Pubdate: Sat, 21 May 2005
Source: Indianapolis Star (IN)
Copyright: 2005 Indianapolis Newspapers Inc.
Contact: http://www.indystar.com/help/contact/letters.html
Website: http://www.starnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/210
Author: Tim Evans
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

IN GIRL'S DEATH, A TWISTED TRAIL TO NEW SUSPECT

Murder Charges Are Dropped Against Man Who Had Confessed; Another Man Is
Charged

BROWNSTOWN, Ind. -- Investigators wrestled with holes in Charles
"Chucky" Hickman's confession to killing 10-year-old Katie Collman.
People he said had played a role in Katie's death had solid alibis.

Hickman said Katie fell into the water and drowned, then later said he
had pushed her in. He gave at least four different statements about
her death. Then DNA found on the girl's body and on material used to
tie her hands behind her back didn't match Hickman's. On Friday, more
than three months after Hickman's arrest, prosecutors dropped the
murder charges against him and filed them against Anthony R.
Stockelman, 38, Seymour. Prosecutor Stephen Pierson also filed notice
that he plans to seek the death penalty for Stockelman, citing Katie's
age and the fact that she was sexually assaulted as the necessary
aggravating circumstances. "We had doubts early on as to some of the
things he (Hickman) said," Pierson told reporters Friday after
announcing the new charges. "He gave investigators four different
statements and made a couple more on the (courthouse) sidewalk.

He's just been all over the place." Pierson said the new evidence came
in about the same time investigators determined that they were not
going to be able to corroborate Hickman's story. Hickman will remain
in the Jackson County Jail on an unrelated child-molesting charge. For
months, investigators believed Katie was killed because she had
witnessed some Crothersville residents engaged in drug activity.

The legislature passed a law to restrict access to key ingredients in
methamphetamine in part because of her killing. Now, prosecutors say
they know of no link between her death and meth. Pierson said he had
no idea why Hickman, 21, made up the story of killing Katie. "Got me,"
he replied to questions about Hickman's motive. "It is unusual for
persons to confess to a murder they did not commit, but it is
certainly not unheard of." The case against Stockelman was several
months in the making.

After the DNA evidence came back, he was charged April 6 with
molesting Katie around the time of her death. Investigators said then
that they knew of no link between Stockelman and Hickman. Pierson said
that in hindsight, everything Hickman knew about the slaying was
available to the general public. "Should something turn up that leads
me to believe he was involved, I can still refile charges," he said
Friday. The prosecutor said he was considering filing a
false-informing charge against Hickman. The fabricated confession
misdirected investigators for nearly two months and might have cost as
much as $100,000 in time and other resources, Pierson said. The
prosecutor would not second-guess the decision to initially focus on
Hickman. "When you are in a murder investigation, and someone stands
up and says, 'I did it,' all the attention immediately shifts to that
person to try to corroborate what they are telling you." Pierson said
investigators did not pressure Hickman to confess. "Nothing could be
further from the truth," he said. He said the interrogations of
Hickman were low-key and lasted about a half-hour each. Pearson said
Hickman isn't the most articulate person but said he does not believe
he is insane. Hickman's attorney, John Plummer III, said he could not
explain the confession but said his client now denies any involvement
in the abduction and death. "I don't think the science in the case
lies," Plummer said. "I think the police have to follow what the facts
are and not speculate as to why people say what they say sometimes."
Katie, a fourth-grader, was last seen alive Jan. 25 while walking home
from a nearby store in the small southern Indiana town about 40 miles
north of Louisville, Ky. Her body was found Jan. 30 in a creek about
15 miles from her home. Hickman -- who didn't have a job and
apparently lived off money from a settlement obtained after a serious
car accident several years ago -- confessed to the killing and was
arrested Feb. 2. But Pierson said Friday that DNA and other evidence
analyzed since Hickman's confession all points to Stockelman. Court
documents filed in the new case say Stockelman's DNA matches DNA found
on the girl's body and on "binding materials" used to tie Katie's
hands behind her back. His DNA also was found on the butt of an
unusual brand of cigarette recovered from the area near where Katie's
body was discovered. Stockelman -- who had been interviewed two days
after Katie disappeared and again after her body was recovered -- told
police he hadn't been in the area where the body was found for about
10 years, according to the documents. An FBI agent who interviewed the
manufacturer and distributor of the Roger 100 brand cigarettes
discovered they were not available 10 years ago and that a butt left
outside would quickly deteriorate. Investigators also learned that
Stockelman, who worked at the Valeo Sylvania automotive lighting
systems plant in Seymour, was at his mother's home in Katie's
neighborhood on the day she disappeared. He owns a white Ford F-150
pickup truck like the one a witness saw the girl riding in with a man
that day. Stockelman's wife, Tabitha, said she was shocked at the new
murder charges and criticized prosecutors for changing their theory on
how Katie was killed. "I think they have no idea what they are doing,"
she said. "I think they pinned it on him because he was in the area."
Stockelman's attorney, James Kilburn, disputed the prosecutor's claim
to have a strong case against Stockelman. "I would assume he thought
he had a very strong case against Chucky Hickman, too," Kilburn said.
Katie's father, John Neace, said he feels like he has been on an
emotional roller coaster. "For me, this will never be over, but Katie
will get to rest soon," he said after watching Stockelman's initial
court appearance Friday morning. Neace declined to comment on Hickman
and said he found no solace in the fact that Katie apparently was
killed by a stranger, rather than a neighborhood resident with whom
the family was acquainted. "That doesn't make me feel any better at
all," he said. Neace said the new information indicating meth did not
play a role in Katie's death would not affect plans to build a
playground in her memory. Creating the playground was one way local
residents planned to take a stand against the drug, which has become a
growing problem in many rural parts of Indiana, including Jackson
County. "Katie's going to live on through that playground," he said.

Sidebar

What's next in the case

Anthony R. Stockelman, 38, Seymour, has been charged with murder and
confinement in the death of 10-year-old Katie Collman. He will make an
initial court appearance July 12, and a trial has been scheduled for
Nov. 8. Charles "Chucky" Hickman will remain in the Jackson County
Jail on an unrelated child-molesting charge.

Following the case

There have been a number of twists and turns in the search for the killer of
10-year-old Katie Collman, of Crothersville:

Jan. 25: Katie is last seen alive while walking from a nearby store in her
small southern Indiana town, about 40 miles north of Louisville, Ky.

Jan. 26: Neighbors and police launch an all-out search for the girl.

Jan. 30: Katie's body is found in a creek about 15 miles from her home.

Feb. 2: Charles "Chucky" Hickman is arrested.

He tells investigators Katie was killed after witnessing drug activity
involving himself and his friends.

April 6: Anthony R. Stockelman, 38, Seymour, is arrested and charged with
sexually assaulting Katie.

April: Later in the month, Hickman tells reporters he didn't kill Katie.

May 20: Prosecutors announce they are dropping charges against Hickman and
filing murder charges against Stockelman.
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