Found Deceased MT - Rita Maze, 47, Wolf Creek, 6 Sept 2016 #1

[Inthedetails]

So was the gun used to kill her by her body? That's the only reason I can think of that manner of death wouldn't be able to be determined.

Good question.

If the gun was not there, that would clearly be murder.

If the gun was there, it still could be suicide or murder. The murderer could've toss the gun in the trunk after pulling the trigger.

So, I'm thinking the gun was there and they are still working out whether it was murder or suicide.

jmopinion

 

[bluesneakers]

So was the gun used to kill her by her body? That's the only reason I can think of that manner of death wouldn't be able to be determined.

Good question. If it was found by her body it could be suicide, homicide, or accident. If it wasn't by her body I'm guessing suicide would be ruled out unless they thought someone took the gun after she used it.

Could she have committed suicide while in the trunk, thinking it was better than whatever he might do to her?

 

[MelmothTheLost]

Either way it would be a homicide.

Indeed, but I imagine they want to piece together exactly what happened.

 

[DatelineFan]

A single gunshot to the chest and abdomen sounds like a shotgun, possibly a sawn-off, rather than a a pistol or revolver. Not that I'm an expert on firearms though.

Can you explain a bit more? I don't know anything about firearms!

 

[Gardener1850]

Have we heard what kind of gun she kept in her car yet? I wonder if there was more than one gun involved.

 

[Inthedetails]

Good question. If it was found by her body it could be suicide, homicide, or accident. If it wasn't by her body I'm guessing suicide would be ruled out unless they thought someone took the gun after she used it.

Could she have committed suicide while in the trunk, thinking it was better than whatever he might do to her?

If she committed suicide (and that is an IF), I doubt she was ever carjacked. Instead, she went into the trunk herself after driving to Spokane via Ritzville.

Knowing about that credit card purchase would answer so many questions. Surely LE must know something by now from video??

jmo

 

[MelmothTheLost]

He was driving all the at time on I-90, except for his stop in Idaho.

I don't think we know that for certain. As mentioned earlier, Wolf Creek to Spokane can be driven in just over 5 hours by the fastest route, mostly the I90, but it's possible he chose to use lesser roads which would have been slower but where he was less likely to be caught on CCTV.

He could, for example, have used the 200 to Missoula and then the 93 and 200 again to Sandpoint and then down to Spokane. After all, there do seem to be a few hours missing that are unaccounted for. The more remote route with poorer phone coverage might also explain why Rita did not call home earlier.

ETA that I missed the thing about him making a purchase in Idaho. Where did he stop?

 

[Strawberry Fields]

Didn't police say they have a POI

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk

 

[bluesneakers]

If she committed suicide (and that is an IF), I doubt she was ever carjacked. Instead, she went into the trunk herself after driving to Spokane via Ritzville.

Knowing about that credit card purchase would answer so many questions. Surely LE must know something by now from video??

jmo

I'm right with you on the not thinking it was suicide but still considering all possibilities. That's the only reason I could think of - she had the gun in the trunk and was too afraid of what he was going to do to her. Maybe he made threats that were more terrifying than death.

But I doubt that's what happened.

 

[TTF14]

Good question.

If the gun was not there, that would clearly be murder.

If the gun was there, it still could be suicide or murder. The murderer could've toss the gun in the trunk after pulling the trigger.

So, I'm thinking the gun was there and they are still working out whether it was murder or suicide.

jmopinion

My thoughts exactly. And, if the gun was there, she likely was killed with her own gun. I don't think a murderer leaves his own gun at a murder scene.

 

[TTF14]

If she committed suicide (and that is an IF), I doubt she was ever carjacked. Instead, she went into the trunk herself after driving to Spokane via Ritzville.

Knowing about that credit card purchase would answer so many questions. Surely LE must know something by now from video??

jmo

I'm sure they do know way more than they are saying, especially since the "promised" sketch/photo of the POI was not released last night and they are keeping mum.

I may be alone in this camp, but at this point I'm leaning toward suicide. And since she didn't call her family into late into the evening, she may not even really have planned on it, but was just driving aimlessly all day, thinking about things. Wonder what was purchased in Ritzville.

 

[Gardener1850]

Here's a bit more to explain the reason for pending manner of death: http://www.abcfoxmontana.com/story/33051264/great-falls-woman-found-in-trunk-died-of-gunshot-wound

(Below is more of the release from Spokane County)

Pending: A “pending” cause or manner of death means that the medical examiner is deferring the determination until the death investigation and laboratory studies are complete. Additional studies can include toxicology tests, laboratory tests such as cultures, and microscopic examination. On the day of autopsy the death investigation is still in progress.
In Medical Examiner cases when alcohol or drugs are suspected as having caused the death or contributed to death, samples are sent to the Washington State Toxicology Lab in Seattle, WA for comprehensive quantitative forensic toxicology testing, not simply a hospital-type urine drug screen. Such forensic analyses are detailed as required in medical/legal matters and typically take anywhere from 2 to 10 weeks to obtain results. Once results are available, the cause and manner of death are assessed based on all of the available evidence.
Note – a pending toxicology result does not indicate that the cause of death will necessarily be the result of alcohol and/or drugs

 

[Gardener1850]

So basically it sounds like the gunshot wound is only a preliminary finding and the autopsy is not officially complete yet. It is all semantics, IMO. They want to have all their ducks a row before they say she died from the gunshot to her chest. MOO.

 

[katydid23]

Good question. If it was found by her body it could be suicide, homicide, or accident. If it wasn't by her body I'm guessing suicide would be ruled out unless they thought someone took the gun after she used it.

Could she have committed suicide while in the trunk, thinking it was better than whatever he might do to her?

But if I was in the trunk and had a gun, I'd save the bullet for the kidnapper.

 

[Gardener1850]

But if I was in the trunk and had a gun, I'd save the bullet for the kidnapper.

Plus, she said HE had her gun. Why would she lie about that? And if the abductor left without killing her, why would he toss the gun in the trunk? If he wasn't going to kill her and didn't want to take the gun he would just leave it int he car, IMO. And we still don't know if the gun was found with the car or not.

 

[Gardener1850]

With the credit card being used in a place that is off the route, I'm wondering if there could be more than one person involved. Two people drive up to the rest stop and pretend they have car trouble. One person hits her over the head and takes her car, another follows for bit. Maybe the person in the other car takes her purse and they use her card while the hijacker is still driving her toward the Spokane airport. Maybe when LE says "things are not all as they seem" they mean when they checked CCTV footage of the gas station it was not a big man in a hoodie using the card. Maybe it was his accomplice and that person is a woman. I'm just thinking of possible situations here. There is no way I believe this could be suicide. There is no indication of financial issues or mental health issues on the part of the deceased. Nothing like suicide has been suggested by LE whatsoever. JMO.

 

[Inthedetails]

So basically it sounds like the gunshot wound is only a preliminary finding and the autopsy is not officially complete yet. It is all semantics, IMO. They want to have all their ducks a row before they say she died from the gunshot to her chest. MOO.

Cause of death is gunshot to the chest and abdomen.

HOW that gunshot happened (the manner of death...suicide, homicide, accident) is not yet determined.

That's my understanding anyway.

jmo

 

[Satchie]

I don't think we know that for certain. As mentioned earlier, Wolf Creek to Spokane can be driven in just over 5 hours by the fastest route, mostly the I90, but it's possible he chose to use lesser roads which would have been slower but where he was less likely to be caught on CCTV.

He could, for example, have used the 200 to Missoula and then the 93 and 200 again to Sandpoint and then down to Spokane. After all, there do seem to be a few hours missing that are unaccounted for. The more remote route with poorer phone coverage might also explain why Rita did not call home earlier.

ETA that I missed the thing about him making a purchase in Idaho. Where did he stop?

Not a stop in Idaho, but a license plate reader picked up her plate passing through Post Falls, on the I-90 east of Spokane. Reports don't say when and I don't know how the license plate detection computer system los info, but Post Falls is about 30 mins from Spokane Airport

 

[Inthedetails]

Plus, she said HE had her gun. Why would she lie about that? And if the abductor left without killing her, why would he toss the gun in the trunk? If he wasn't going to kill her and didn't want to take the gun he would just leave it int he car, IMO. And we still don't know if the gun was found with the car or not.

She would lie about him having the gun if there were no "him."

Again, I am not saying this is what happened, but I am saying it is possible she never was carjacked.

Nothing released so far convinces me one way or the other...I'm on the fence.

jmo

 

[TTF14]

With the credit card being used in a place that is off the route, I'm wondering if there could be more than one person involved. Two people drive up to the rest stop and pretend they have car trouble. One person hits her over the head and takes her car, another follows for bit. Maybe the person in the other car takes her purse and they use her card while the hijacker is still driving her toward the Spokane airport. Maybe when LE says "things are not all as they seem" they mean when they checked CCTV footage of the gas station it was not a big man in a hoodie using the card. Maybe it was his accomplice and that person is a woman. I'm just thinking of possible situations here. There is no way I believe this could be suicide. There is no indication of financial issues or mental health issues on the part of the deceased. Nothing like suicide has been suggested by LE whatsoever. JMO.

Nobody though Cheryl DeBoer was suicidal either. And, we don't know enough about this woman or her family to say whether or not there were financial issues or depression, etc. She was visiting her ailing mother. If they are very close, that could be quite depressing.