Trial will remain in Linn County for Marion man accused in slaying of four

CEDAR RAPIDS — A judge denied moving the trial for a Marion man accused of bludgeoning four people with a metal pipe last summer, ruling the defense failed to show pretrial publicity prevents him from having a fair and impartial jury in Linn County.

In the Thursday ruling, 6th Judicial District Judge Liz Dupuich said some of those summoned for jury duty in Linn County — the state’s second most populous county with more than 200,000 people — may have heard about Luke Wade Truesdell, 34, who is charged with four counts of first-degree murder.

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But, she ruled, the evidence presented by the defense was insufficient to move the trial.

“Our democracy tolerates extensive media coverage, and the presumption of inherent prejudice is reserved only for extreme cases,” Dupuich wrote in the ruling.

Dupuich said she was willing to consider calling a larger jury pool than normal, having individual questioning and questionnaires to assess impartiality of potential jurors, if the defense requests it.

She also said if, during the jury selection process, there is a “substantial likelihood that a fair and impartial trial cannot be maintained in Linn County,” then the defense can renew its motion for a change of venue.

The exhibits of media coverage presented by Truesdell’s lawyers mostly were taken from public sources, such as police and court documents, and aren’t inflammatory in tone or contain “editorial” statements about Truesdell, according to the ruling.

Dupuich also said the articles didn’t indicate Truesdell was guilty or provide inaccurate or misleading information, as the defense had argued.

Truesdell’s trial set for April 8. He remains in the Linn County Jail under a $4 million bail.

Background

Law enforcement was called at 3:56 p.m. June 5, 2024, to 3699 E. Otter Rd., north of Marion, for a report of people passed out in a detached garage or outbuilding of the property, according to an unsealed search warrant filed last September.

When deputies entered the building, they found four people who had been struck with a blunt force object or other weapon, causing serious injuries to their head and neck, the court document stated.

Amanda Sue Parker, 33, of Vinton, and her boyfriend, Romondus “Roe” Lamar Cooper, 44, of Cedar Rapids, and Keonna Victoria Ryan, 26, of Cedar Rapids, were all dead at the scene.

Brent Anthony Brown, 34, Ryan’s boyfriend, “still showed signs of life,” according to the court document. He was flown by air ambulance to a hospital but died three days later.

The property where the killings happened is owned by Lon Brown, the father of Brent Brown.

When authorities arrived, they found Truesdell sitting outside near the outbuilding, according to the warrant. He appeared “emotional” and was sitting on the sidewalk outside the house.

After a short interview, Truesdell, still emotional, described going into the outbuilding and admitted hitting the four people with a pipe and told police where to find it in the outbuilding.

Truesdell said he killed the four because of “various reasons, including drug use, past trauma,” and he ”identified one victim, Cooper, as a person who would distribute meth to him.”

Truesdell said methamphetamine use may have contributed to him “trying to get rid of all 4 of them,” according to the court document. He told a detective he “felt better after this and the pain in his head was no longer there,” the search warrant stated.

Law enforcement verified Truesdell acted alone and that his father, Larry Truesdell, was outside the outbuilding at the time of the murders, according to the court document.

Police found the metal pipe near the west entry door to the building. It appeared to have blood, hair and other “bodily evidence” on it, according to the warrant.

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