Found Deceased CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, did not return from bike ride, Chaffee County, 10 May 2020 #3

[NervousNellie]

And one of the people listed is a family member.

I assume you mean her husband. If you mean one of the other members, we are not allowed to sleuth/discuss family members unless it is a topic already in MSM.

But if one of the other board members, in addition to her husband, is a family member I guess that makes my "must have more non-family than family" statement false.

I haven't worked at a foundation in many years, so it's possible what I remember as an IRS regulation was actually a foundation rule instead? Not sure if my memory is wrong, or if the rules have changed?

So, my posts on the topic of foundations should be considered opinion, based on my somewhat-distant-past experience rather than known fact. I will not discuss it further since I'm just speaking from personal experience rather than actual knowledge.

 

[Seattle1]

If they started a early required lie detector test system ,wouldn't that make a lot of guilty people expose themselves by refusing? Or confuse L.E. more trying to figure out if person refusing is either " no way how dare u suspect me my rights being violated " type or for real poi?

Early required lie detector system? I don't think I understand your question.

Our justice system works by investigators building a timeline, collecting credible evidence, and using their skills to find persons to talk to about a case (person of interest) and use the information obtained to find the suspect believed responsible for the crime. When a judge agrees that there's probable cause to arrest the suspect, the arrest warrant will be signed and the suspect can be taken into custody.

Our justice system does not provide for a required polygraph examination and I don't ever see that becoming a requirement when the results are not admissible in court. MOO

 

[andalso]

So, this may be neither here nor there, however, at the least I can assuage my curiousity & settle my boyfriend's suspicions

I & my boyfriend happened to pop up to the buena vista/salida area for a couple days jaunt in the mountains during mother's day weekend
Ended up being our typical 'adventure' & the take-away mantra was: 'at least it was pretty' lol
Drove through Buena Vista back/forth, then back/forth to Salida, - so much for mountain time!

Here's the thing I hope a local will clear up - in Salida, in front of the walmart on Friday, the 8th, there were these piles of stuff....spaced out over many yards & no one around...as if a group of people were walking with their belongings & decided to set them down & go into some business & risk the chance of their stuff being stolen.

There was a suitcase, bags etc - but spaced out in little 'piles' for lack of better word

Saturday the piles had moved a couple miles perhaps to the junction of the road going into salida & the road that goes directly to/through Buena Vista....this time there was a man sitting by one of the piles
Very strange

My boyfriend thinks this may have something to do with the case - even if it's only that SM's personal belonging may have wound up with the 'piles'....
I doubt that it has anything to do with the case

So - for locals: do you know what I'm talking about?! I know it's weird....I'm figuring this could be some local 'character' who is known to traipse about town with his piles of stuff...
Thank you so much if you can clear this up!

Hi! I find your info quite interesting. So much so that, perhaps you should make a call to the tip line and let them know what you saw? Might you have any photos of the piles or other photos from the weekend that might be of interest to LE? I agree with your boyfriend and I would error on the side of letting LE sort it out. IMO.

ETA: # for tip line
Anyone with information about Morphew's disappearance is asked to call a tip line at 719-312-7530

 

[borndem]

Welcome to Websleuths,
Tate123 !!​

 

[susiQ]

My own curiosity is about how LE (in any case but especially this one) can rule out self-harm or suicide.

They don't know her, and suicidal people often take others by surprise. Sometimes, their mood and activity level improves right before they commit the act, as they are relieved to have finally decided a way out of an intolerable, painful situation (mental pain is real, depression is real).

Does anyone know how LE find themselves expert in such a matter or what kinds of clues they'd take as indicating "not a suicide"? I'm guessing it's totally circumstantial and practical - they didn't find her in the river or the reservoir, which would be obvious places for such an act.

But do they know everything about Suzanne? I don't see how they can. I've worked in a lot of psychiatric settings over the years (as a researcher), and suicides take even the most involved psychiatrists by surprise. People can be talking constantly about suicide and never do it, and someone else never mentions is and then does it. When it happens, everyone, even professionals, wrack their brains for clues. From that, there have been studies and publications about how an improvement in mood, giving things away, increased cheerfulness, reaching out to old friends and having a last conversation with each family member (all while being cheerful or at least not depressed-sounding) have emerged as prior "clues."

Given all that, why would LE be so certain it's not suicide? Just curious about your thoughts.

Just me, but I would lean against self-harm solely because they haven’t found her. My reasoning is, that if I ever came to that decision, I would at minimum want someone to find me, I wouldn’t kill myself where I could be eaten by a bear or mountain lion or other wild animal. I couldn’t do that to my family. I would at least give them the closure they need to grieve and continue to live.

In our town, a beautiful teen killed himself. He left a loving letter to his family and posted something on his SM that gave enough clues as to where they would find him. Hanging in the local woods. So incredibly sad .

She loved her family. She wouldn’t leave them in “limbo.”
JMHO

 

[CanuckSleuth79]

There have been so many cases of people committing suicide and not wanting to be found. I don't understand but it is quite common.

 

[K9Enzo]

Don't buy it. Multi-task, sub out - just saying all taxpayer funds- also trying to determine what ".....co-operating but I hope it continues...." means (sheriff)

Putting this case aside. What about an autistic child that goes missing during a family camping trip, with only hours left until sunset. The parents also said the child is drawn to water (ponds, rivers, etc.). Perhaps witnesses at the campground said that dad seemed short with the child who was acting out earlier in the day. That might be shady or it's just a parent that had a harmless frustrating moment.

In this scenario do you deploy SAR right away to look for this missing child or wait until polygraphs are issued to determine if someone is being untruthful?

 

[riolove77]

This is SO very true. They really chose an isolated, COLD spot to live there, at 8800 ft elevation. Maybe they had a false sense of security having been living on acreage in Indiana. Alarms and security cameras only work when conditions are right. Animals can get to be aggressive (bears break into Tahoe cabins all the time). If husband was off working, she would be very much alone for quite some time.

The best advice on relocating is to live around there for about a year to see what it’s really like. If not, visit during the worst months of the year to see what it’s like I’n bad weather, full of tourist crowds, full of mosquitoes/ticks/ snakes or other noxious critters.

In Tahoe we wait to see how newbies do through their first winter. It weeds out a large number of them

hi neighbor! I’m in el dorado hills.

also waiting on the edge of my seat on this one. Just can’t put my finger on it yet.

 

[Madeleine74]

Here's the thing I hope a local will clear up - in Salida, in front of the walmart on Friday, the 8th, there were these piles of stuff....spaced out over many yards & no one around...as if a group of people were walking with their belongings & decided to set them down & go into some business & risk the chance of their stuff being stolen.

This has occurred in towns where a donation center like goodwill, but not only goodwill, used to have staff available but because of covid, they only come in or do pickups a few times a week. People have been dropping off their stuff and leaving it on the walkways, at least this has occurred in my town. It might be something like that at/near that Walmart.

 

[OldCop]

If they started a early required lie detector test system ,wouldn't that make a lot of guilty people expose themselves by refusing? Or confuse L.E. more trying to figure out if person refusing is either " no way how dare u suspect me my rights being violated " type or for real poi?

I can’t imagine calling the police to report a loved one missing only to have them say,”We’re going to have to give you a polygraph test before we start looking.”

 

[Sillybilly]

Everyone please read The Rules (linked in my signature). All members are expected to familiarize themselves with those rules (in this case The Rules: Social Media - Facebook, Twitter, etc)

Sleuthing anyone other than the victim or an officially named POI/suspect is NOT allowed. This includes their social media.

 

[Tate123]

Welcome to Websleuths,
Tate123 !!​

Thank you!

 

[Knox]

So, this may be neither here nor there, however, at the least I can assuage my curiousity & settle my boyfriend's suspicions

I & my boyfriend happened to pop up to the buena vista/salida area for a couple days jaunt in the mountains during mother's day weekend
Ended up being our typical 'adventure' & the take-away mantra was: 'at least it was pretty' lol
Drove through Buena Vista back/forth, then back/forth to Salida, - so much for mountain time!

Here's the thing I hope a local will clear up - in Salida, in front of the walmart on Friday, the 8th, there were these piles of stuff....spaced out over many yards & no one around...as if a group of people were walking with their belongings & decided to set them down & go into some business & risk the chance of their stuff being stolen.

There was a suitcase, bags etc - but spaced out in little 'piles' for lack of better word

Saturday the piles had moved a couple miles perhaps to the junction of the road going into salida & the road that goes directly to/through Buena Vista....this time there was a man sitting by one of the piles
Very strange

My boyfriend thinks this may have something to do with the case - even if it's only that SM's personal belonging may have wound up with the 'piles'....
I doubt that it has anything to do with the case

So - for locals: do you know what I'm talking about?! I know it's weird....I'm figuring this could be some local 'character' who is known to traipse about town with his piles of stuff...
Thank you so much if you can clear this up!

Garbage companies have annual clean-up days, where customers put out bulky items or general waste. The company comes around and picks up and takes to the landfill. That may have been what you saw?

 

[Birmingplumb]

E

Early required lie detector system? I don't think I understand your question.

Our justice system works by investigators building a timeline, collecting credible evidence, and using their skills to find persons to talk to about a case (person of interest) and use the information obtained to find the suspect believed responsible for the crime. When a judge agrees that there's probable cause to arrest the suspect, the arrest warrant will be signed and the suspect can be taken into custody.

Our justice system does not provide for a required polygraph examination and I don't ever see that becoming a requirement when the results are not admissible in court. MOO

Early required - I am not trying to bash L.E. , just open it up for discussion and asking why not require L.E. to offend some family member by simply asking them to take a Lie test,( if no iron clad alibi, a gut feeling by L.E. , a tip, anything). Not that it will hold up in court, but that it could, could may get 1 bad guy even once to tip his hand by refusing and help help the direction of the search, I am not talking waterboarding and I often hear in cases "refused test" but is it or should it be optional or required before spending tax dollars on 11 agencies to search on day 6?

 

[MomOfDoggies]

Regarding the before mentioned piles of stuff in front of the Salida Walmart, I live in Buena Vista which is about a half hour drive from Salida. In the summertime, you many times see a particular man along the highways, etc. and in close towns with all this stuff. I assume it's all his personal belongings and people must give him rides from place to place. I actually was in Salida yesterday and saw him in town along Highway 50 east of Walmart somewhere. I'm guessing it might have been his stuff that you saw.

So, this may be neither here nor there, however, at the least I can assuage my curiousity & settle my boyfriend's suspicions

I & my boyfriend happened to pop up to the buena vista/salida area for a couple days jaunt in the mountains during mother's day weekend
Ended up being our typical 'adventure' & the take-away mantra was: 'at least it was pretty' lol
Drove through Buena Vista back/forth, then back/forth to Salida, - so much for mountain time!

Here's the thing I hope a local will clear up - in Salida, in front of the walmart on Friday, the 8th, there were these piles of stuff....spaced out over many yards & no one around...as if a group of people were walking with their belongings & decided to set them down & go into some business & risk the chance of their stuff being stolen.

There was a suitcase, bags etc - but spaced out in little 'piles' for lack of better word

Saturday the piles had moved a couple miles perhaps to the junction of the road going into salida & the road that goes directly to/through Buena Vista....this time there was a man sitting by one of the piles
Very strange

My boyfriend thinks this may have something to do with the case - even if it's only that SM's personal belonging may have wound up with the 'piles'....
I doubt that it has anything to do with the case

So - for locals: do you know what I'm talking about?! I know it's weird....I'm figuring this could be some local 'character' who is known to traipse about town with his piles of stuff...
Thank you so much if you can clear this up!

 

[NoSI]

Just me, but I would lean against self-harm solely because they haven’t found her. My reasoning is, that if I ever came to that decision, I would at minimum want someone to find me, I wouldn’t kill myself where I could be eaten by a bear or mountain lion or other wild animal. I couldn’t do that to my family. I would at least give them the closure they need to grieve and continue to live.

In our town, a beautiful teen killed himself. He left a loving letter to his family and posted something on his SM that gave enough clues as to where they would find him. Hanging in the local woods. So incredibly sad .

She loved her family. She wouldn’t leave them in “limbo.”
JMHO

Awesome avatar @SuziQ...

Yes, i totally agree. Not getting the self-harm vibe at all. We would know by now.

 

[MomOfDoggies]

He seems to always have lots of black lawn and leaf type bags.

 

[Birmingplumb]

Putting this case aside. What about an autistic child that goes missing during a family camping trip, with only hours left until sunset. The parents also said the child is drawn to water (ponds, rivers, etc.). Perhaps witnesses at the campground said that dad seemed short with the child who was acting out earlier in the day. That might be shady or it's just a parent that had a harmless frustrating moment.

In this scenario do you deploy SAR right away to look for this missing child or wait until polygraphs are issued to determine if someone is being untruthful?

Of course it would be a case by case basis, but maybe a checklist for L.E. used to trigger the test written by the best. Would eliminate any L.E. connected perps imo also as a bonus besides soft heart lead L.E.

 

[MomOfDoggies]

About the FBI being involved, in addition to things already mentioned, it could be because it's a possibility that whatever happened was on federally owned land (USFS, BLM, etc.), a large portion of land in this area is not privately owned. Especially since the searches were probably mostly in USFS land.

 

[Birmingplumb]

I can’t imagine calling the police to report a loved one missing only to have them say,”We’re going to have to give you a polygraph test before we start looking.”

who said before we start looking? Just not day 10