Trisha Stemple Justice Served as the State of Oklahoma Executes Her Killer

 

In the early morning hours of October 24, 1996, Trisha Stemple, was brutally murdered. Her body was left on the side of U.S. Highway 75 in Tulsa County, Oklahoma.

Her husband  Timothy Shaun Stemple was charged and convicted of the killing of his wife.

At trial the prosecutor's case was strong proving to a jury Timothy Stemple concocted a plan to terminate the life of his wife, Trisha Stemple, and to collect her life insurance proceeds. Stemple was having an extra-marital affair with Dani Wood. Dani Wood had a sixteen year old cousin, Terry Hunt. According to Hunt, Stemple offered him $25,000 to $50,000 to help kill Trisha (if they collected the insurance money).  Hunt recruited another person, to assist in the plan. Nat Helm and Hunt went to Wal-Mart where they purchased a baseball bat and plastic wrap. The
plastic wrap was wrapped around the bat to keep the bat from getting bloody.
On October 10, 1996, Hunt and Helm went to the designated location on highway
75 and waited for Stemple and his wife to arrive. A while later Stemple drove up and
told Helm and Hunt that Trisha was ill and he could not get her to accompany him.

Two weeks later, Stemple arranged for Hunt to drive Stemple’s pickup to a particular
location on highway 75 and leave the hood up. Stemple and Trisha arrived in their
black Nissan Maxima. Stemple began working on the truck and Trisha stood next to
the truck. Hunt came up behind Trisha and hit her in the head with the bat. The blow
did not render Trisha unconscious, so Stemple took the bat and hit her several more
times.

Stemple and Hunt then placed Trisha’s head in front of the front tire of the pickup
and attempted to run over her head, however, the tire would not roll over Trisha’s
head so her head was pushed along the pavement. After this, Trisha tried to get up.
Stemple grabbed the bat and hit her several more times. The pair then placed Trisha’s
body under the truck and drove over her chest. Trisha rose up on her
elbows, so Stemple hit her again several times with the bat.

Stemple then went back to the black Nissan and drilled a hole in the front tire to
make it look as if Trisha’s car had a flat. One expert testified that the hole in the tire
had spiral striations consistent with drilling. Stemple and Hunt left in the pickup, but
decided to turn around to make sure Trisha was dead. When they got back to the spot
where they left Trisha, they noticed that she had crawled into the grass beside the
road. Stemple then sped up and ran over Trisha as she lay in the grass.

Trisha’s body was found later that morning, after Stemple called reporting that she
was missing. The autopsy evaluation revealed that Trisha had fractures to her arm,
ribs, pelvis, vertebrae and skull. The medical examiner concluded that Trisha died
from blunt force trauma to the head.

After years of unsuccessful appeals, today, at 6:00 PM Central time Timothy Shaun Stemple will be executed by lethal injection for the murder of Trisha Stemple.

On a Website called FreeShaun.com a letter written by Stemple on March 5, 2012, claiming his innocence  posted for the world to read.  A jury sent a message when Trisha Stemple, mother of two was brutally murdered.  Trisha's voice silenced, as so many victims of intimate partner violence leading to homicide are, across the county by those who profess to love them.  The Governor of Oklahoma as of yesterday, does not intend on issuing a stay of execution for Stemple.

Today, Trisha Stemple has the last word as the angels sound their horns for justice!

Susan Murphy Milano is a staff member of the Institute for Relational Harm Reduction and Public Pathology Education as a educator and specialist with intimate partner violence prevention strategies directing prevention for high risk situations and cases.

 A national trainer to law enforcement, training officers, prosecutors, judges, legislators, social service providers, healthcare professionals, victim advocates and the faith based community and author.. In partnership with Management Resources Ltd. of New York addressing prevention and solutions within the community to the workplace. Host of The Susan Murphy Milano Show,"Time'sUp!" . She is a regular contributor to the nationally syndicated "The Roth Show" with Dr Laurie Roth and a co-host onCrime Wire. Online contributions: Forbes : Crime, She Writes providing commentary about the hottest topics on crime, justice, and law from a woman’s perspective, as well as Time's Up! a blog which searches for solutions (SOS) for victims of crime.