KIRKPATRICK
Kirkpatrick guilty of conspiracy in murder of Fargo dentist
FARGO — Gene Kirkpatrick was escorted out of a Cass County courtroom on Thursday to what could be life behind bars after a jury convicted him of plotting a murder-for-hire that killed Fargo dentist Philip Gattuso, his former son-in-law.
Jurors handed down the guilty verdicts for conspiracy to commit both murder and burglary at about 4:30 p.m., after deliberating for four hours a case that saw five full days of testimony.
By By Dave Roepke, Forum Communications Co. , July 29, 2011
Kirkpatrick doesn’t testify at trial
FARGO — Gene Kirkpatrick’s attorney told jurors when his murder conspiracy trial opened last week that he’d take the stand to defend himself, though he’s not required to by law.
The 64-year-old of Jones, Okla., accused of plotting a murder that orphaned his granddaughter, decided to change course Wednesday, as the defense rested after about four hours of testimony — none from Kirkpatrick and mostly a string of character witnesses who described him using the same three words: truthful, honest and law-abiding.
By By Dave Roepke, Forum Communications Co. , July 28, 2011
Defense set to mount case in Kirkpatrick trial
FARGO — The defense for Gene Kirkpatrick, the man standing trial for allegedly helping plot the murder of Philip Gattuso, will begin today after the state rested its case Tuesday morning.
Detective Paula Ternes, the case agent who headed up the homicide probe she called “massive” in scope, was the last of the prosecution’s 18 witnesses to take the stand. She testified Tuesday in large part to what investigators couldn’t find.
By By Dave Roepke, Forum Communications Co. , July 27, 2011
Kirkpatrick Trial - Defense: Tape at core of case proves nothing
FARGO — Gene Kirkpatrick had been questioned by detectives for nearly three hours when his wife told him no matter what he did, it can be fixed.
“This can’t be fixed,” he responded near the end of the statement, which is the core of a murder conspiracy charge against him.
“I don’t mean fixed,” his wife clarified. “You have to pay for it.”
By By Dave Roepke, Forum Communications Co. , July 22, 2011
Judge OKs Kirkpatrick statements
FARGO — An alleged confession by Gene Kirkpatrick, the man accused of hiring a hitman to kill his former son-in-law, was voluntary and is admissible at trial, a judge ruled Thursday.
Judge Steven Marquart said neither Kirkpatrick’s mindset during the nearly three-hour interview with police nor the manner the questioning was conducted deprived Kirkpatrick of his free will to choose to talk.
By By Dave Roepke, Forum Communications Co. , January 28, 2011
Jurors hear Kirkpatrick admission
Minutes after admitting he had paid his handyman to kill his granddaughter’s father, leaving the 3-year-old with no parents, Gene Kirkpatrick gave police his reasoning as an equation.
“I just felt like he was going to ruin her life,” he said of Kennedy Gattuso and her father, Philip Gattuso. “I thought her future welfare was more valuable than his life.”
By By Dave Roepke, Forum Communications Co. , December 03, 2010
Kirkpatrick to go on trial in October
Both men accused in the hammer beating that killed Philip Gattuso last fall are scheduled to stand trial.
A two-week trial starting Oct. 4 was set Monday for Gene Carl Kirkpatrick, 63, of Jones, Okla., who police suspect in the alleged murder-for-hire of Gattuso, his former son-in-law.
By By Dave Roepke, Forum Communications Co. , April 06, 2010
Call questioned in Kirkpatrick case
While out of jail on $1 million bail, a man accused of arranging the death of his former son-in-law to get custody of his granddaughter might have attempted to contact the girl, officials said in court Thursday.
Prosecutors divulged the unconfirmed attempt to try to contact the 3-year-old in a hearing in Cass County District Court, saying they investigated a suspicious call to the girl’s school — which would be a violation of bail conditions — but they couldn’t prove it came from the 63-year-old defendant, Gene Kirkpatrick.
By By Dave Roepke, Forum Communications Co. , March 19, 2010
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