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July 20, 2001

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — A man who helped lure another man to a motel room, then stabbed him to death was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison.

Paul Foss, 27, had been convicted of murder for killing Jeff Wahlen, a 45-year-old gay youth outreach worker in northeastern Wisconsin. A judge Wednesday set his parole eligibility for 50 years to coincide with the number of times Wahlen was stabbed.

No motive was ever given for his killing, said Karen Dorau, a county victim witness coordinator. Green Bay Police did not recommend a hate crime charge against Foss and his accomplice Daniel Chipman, said Chief James Lewis.

"There was no clear indication it (Wahlen's murder) was based on one of the hate categories," he said.

Police said Wahlen met Foss and Chipman outside an adult bookstore and went with them to drink beer at a motel. Once in the room, Wahlen showed them a gay pornographic magazine and complimented Chipman on his appearance.

Foss then stabbed Wahlen in the back and Chipman hit Wahlen in the face with a beer bottle, a criminal complaint said.

Chipman was sentenced in May to life in prison. He was arrested last June after the FBI received a letter detailing the killing from Foss, who was in prison for an unrelated armed robbery.

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