CHEYENNE, Wyo. — The courtroom shed new light on details in the tragic case of Stacey “Jason” Mullen during a preliminary hearing at Laramie County Circuit Court on Jan. 19.
On Aug. 20, 2023, Mullen was found unresponsive at Curt Gowdy State Park, launching an investigation. Wyoming State Parks requested assistance from the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office due to the severity of Mullen’s injuries and the potential of death, according to police reports.
Mullen was taken to Cheyenne Regional Medical Center, then airlifted to Swedish Medical Center in Englewood, Colorado, suffering from what Doctor Jason Greer described as “one of the worst brain bleeds he had ever seen.”
On Aug. 28, 2023, Detective Sgt. Martinez was notified by staff at Swedish Medical Center that Mullen was removed from life support and had died, according to police affidavits.
Kellum and Perry’s Initial Account
Initially, Gizelle Kellum, identified as Mullen’s emergency contact, described Mullen as a transient who mainly kept to himself. She and her husband, Russell Perry, admitted to having previously taken Mullen to the hospital for alcoholism-related issues.
Further investigation revealed that Kellum and Perry had a deeper connection with Mullen, often drinking together.
Kellum and Perry initially claimed they last saw Mullen around 7 p.m. on Aug. 19, 2023, after dropping him off near the Ames underpass in downtown Cheyenne. However, Walmart surveillance footage and cellphone tower data contradicted their account, placing their phone near the park around the time Mullen was likely assaulted, according to the affidavit.
A Change in Narrative
Kellum’s narrative began to shift during subsequent interrogations. On Oct. 19, Kellum revealed that on the night of Aug. 19, after consuming alcohol, Perry and Mullen got into a physical altercation.
Perry fought off Mullen, and when Mullen was knocked unconscious, Perry, Kellum and an unidentified man placed him in the back of their truck, then Kellum and Perry drove to the Crystal Lake Reservoir by the dam.
Perry told police he “roughed him up” that night but sustained no injuries himself. The amended autopsy report from the Arapahoe County Coroner’s Office classified Mullen’s death as a homicide caused by blunt force injuries from an assault.
On Jan. 11, 2024, Cheyenne law enforcement arrested Russell Perry and Gizelle Kellum in connection with the death.
The Preliminary Hearing
Detective Benjamin Delcamp testified that Kellum and Perry’s story changed after learning that their cellphone was identified at Curt Gowdy State Park. Delcamp also noted that there was no blood found in the truck when it was seized for a search warrant, and no offensive injuries were found on Mullen.
Perry’s public defender, Brandon Booth, emphasized the initial autopsy report, which included the possibility that Mullen could have fallen from a great height.
He argued this could have caused Mullen’s significant injuries, challenging the narrative of a severe assault. Both Perry and Kellum’s accounts of the fight state that Perry struck Mullen three times, which Booth argued was not enough to account for the injuries.
He also challenged that the autopsy report was modified after police gave information that Mullen was involved in a fight, but were not told that Mullen had been riding in the back of a moving truck, and may have fallen out. Furthermore he argued that if Mullen’s injuries were so significant then there should have been blood in the truck or on the blanket used to cover up Mullen.
Diane M. Lozano, defending Kellum, highlighted her mental health issues, her being a relative of Perry — which would make the charge of accessory after the fact a misdemeanor — and her statements being the reason the police could break the case.
Judge Sean C. Chambers concluded there is probable cause that Kellum and Perry committed a crime. The case was bound to the district court for arraignment, with no bond modification for either defendant.
