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Richard Rife, one of two men mistakenly charged in connection with the sinking of the Mary Woods, feels he was mistreated while detained in the Jackson County Detention Center and has made contact with an attorney.
According to Rife, other inmates were offered bribes if they could get Rife to admit he caused the floating museum to sink.
“They told the other guys that they would give them cigarettes and trustee jobs if they could get me to confess to sinking the boat,” Rife said.
Rife, who pled guilty to trespassing at Jacksonport State Park, also said his shoes and boots were taken from him and worn by another inmate.
“The trustee wore my shoes for about three weeks,” Rife said. “I kept telling the guards about it, but they wouldn’t do anything.”
His shoes and boots were returned to Rife when he was released, but he said his cell phone is still missing.
“The police must have it because my ex-wife told me that they used my phone to contact her,” Rife said.
Rife admitted he and Paul Morrison, the other man authorities wrongly believed sank the boat, did trespass, but he contends he never set a single foot on the deck of the Mary Woods on the night in question.
“I know for sure that I did not get on that boat,” Rife said. “I was drinking, but I would remember getting on there and doing anything.”
Rife, who has lived in Newport for the last seven years, was surprised when authorities came to his door at a local motel that Sunday evening.
“They knocked on the door and asked for me,” Rife said. “I opened the door, and I was under the impression that they wanted me for some warrants that I had in Diaz for unpaid fines.”
He was even more shocked when he noticed one of the officers was pointing a firearm in his direction.
“The state police officer pulled his pistol on me and told me to sit on the bed,” Rife said.
Rife said he never admitted to anything during questioning and was stunned when police told him Morrison had implicated him.
“They started telling me about the boat sinking, and they said that Paul had told them I had kicked in a door and turned a valve,” Rife said. “Then they started telling me that we don’t believe you did that because Paul is a bigger guy than you, so we think that he did it. They were trying to get me to say that Paul did it, but I said that he couldn’t have because he was with me.”
Rife also thinks Scott Nance, the public defender assigned to his case, failed to properly represent him because he failed to contact Rife until shortly before he was released.
“I didn’t get to talk to my lawyer until they decided that I hadn’t turned any valves, and that was about two weeks before I got out,” Rife said.
Rife said when he first spoke with Nance that an offer was made to reduce the charges to breaking and entering, but Rife refused to agree to the deal.
“I told him that I didn’t break into anything, and there is no way that I am going to plea to breaking and entering because the only thing I did was trespass by driving around that gate.”
Nance then told Rife that Morrison’s attorney, Randy Rudisill, was worried the men might file a lawsuit against the public defenders because they had not filed any motions to get their bail reduced.
“He told me that your partner’s lawyer is afraid that you guys are going to sue us because we were supposed to be getting your bail lowered,” Rife said.
Efforts have been made to contact Morrison, but those attempts have been unsuccessful.
Richard Rife, one of two men mistakenly charged in connection with the sinking of the Mary Woods, feels he was mistreated while detained in the Jackson County Detention Center and has made contact with an attorney.
According to Rife, other inmates were offered bribes if they could get Rife to admit he caused the floating museum to sink.
“They told the other guys that they would give them cigarettes and trustee jobs if they could get me to confess to sinking the boat,” Rife said.
Rife, who pled guilty to trespassing at Jacksonport State Park, also said his shoes and boots were taken from him and worn by another inmate.
“The trustee wore my shoes for about three weeks,” Rife said. “I kept telling the guards about it, but they wouldn’t do anything.”
His shoes and boots were returned to Rife when he was released, but he said his cell phone is still missing.
“The police must have it because my ex-wife told me that they used my phone to contact her,” Rife said.
Rife admitted he and Paul Morrison, the other man authorities wrongly believed sank the boat, did trespass, but he contends he never set a single foot on the deck of the Mary Woods on the night in question.
“I know for sure that I did not get on that boat,” Rife said. “I was drinking, but I would remember getting on there and doing anything.”
Rife, who has lived in Newport for the last seven years, was surprised when authorities came to his door at a local motel that Sunday evening.
“They knocked on the door and asked for me,” Rife said. “I opened the door, and I was under the impression that they wanted me for some warrants that I had in Diaz for unpaid fines.”
He was even more shocked when he noticed one of the officers was pointing a firearm in his direction.
“The state police officer pulled his pistol on me and told me to sit on the bed,” Rife said.
Rife said he never admitted to anything during questioning and was stunned when police told him Morrison had implicated him.
“They started telling me about the boat sinking, and they said that Paul had told them I had kicked in a door and turned a valve,” Rife said. “Then they started telling me that we don’t believe you did that because Paul is a bigger guy than you, so we think that he did it. They were trying to get me to say that Paul did it, but I said that he couldn’t have because he was with me.”
Rife also thinks Scott Nance, the public defender assigned to his case, failed to properly represent him because he failed to contact Rife until shortly before he was released.
“I didn’t get to talk to my lawyer until they decided that I hadn’t turned any valves, and that was about two weeks before I got out,” Rife said.
Rife said when he first spoke with Nance that an offer was made to reduce the charges to breaking and entering, but Rife refused to agree to the deal.
“I told him that I didn’t break into anything, and there is no way that I am going to plea to breaking and entering because the only thing I did was trespass by driving around that gate.”
Nance then told Rife that Morrison’s attorney, Randy Rudisill, was worried the men might file a lawsuit against the public defenders because they had not filed any motions to get their bail reduced.
“He told me that your partner’s lawyer is afraid that you guys are going to sue us because we were supposed to be getting your bail lowered,” Rife said.
Efforts have been made to contact Morrison, but those attempts have been unsuccessful.
