Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - The curious death of Caleb Marple

Episode Date: November 9, 2020

Caleb Marple and his friend go out on the town for a bit of fun. After getting into an argument in a bar/restaurant, Marple leaves, only to run into trouble. Twelve days later, authorities find his body in a reservoir. What happened to Caleb Marple?    Joining Nancy Grace Today: Amanda Albright - sister Darryl Cohen - Former Assistant District Attorney, Fulton County, Georgia, Defense Attorney Dr. Angela Arnold - Psychiatrist, Atlanta Ga www.angelaarnoldmd.com Rob Slattery: Former Brooklyn, Ohio, Police Officer, Swat Team Officer (RET), Private Investigator at JAB Investigative Services, email: [e-mail] Joe Scott Morgan - Professor of Forensics Jacksonville State University, Author, "Blood Beneath My Feet" featured on "Poisonous Liaisons" on True Crime Network Levi Page - Investigative reporter Crime Online TIPLINE: Cleveland Police [phone] Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. How does a young guy in the prime of his life end up dead? The curious death of Caleb Marple. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. Volunteers gathered near the Center Street Bridge in downtown Cleveland today looking for a missing Westlake man. Police say 39-year-old Caleb Marple was last seen late Sunday evening leaving the Barley House restaurant on West 6th. Search teams were hoping to find him or any clues. Our hopes are that we find him today and that he is okay and that we're able to bring him home.

We're not looking for a body. We're looking for him. If you know where Caleb Marple is, call Cleveland Police. You're hearing our friends there at WKYC 3 News. Everyone that knew Caleb so very, very well was looking for him to return home and were stunned when they learned Caleb is dead. Twists and turns throughout the story have led me to the conclusion that we don't know the truth. With me, an all-star panel to break it down and put it back together again, Dr. Angela Arnold, renowned psychiatrist, joining me out of Atlanta. You can find her at AngelaArnoldMD.com.

Rob Slattery, the PI hired by Caleb's family, former Brooklyn, Ohio officer SWAT team member, private eye at JAB Investigative Services. Joseph Scott Morgan, professor of forensics, Jacksonville State University, author of Blood Beneath My Feet on Amazon, now the star of Poisonous Liaisons on the True Crime Network, CrimeOnline.com investigative reporter Levi Page, renowned defense attorney practicing in multiple jurisdictions, former prosecutor Daryl Cohen, and special guest, Caleb's sister, Amanda Albright.

Let's start at the beginning. This young guy, the whole world ahead of him, goes out with friends to a restaurant bar, The Barley House. Take a listen to this. He would do anything for anybody. Brianna Roberts says her uncle Caleb was a guy who loved his family and to have a good time. He was like a jokester. And that's what the night of May 17th started out as. Caleb and friends went to Barley House in Cleveland. There was an exchange, verbal exchange, and he was asked to leave the establishment. But he never went back to his Westlake home.

According to witnesses, Caleb walked about 10 more minutes where he was involved in a fight with a group outside of the Archer apartments in the flats. Then he kept walking. For 12 days, his family and friends looked for him. His body eventually found in the river. His death ruled accidental. His case closed. It just doesn't make sense. Like somebody had to have placed him there. It doesn't make sense. You're hearing our friends at WEWS News 5 Cleveland. That was Jesse Schultz speaking. So he and his friends are all out at this Barley House restaurant bar. At some point, you know, everybody's having a good time and drinking. There's a verbal altercation. And Caleb leaves.

He's spotted on video. He doesn't have his cell phone. So he's obviously trying to figure out, okay, now what am I going to do? I can't find my cell phone. With me, Levi Page, CrimeOnline.com investigative reporter. Levi, where was his cell phone? Nancy, apparently it was left in the car of the people that he was riding with to get to downtown Cleveland. Just to set up the timeline, it's May 17th, 2020, and he's hanging out with friends at Crocker Park Bar, which is in Westlake, Ohio.

That's a nice suburb where he lived, about 12 miles away from Cleveland. And then they decided that they wanted to go to Cleveland to have more fun, to go to another bar. And that's how they ended up in Cleveland. And his cell phone was left in someone's vehicle. So this is nowhere where he lives. He's like 15 miles at least from where he lives in the suburbs. Yes. Westlake, Ohio is the suburb. Very nice area. And then 12 miles away is Cleveland, where he vanished. So he goes to downtown Cleveland to this Barley House Bar restaurant. And he's with all of his friends.

Everybody's having a good time. And a verbal argument ensues. And Caleb leaves. Caleb Marple leaves. To you, Rob Slattery, PI at JAB Investigative Services. Thanks, Rob, for being with us. Rob, what does that video surveillance show Caleb is doing outside the Burley House? Well, we have been provided very little video. We have submitted

multiple requests to the city of Cleveland for the entire investigative file. We are actually in the court of claims now. We had to file a lawsuit against the city to obtain records. Excuse me. We've been able to obtain some records, but none of the videos. They at first stated they didn't have any videos. And then we showed them in other reports that videos have been turned over to them. They now admit there's more than two hours of video, but we still have not got our hands on those videos. What little we do have, though, we see that Caleb starts to walk away from the barley house, not bothering anybody, and just kind of walks out of view. You know, I've been there.

Dr. Angela Arnold, psychiatrist, joined me out of the Atlanta jurisdiction. Dr. Angie, I will never forget. I was not out of the cab for one minute before I realized the cab had driven off with my cell phone. I tried to get the guy back, but it was gone. So that's what happens here. And it's a thing like we're so used to our cell phones, you don't know what to do. And I'm looking at the video of Caleb right now. He comes out of the barley house and he's just leaned up. He can

walk fine. He is not inebriated. He's walking around. He's trying to figure out what am I going to do without my cell phone? And then finally he just takes off. At one point I can see him gesture like arms up in the air like, oh, and he walking that's what i'm saying i don't see anything amiss yet i agree with you in what sense i agree with what you're saying about what you don't that you don't see anything amiss and also i mean for goodness sake everything in our lives are on our cell phones no people don't memorize phone numbers or anything anymore. So he's all on his own now once he's out of that bar, isn't he? He's not quite sure why he left by himself. That's just something that I've been pondering.

But he's all on his own now, isn't he? Take a listen to our friend Alex Stokes at Fox 8. His friends say they are grateful for the support they've received both online and in person. People who can't be here have offered to make flyers or bring snacks or anything that they could do or drop off to show some type of support for our search party. But they are still hoping someone

may have more information. Check your phones, check your Instagram, anything, anyone that was out that night. Every day that has gone by without him has been painful. I know my husband's heart is torn out. It was his best friend, and I've never seen him cry so much. He's very lost right now, and that's why I'm doing this.

I loved Caleb as well, but I know my husband is lost. His loved one is trying to stay positive through it all. I'm hopeful that he is alive. I do feel that there's something wrong, and I want to be able to find him. And I really, truly in my heart feel that God is on our side in this. You are hearing friends, family speaking out when Caleb first goes missing. I can see in the video when he leaves the Barley house, he's walking perfectly fine. He doesn't look inebriated. He's not in an argument, nothing.

He walks outside the Barley house. He's standing there like he's trying to figure out what am I going to do without my cell phone? I can't call for a taxi. I can't call for an Uber. And then finally he throws one arm up and starts walking. Friends and family at the beginning holding out hope that Caleb is alive. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. What happened to Caleb Marple? With me now, let's go to someone that knows him better than any of us, his sister, Amanda Albright. Amanda, thank you for being with us the day you learned Caleb is missing.

What happened, Amanda? So I was actually at the grocery store with my daughter. We had sent a text to him just asking if he needed us to pick anything up for him. And what we got back was a response from his neighbor saying that she had his cell phone and that she did not know where he went. Okay, wait a minute. Why did the neighbor have the cell phone? Was that who he got a ride with? It's not clear to me exactly who they got a ride with. His neighbor has told police that it was two girls that they had met that night, gave them a ride downtown. Okay.

So they were at first at this local suburban restaurant bar, and then they all decide to go into Cleveland to the Barley House. That must be the people they got the ride with, the two girls. Correct. Okay. So then the neighbor, because of the ride, ends up with Caleb's phone. Is the neighbor that you spoke with that answered his phone, was he or she at the barley house that night? Yes. What did she say happened?

She told us that she did not see him leave. She doesn't know why he left. And that was basically it. But he left without his cell phone. And really, those people are that he went to the Barley house with are kind of out of the mix because we see him leaving alone and walking off like he's going to try to get a ride home. To you, Levi Page, CrimeOnline.com investigative reporter, what happens next? So as you mentioned, we saw the security camera of him walking out alone. And 10 minutes later, he gets into a confrontation with a group of people outside of an apartment complex, Archer Apartment. It's less than half a mile from the Barley House. And one witness told police that Caleb was body slammed.

And the police have said some witnesses lied to them and were not forthcoming. Whatever happened, we do know that security cameras inside the Archer apartments actually show blood on the steps of the apartments inside. Hold on. Whoa. This is a lot of evidence and it's affecting the timeline. First of all, take a listen to Alex Stokes at Fox 8. Friends and family of Caleb Marple gathered in the flats in downtown Cleveland Saturday, organized in several groups on land and by boat to try and find the 39-year-old. We're all here because we love Caleb. Marple had been seen around midnight on May 18th at Barley House, a bar on West 6th Street where he had gone with friends.

It was reported to police that he had left his phone in an Uber. Caleb's friends organized the search party because they say this is out of character for him, and they're worried. He's not a drug user. He doesn't have history of mental illness. He did not have his phone. His car and apartment are left untouched. We feel there's something wrong that we need to find him and bring him home. While the search was organized by Caleb's friends, Cleveland police were there to help. The groups were separated into five zones covering both the east and west banks of the flats. And they will stay within their zone until they look in every dumpster, every alleyway, knock on every private property door. Let me understand something, Levi Page.

You're saying that we're hearing all the friends saying he does not use drugs. He does not have any mental health issues. He left his phone in an Uber, but I think that got lost in translation because somewhere along the way, somebody, he left it with his ride. So that was translated to mean Uber, but it was with the people he drove to the Brawley house with. So explain to me, Levi Page, how he ends up getting attacked. Hold on, take a listen to Jesse Schultz at WEWS. In Westlake, police reports one witness says she saw Caleb get body slammed. The report shows police found blood near the Archer Apartments entryway. Now the goal is to overturn the cause of death ruling

and get Cleveland police to investigate further. It's hard not to question some of the things, some of the actions that were taken and how Cleveland conducted this lack of an investigation. They say they're slowly putting the pieces together and are confident they'll soon have a clear picture of what happened that night, but have one message for anyone involved.

Sooner or later, the truth is going to come out. Too many people know what happened that night. Too many people were involved. The truth will come out, but when? Amanda Albright, Caleb's sister, is with us, as well as the private eye hired by Caleb's family Levi Page how in the world is this guy who I can tell in the video he's not drunk he's walking perfectly fine

he walks away how does he end up body slammed in front of Archer Apartments where is Archer Apartments as it relates to the Barley House? And why is there blood found? Is it Caleb's blood?

So the Archer Apartments is about half a mile or less from the bar that he was at, the Barley House. Okay. And he walked there. That's how he got there. And security cameras show a group of people, young people, entering the apartment. One guy has blood on his hand and he's ducking, hiding his face from the camera. And then the steps, when you enter that apartment building, there's blood on the steps. We do not know if that blood has been identified as Caleb's or anyone else's blood. But what police have revealed is that a witness to this altercation said that Caleb was body slammed. And they've also said that some of the people

that they have interviewed have not been forthcoming and have lied to them about what happened. I don't understand Rob Slattery, P.I. with J.A.B. Investigative Services. He's walking along clearly looking for a cab or a way to get back home. So he walks probably about a five minute walk, Max, to the first thing he sees. And that's the Archer House Apart house apartments i assume is a high rise there are people out front how does he get end up getting body slammed he ended up the group of people that were entering walking up and entering into the archer apartments was the same group of people from the barley house that he had the confrontation with. They just happened to be crossing paths.

He left the bar first. That's documented by video. I just think he happened to be wandering that way trying to figure out what he was going to do to kind of save his night and get home. And he came across these people and they became agitated and more aggressive by the statements that Westlake police took. One of the people finally admitted to shoving Caleb and knocking him to the ground. And then another one of the people in the group, the term was scooped him up and body slammed him. But there's another statement by Westlake police of one of the females in the group that this person punched Caleb multiple times. So this was not a mutual combatant fight. This was an attack that would classify as an assault. So the same group that he had a verbal altercation with in the Barley House, he happens upon

five or six minutes later at the Archer House apartments. They're there. He was, quote, body slammed and beaten. Also, hope you're sitting down for this, in a police report, one witness states he, quote, didn't know where they put his body. But yet somehow, this has been ruled an accidental drowning. Crowning? Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. The curious death of Caleb Marple is weighing on my mind.

The pieces are not fitting together. Take a listen to WKYC 3 News' Rachel Polanski. 3 News Investigates has obtained video surveillance tracking much of Marple's final hours. At the Barley House on West 6th, cameras show Marple talking with friends. One minute after midnight, he walks out alone. His cell phone was accidentally left in a car hours earlier. Within 15 minutes, he's outside the Archer Apartments on West 9th Street. That's where he has a confrontation with a group of people.

Whatever happened was swift but bloody. Video cameras don't capture an assault, but they do show a man walking away, blood dripping from his hand. Witnesses initially said Marple was merely pushed. Later, a woman admitted he was, quote, body slammed. To you, Joseph Scott Morgan, professor of forensic at Shaxsville State University, I know you deal strictly with forensic evidence, but I find it very curious why the person going into the Archer House apartments would duck his head so video surveillance wouldn't catch his face. The same person with blood all over his hands, that was caught on video.

What does that mean to you regarding the blood? Well, what it says to me is that if you're obscuring your face in some way, you have an awareness that you're being watched, that there is a camera there. Now, I would have to know more relative to what the sourcing of this blood is. And right now, I think one of the most troubling things is that, as Levi had mentioned earlier, Nancy, there was no typology that was done relative to the source of the blood that they found outside of this place. And I think that's a shame. Is the blood now lost forever?

To Rob Slattery, private investigator at JAB Investigative Services, hired by Caleb Marple's family, did anyone sample the blood that was found to determine if it is Caleb's? As far as the blood on the steps, there is no documentation that we have been provided to show that they did secure any of that for testing or just as evidence. How much blood was there? It appeared to me it was quite a bit. I mean, you could actually, during the playing of the video at normal speed, you could actually see it dripping off of his hand. I mean, depending on how much blood Joe Scott, it could have indicated a mortal wound. Yeah, yeah, you're absolutely right.

It could. And I would, I will say this, the autopsy report, which I've reviewed, there are two injuries. If our, our listeners will simply take your right hand and place it directly above your right ear. Just go up about two or three inches. There's a two inch laceration right there. And then behind that, there's a one inch laceration. And when they say laceration, Nancy, that means that's not a cut. Okay. Contrary to what people think when they hear laceration, that's associated with blood force trauma. What I would like to know, I think, is these people that are talking about him being body slammed, I'd like to know what the point of contact was. If they saw this fellow being body slammed, I want to know at what point,

where did his body touch ground? When he was body slammed, did he impact on that space, that space that we've talked about adjacent to the right side of the to the right ear? Is that the point of contact where where this concussive event took place? So if he is, quote, body slammed, gets knocked unconscious. And then, as the witness said, he didn't know where they put the body. Yeah. If he's thrown in the water in that condition, he would drown. Yeah, he would. And I have to tell you, you know, looking through the autopsy reports, one of the things that kind of jumps out at you, if I ever hear that someone is drowned,

the first place I'm going to go in the autopsy, in the autopsy report are the weight of the organs. Nancy, both his left and his right lungs were double the standard weight. So he had inhalated water. Now, if he was incapacitated by this trauma to the head, he would not have had the ability, okay, to fight against this. He would have just been in the water floating and have inhalated the water, subsequently drowning. To Amanda joining us, this is Caleb's sister. Do Caleb know how to swim? Yes. No doubt about it? No doubt. Yes. Guys, take a listen to our friend Dave Mack at CrimeOnline.com. 39-year-old bachelor Caleb Marple is out with friends at a Crocker Park bar when the group decides to go downtown to Cleveland's Warehouse District. Just after midnight, he finds himself outside the bar alone and without his cell phone.

He left that inside the car of a woman who drove him and two friends downtown. Street cameras follow Marple as he walks around for about 10 minutes when he arrives at the Archer Apartments, where he is involved in a confrontation with a group of people. Witnesses tell police that Marple was pushed during the altercation. The report was later changed when a witness claimed Marple was body slammed. Surveillance video from the Archer Apartments doesn't show the incident, but it does show six to eight people entering the apartment complex with one man ducking his head from camera view with blood dripping from his hand. A woman walking behind the man is seen pointing out the blood drops on the indoor steps.

Caleb Marple is never seen again. To Amanda Albright, Caleb's sister. Amanda, again, thank you for being with us. What do you believe happened that night? I believe that either he was placed in the water or he sustained some sort of injury that would have, you know, if he were to have fallen in. But even that I don't think is possible given the location in which he was found. What do you mean by given the location? The location that he was found is a small waterway which has

fencing all around so he would have had to have jumped over a fence to have gotten in the water over there um and this is not a area where we see a lot of river flowing in and out. To you, Rob Slattery, the PI hired by Killam's family, I didn't realize that the water, the body of water where he was found, was surrounded by a fence. There is quite a bit of fencing and railings and different things to divide the water's edge for people passing by. And they kind of tried to make it sound like he just wandered in and that was it. He fell in.

That was his own fault. One of the troubling parts that we see is with this timeline, he was recovered on May 29th. May 30th were the riots in downtown Cleveland, and we believe that at that point, everything stopped. It was shelled. June 1st was the day that the autopsy was signed off on. June 6th, they decided that there were going to be no charges for anyone, even though they had statements that Caleb was struck and slammed to the ground.

They decided that there was insufficient evidence to even charge anybody with the assault of Caleb. Logistically, Rob Slattery, how far away is Archer Apartments, our Archer Apartments, I guess it's high rise, where he was body slammed and one of his attackers is left literally dripping in blood. How far is that from where his body is found in a body of water surrounded by a fence? Because he's body slammed less than 30 minutes before he disappears. So how far away is Archer Apartments from the body of water? It's really not that far. It's over a bridge and down several streets. Walking, 10 minute walk, 12 minute walk, roughly something like that. So the theory is he would have to walk after body slammed, losing blood, beaten up, two lacerations to the head.

He would have to walk about 15 minutes, climb over a fence and drown himself. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. Guys, we are talking about the curious death of a young man in the prime of his life. Starts out at a local restaurant bar with his buddies. They meet up with some women. They decide to go downtown Cleveland. That's where the trouble starts, at another restaurant bar named The Barley House. He goes in. His phone is left in his ride's car.

Everybody's having a good time. He leaves the bar after he gets in a verbal fuss with somebody, he starts walking, trying to get away home. About five to eight minutes away, he gets to the Archer House apartment complex, and there he runs in fortuitously with the same people that argued with him at Barley House. They body slammed him and beat him. One witness saying he, quote, didn't know where they put the body. Yet this still remains an accidental death ruling? Take a listen to Brian Duffy, Our Cut 9, at WOIOTV19.

Caleb Marple's family believes that justice is within reach, that the truth they believe in is just an investigation away. Marple lost his life after a night out in the warehouse district. We're putting together quite a puzzle here and we're just trying to get justice for the family. Rob Slattery, a former police officer, is the private investigator that Marple's family hired. The medical examiner has ruled Caleb's death is accidental, but Slattery believes there is now critical information regarding witness statements and evidence regarding the condition of Caleb's body that needs to be looked at in a different light. And we hope it changes his mind to where they changed the cause of death to undetermined

at this time. Witness statements, Slattery says, include two who claim to have known that Marple was dead in the days after the altercation, even though the body was not found until 12 days after he went missing. That's a critical point he'll make to the medical examiner. I believe it forces the local law enforcement to take another look at this. And with me, Rob Slattery, that private investigator who was speaking with Brian Duffy at WOIO. Tell me about witnesses that know Caleb is dead before his body's found. I got a phone call from one of the people that was at the Barley House in that group of people also at the Archer. And I believe he was kind of just trying

to feel me out for information, but he tripped up and he admitted that the next day he knew that Caleb was dead. And I said, really? And he, I said, well, how did you know that? And he goes, well, I got a phone call from somebody and I said, well, who called you? And he goes, well, I, you know, he's stuttering. Well, I don't remember. He goes, I, I kind of, you know what? I'm a little foggy and who called me? And I said, well, it's amazing. I said, I need to meet with you. I'd like to take a formal statement, and he says, well, why are you honing in on us?

He says, it seems like you're bullying, and you're just picking on us, and I said, well, you just admitted to knowing that someone was dead. You got a phone call that he was dead, and his body hadn't been found for another 11, almost 12 days. They said, and you guys were the last ones to see him alive. I said, you don't find that puzzling? I'm not going to ask you the name because I know you would have already told me if you

wanted it to be public, but you do know who you were speaking with, right? I do. Have you given the information to police yet? We're actually going back and forth with the Cleveland Law Department, trying to get all the records from them. I have not given this to them yet for the simple fact that I don't think they'll do anything right now unless their hands are tied. And this show today is going to, I believe, help us tremendously with that goal. The video shows a group of six to eight people entering Archer. One man ducking his head from the camera view, noticeably dripping blood from his hand. A woman who follows points to blood drops on the indoor steps.

So this person is still dripping blood even after he gets inside the Archer. That's a lot of blood. I mean, I don't understand. To you, Daryl Cohen, not only are you a renowned defense attorney now, but former prosecutor, I don't see how this could be ignored by police and the district attorney's office there in Cleveland. When you've got a witness that knows the person's dead and their body's not found till 10 days later, that's a smoking gun, Daryl. Nancy, it's a smoking AK-47. I don't understand on a practical matter I do because they are overwhelmed and the

pandemic has created a morass of problems for law enforcement and it was pointed out earlier that there were riots in Cleveland as there were all over the country but that doesn't excuse a lack of good, solid investigating. And let me, Nancy, let me return to this dying, drowning. Let's just assume for the moment he'd been beaten up, he'd been body slammed, he was bloody, and he was trying to escape, and he did scale the fence or jump the fence,

and maybe he went into the water to avoid being killed maybe he fell into the water i don't know none of us were there but that is murder yes he drowned because he was in the water in all likelihood but that is murder but also when you take into account the witness that says he didn't know what they did with the body indicates to me that Caleb was dead and then the body was moved. Just so you know, the local district attorney's office phone number there is 216-443-7800. Repeat, 216-443-7800. And Brett, if you could double check that number for me, the Cleveland District Attorney's Office. Cleveland Police is 216-621-1234. Repeat, 216-621-1234. Why isn't this case being investigated?

Straight back to Caleb's sister, Amanda Albright. Amanda, what, if anything, are police or the district attorney's office telling you? Well, it should be clear from the police reports that Cleveland police did not speak to one individual involved in this case. All the interviewing was done by Westlake. The Westlake police number is 440-871-3311. Repeat, 440-871-3311. Back to Rob Slattery, the private investigator hired by Caleb's family. Was the body slamming in the Westlake Police jurisdiction or the Cleveland Police jurisdiction?

It was in Cleveland down outside the Archer Apartments. And where his body was found, is that in Westlake or Cleveland Police jurisdiction? It's Cleveland's jurisdiction. So it's all Cleveland. So the body slamming and the discovery of Caleb's body all in Cleveland. Correct. Guys, I want you to hear from the victim himself. This is Caleb. He was the best man for his best friend's wedding, who the friend gone now into a deep depression. Here he is toasting the best man. I'd like to say a few quick words on behalf of Min and Christina.

It's truly an honor to be a part of this wedding. I've known Min since we were kids, and I've watched him grow into an exceptional young man. He's truly blessed to have found his beautiful bride Christina. There's no one better. The two of them are great people and have been great friends to me over the years and I know that they will have a wonderful life and a beautiful marriage. And so here's to me and Christina.

We love you. Congratulations. Just hearing his voice and life changes things, doesn't it? It was me and Christina that helped lead the search for Caleb when he went missing. You heard them speaking earlier.

To Amanda Albright, Caleb's sister, when you hear his voice, what do you think? It's hard to hear. We wait as justice unfolds. Nancy Grace, Crime Story, signing off. Goodbye, friend. This is an iHeart Podcast. Grace, Crime Story, signing off. Goodbye, friend.