By: Patti Weaver
(Stillwater, Okla.) — A Stillwater man and woman arrested in connection with the murder of a Cushing man, whose trailer was set on fire, are repeat drug offenders who served prison sentences for methamphetamine possession, state Department of Corrections records show.
Troy Wayne “TJ” Shadowen, 23, and Bridgett Nicole Barton, 29, were being held in the Payne County Jail this morning, a sheriff’s spokesman told KUSH.
The pair were arrested by the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation shortly before midnight on Wednesday in connection with the Monday slaying of Patrick McGuire, 40, according to an OSBI news release.
Shadowen was booked into jail on suspicion of first-degree murder, first-degree arson, and unauthorized use of a vehicle; Barton was booked into jail on suspicion of first-degree burglary, the news release said.
The body of McGuire was found at about 6:30 a.m. Monday after a passerby, who saw his travel trailer on fire in the 100 block of N. Wade in Cushing, called 911, the news release said.
According to Payne County court records, Shadowen was convicted in 2017 of possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute and having a firearm during the commission of a felony, for which he was given two concurrent five-year prison terms. Shadowen was also convicted in 2017 of possessing methamphetamine in 2015, for which he was given another concurrent five-year prison term, court records show.
Shadowen served almost two years before he was released from prison in December of 2018, to five years of probation, court records show.
However, a probation officer recommended on Aug. 14, 2019, that 12 months of the suspended portion of his sentence be revoked since he had obtained a new misdemeanor drug charge and failed to report as directed, court records show.
In that 2019 drug case, Shadowen was arrested after Cushing police were sent at 1:37 a.m. on Aug. 12, 2019, on a report of auto burglary, according to the probation violation report.
Asked why he ran from police, Shadowen said he was afraid of headlights, the report said. “He further advised when he realized it was law enforcement following him, he threw a baggy of marijuana in the bushes,” the report alleged. However, that substance turned out to be methamphetamine, the report alleged.
On Nov. 6, 2019, Shadowen pleaded guilty in that misdemeanor case for which he was ordered into Drug Court, but he repeatedly failed to report as scheduled for an initial assessment, according to a Jan. 6, 2020, letter from the Drug Court administrator.
According to Payne County court records, Barton also been convicted of two drug charges in Payne County — first in 2012 of possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute in 2011, for which she was given a five-year prison term with the condition that if she completed substance abuse treatment in custody, the balance would be suspended, which it was in 2013 when she was released. Barton also was convicted of possessing methamphetamine again in 2016, for which she was given 10 years of probation.
After Barton got out of prison, she had four misdemeanor charges — possessing methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia in Stillwater in September of 2018, possessing methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia in Stillwater in June of 2018, passing a $200 forged check in Stillwater in December of 2017, and obstructing an officer along with possessing stolen personal checks, methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia in Stillwater in December of 2017. After Barton pleaded guilty to all of those misdemeanor counts, on Jan. 7, 2020, she was ordered into Drug Court, with her sentencing postponed to Oct. 13, 2020.
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