave. At that time, Powell did not explain exactly what prompted the move other than to say it was done in conjunction with the Ryle investigation.

Ryle, a former Douglas-based trooper, pleaded guilty last month to federal civil rights charges. He admitted to arresting a Wal-Mart truck driver in January as part of scheme to kill the driver and stage a crash with his patrol vehicle in order to collect a financial settlement.

Neither Henderson nor Longo has been arrested or charged with any crime.

Henderson told investigators he smuggled steroids from Mexico into the United States in 2003 or 2004, according to an FBI affidavit detailing the Ryle investigation. He claimed he and Ryle used the steroids as part of a body building program.

Ryle was also accused of soliciting Henderson to participate in his scheme to stage a crash with the Wal-Mart truck.

Henderson told an FBI agent he did not report Ryle to anyone because he wasn't sure Ryle was serious and because he didn't want to be considered a rat if the statements proved false, according to the affidavit.

Longo is not mentioned in any of the court documents.

Ryle, who was not indicted on any charges related to the steroid allegations, is awaiting sentencing next month.
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Trooper Franklin Ryle Accused of Violating Civil Rights & Kidnapping

A lawyer representing a Wyoming state trooper accused of federal civil rights violations has asked a judge to send the trooper for mental health counseling.

The Justice Department last month charged Trooper Franklin Ryle with violating another man's civil rights in January by kidnapping him at gunpoint and unlawfully arresting him.

Ryle is a 12-year veteran of the patrol and remains in custody at a detention center in Nebraska.
Assistant Federal Public Defender Jim Barrett in Cheyenne represents Ryle.

Barrett has filed papers in court informing U.S. District Judge Clarence Brimmer of Cheyenne that Ryle is so depressed that it might affect his ability to consult with his lawyer. Barrett asked the judge to allow Ryle to get mental health counseling in Nebraska.
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Trooper Joseph Ryle Arrested for Kidnapping

CHEYENNE

Federal authorities have arrested a Wyoming Highway Patrol trooper on a criminal complaint alleging the unlawful arrest and kidnapping of a person in January.

The U.S. Department of Justice issued a statement saying that trooper Franklin Joseph Ryle was arrested late Thursday in Douglas.

Ryle was scheduled to appear in federal court Friday afternoon in Casper.

Col. Sam Powell, administrator of the Wyoming Highway Patrol, confirms the arrest but declined comment on the investigation.

Powell says Ryle has been on paid administrative leave during the investigation.

No other information was immediately available.

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Trooper Jay Gruwell Charged with Sexually Abusing 5-year-old

A Wyoming Highway Patrol trooper has been charged with sexually abusing a child, according to documents released Wednesday by the Campbell County Attorney's Office.

The charges came after a 5-year-old girl alleged that Jay Gruwell made her touch his genitals, according to affidavit signed by a state agent.

The alleged abuse took place in May at a home in Gillette and the girl came forward shortly afterward, the document states. The affidavit indicates that Gruwell, who is stationed in Lusk, was off-duty at the time.

Gruwell, 54, did not respond to a message left Wednesday afternoon at a phone number listed for him in Lusk. He is charged with third-degree sexual abuse of a minor and faces up to 15 years behind bars if convicted.

In an interview with agents conducted four days after the allegations arose, he denied any wrongdoing. However, during a subsequent interview the same day, he said he remembered asking the girl if she wanted to touch him, authorities say.

Gruwell, who has been a trooper for 23 years, has been on administrative leave since May 20, said patrol administrator Col. Sam Powell.

Powell declined to comment on the allegations. He said Gruwell has an unblemished record with the patrol.

Gruwell is the second state trooper to face serious criminal allegations this year. Franklin Ryle Jr. pleaded guilty earlier this month to federal civil-rights charges in connection to an unlawful arrest he made as part of a scheme to kill a truck driver and stage a crash.

"I can certainly understand why people would be questioning certain things in the patrol of late," Powell said. "All I can do is reassure the people of Wyoming our selection process is solid. I would remind everyone, whether you are a police officer or not, that you are innocent until proven guilty."

Although the allegations against Gruwell date back two months, the Campbell County Attorney's Office could not acknowledge or discuss the case until Wednesday, after it was bound over to district court in Gillette. The office released Gruwell's charging document and a nine-page redacted affidavit signed by a special agent with the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation.

According to that document, Gruwell was visiting a home in Gillette at the time the child made the allegations. One person, whose identity was blacked out in the affidavit, told investigators that Gruwell was in town to attend a graduation.

On the morning of the alleged incident, Gruwell went downstairs to check his e-mail. About an hour later, the child came upstairs and told someone that Gruwell had just made her look at his "privates."

The child made similar allegations to a forensic child interviewer, but in contrast to the earlier account, said Gruwell made her touch him.

In the affidavit, investigators indicate that someone else had reported a past incident where Gruwell exposed himself. Gruwell reportedly told the agents he couldn't recall anything like that happening.