Crime & Safety

Man Charged in Royal Oak Woman's Slaying Was Defending Himself, Friend Testifies

Judge sends case to trial after hearing friends testify that Ranae Chupick invited Christopher Hearn to her apartment for a late night rendezvous, which then became violent.

The man charged with stabbing a woman to death in her Royal Oak home in September said he was defending himself after she invited him over with risque text messages and then attacked him, his friend testified Friday morning.

After hearing testimony during a preliminary hearing in , Judge Terrence Brennan ruled there was probable cause to hold over Christopher Hearn for trial in the death of Ranae Chupick. 

On Sept. 19, worried co-workers  inside in her second-floor apartment on Rochester Road north of 13 Mile. The apartment showed signs of a struggle, and Chupick was found partially nude, beaten and stabbed at least 12 times, Royal Oak Police . 

Find out what's happening in Royal Oakwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Police said the 23-year-old Hearn admitted to a friend he had killed 41-year-old Chupick, with whom he had an on-and-off relationship after working together at the in Royal Oak. 

and was arrested on a charge of domestic assault on Chupick in 2010 but was not convicted. Hearn was released from state prison in January 2010 after serving more than three years on a Livingston County home invasion conviction, state records show.

Find out what's happening in Royal Oakwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Hearn was of a friend after law enforcement officials received a tip. 

Under questioning from Assistant Oakland County Prosecutor Jason Pernick on Friday, Kevin Kaminske of Clinton Township testified that beginning Sept. 19 he noticed a change in his roommate's demeanor. “I had a general sense something was wrong. He was acting strange,” Kaminske said of Hearn, who was staying with him after moving back to Michigan from Miami at the end of the summer.

After initially dodging questions, Kaminske said Hearn told him he “did something really bad.”

“He began by explaining he got into a fight with (Chupick),” Kaminske testified. “Basically, he said she had been smoking crack cocaine or using drugs and drinking and that she began a fight with him. She had swung a wine bottle at him and missed and he just lost it.”

Hearn went on to explain that he stabbed Chupick from behind in her torso and neck, according to Kaminske, and that he acted in self-defense.

After their conversation, Kaminske said he was in a state of shock and went for a walk. “I was kind of somewhere between upset and afraid,” he said.

Rather than call 911 or the Royal Oak Police, he called Crime Stoppers and his mother to share Hearn’s story, leaving Hearn alone for approximately 25 minutes, he said. When he returned to his home, Hearn told Kaminske he wanted to break into his safe and steal his gun, the friend said.

“He said he wanted to kill himself,” Kaminske said.

Using a cell phone, Kaminske recorded a second conversation with Hearn admitting to stabbing Chupick in self-defense after she grabbed a knife. Kaminske stood up to reenact how Hearn described to him clutching her from behind and slashing her neck.

Another prosecution witness, Derek Brown, said he picked up Hearn at 9:30 p.m. on Sept. 18 at Kaminske’s Clinton Township condominium to take him to Pontiac for drinks at the Liberty Bar. Brown testified Hearn received 15-20 text messages from Chupick while they were in Pontiac, some of them provocative. “He was excited to see her,” Brown said. “He was hoping to get laid.”

Chupick texted her address and the men left the bar at approximately 11:30 p.m., Brown said. Brown then drove Hearn to Chupick’s apartment, he said.

“The next time I heard from him was in the morning at 7:30,” Brown said. He said he picked up Hearn outside Chupick’s apartment, describing Hearn as quiet and a “little distraught” on the ride home.

Brown testified he noticed Hearn limping. “He said (Chupick) kicked him and he had fallen down the steps,” Brown said. “He injured his knee.” Brown said he did not notice any signs of blood.

Brown, who is a member of the National Guard, said he took Hearn to an armory in Detroit and then to Henry Ford Hospital in Clinton Township for treatment.

Chupick's mother and sister listened quietly to the prosecutor's witnesses and made no comments to the media. Hearn did not appear to have any family members in court supporting him.

Hearn’s next hearing was scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Dec. 15 in front of Judge Nancy Grant in Oakland County Circuit Court where he will be tried on a charge of open murder. Hearn will remain in the Oakland County Jail without bond, where he has been held since his arrest.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.