TX TX - Terri 'Missy' Bevers, 45, killed in church/suspect in SWAT gear, Midlothian, 18 Apr 2016 #49

[Razz]

I’m 100% on board with the person in the SWAT gear being a female. A slightly overweight, out of shape female.

I don’t know if this theory has been suggested yet, but I’ve always felt it might be the wife or girlfriend from one of MB’s affairs. Or simply another female who was jealous of MB. Being a fitness trainer, she was in great shape and had many male admirers…it’s known she acted on some of those attractions.

Have the police checked out all of the women connected to any of the guys in her class?

There’s another theory about her Mother-In-Law. ALLEGEDLY. No facts here. Just theorizing. It’s just suspicious that both Brandon and his Dad had solid alibis, placing them out of state, on the day it happened…but where was the MIL?

I never believed the “Botched Burglary” angle.

In all the previous threads, tons of theories were brought up and explored endlessly. (some, were researched by professionals imo). I really wish that someone who has no bias regarding this case would read all the threads and keep an open mind. Maybe there is something we've all missed that is actually in plain sight. It is easy for me to suggest this as I won't and can't do it. Mainly because I have biases that sometimes keeps me from considering and seeing other things.

If nothing else, the reading is absolutely fascinating and the research is first rate, but, since this thread has been open for years, this would be a monumental task.

 

[Chypre]

Interested to hear responses about Texas culture as it pertains to this case. Do you think if the perp had a gun that means they had a plan to use it? Or is it just so very normal it would be weirder to not have one?
Are there other things about the area that help understand the case?

 

[lonewanderer]

Interested to hear responses about Texas culture as it pertains to this case. Do you think if the perp had a gun that means they had a plan to use it? Or is it just so very normal it would be weirder to not have one?
Are there other things about the area that help understand the case?

It all depends on what angle you look at it.

For some, the attack was random and the murderer was carrying out a weird fantasy and/or wanted to emulate police. This would raise the chances of them having a gun on them.

For others, Missy was targeted and she had her own gun in her truck (how many people knew she carried is not obtainable data AFAIK). The killer used this opportunity to ambush her, knowing she was much less likely to have a gun of her own at 430am, alone in a church setting up for her morning workout class.

Arguing the point of her being targeted or random does not add much value to the threads, as it is is possible to reason either way towards what happened. All roads lead to the same fate, it appears.

There was some questions raised about this with the Liz Barraza case, also in Texas. Some speculate that maybe she was targeted so early in the morning because it was possible that other Texans would be carrying and would return fire or subdue the shooter.

 

[AnonymousSeesYOU]

Interested to hear responses about Texas culture as it pertains to this case. Do you think if the perp had a gun that means they had a plan to use it? Or is it just so very normal it would be weirder to not have one?
Are there other things about the area that help understand the case?

What I’m interested in is - what is suburban, Midlothian sized Texas culture/sentiment as it pertains to the Texas Rangers? I thought this (Midlothian) sized municipality police force is precisely why they - this Texas sized investigative agency - exists. To cover the groundwork with tips, to harvest, handle, curate, test, inspect the on scene evidence. But they’re invisible/traceless on this case. Why?

To be sure, I’m not suggesting their presence would have/might have resulted in an arrest. We can’t know that. But the investigation might be in a different place if their expertise had been applied in the early hours.

 

[lonewanderer]

What I’m interested in is - what is suburban, Midlothian sized Texas culture/sentiment as it pertains to the Texas Rangers? I thought this (Midlothian) sized municipality police force is precisely why they - this Texas sized investigative agency - exists. To cover the groundwork with tips, to harvest, handle, curate, test, inspect the on scene evidence. But they’re invisible/traceless on this case. Why?

To be sure, I’m not suggesting their presence would have/might have resulted in an arrest. We can’t know that. But the investigation might be in a different place if their expertise had been applied in the early hours.

I have been interested in some of the investigating agencies, too.

Texas may be completely different, but in many of the cases somewhat similar to Missy's, the FBI's assistance is asked for early on or eventually, as many small town departments don't have the resources or experience for complicated cases.

Is it just different because Texas has Rangers? I have seen in some cases the state "BI" involved instead of federal (for instance the GBI for Georgia, CBI for Colorado, etc) as federal is usually when it is multi-state (I have seen some FBI ones that were odd as it didn't seem federal at all, just small town).

 

[AnonymousSeesYOU]

I have been interested in some of the investigating agencies, too.

Texas may be completely different, but in many of the cases somewhat similar to Missy's, the FBI's assistance is asked for early on or eventually, as many small town departments don't have the resources or experience for complicated cases.

Is it just different because Texas has Rangers? I have seen in some cases the state "BI" involved instead of federal (for instance the GBI for Georgia, CBI for Colorado, etc) as federal is usually when it is multi-state (I have seen some FBI ones that were odd as it didn't seem federal at all, just small town).

I suspect every state has a criminal investigative agency for jurisdictions outside sophisticated cities. I have no doubt nearby local municipalities and certainly the FBI assists with everything they have. But being on call might not be the same as owning the case.

 

[AnonymousSeesYOU]

I have been interested in some of the investigating agencies, too.

Texas may be completely different, but in many of the cases somewhat similar to Missy's, the FBI's assistance is asked for early on or eventually, as many small town departments don't have the resources or experience for complicated cases.

Is it just different because Texas has Rangers? I have seen in some cases the state "BI" involved instead of federal (for instance the GBI for Georgia, CBI for Colorado, etc) as federal is usually when it is multi-state (I have seen some FBI ones that were odd as it didn't seem federal at all, just small town).

Texas Rangers is a title. An historically revered title. Though many if not all states have similar agencies with more modern investigative acronyms. Pretty sure even Rhode Island has a state criminal investigative agency. There are more small towns than major cities. They’re needed.
Why didn’t/doesn’t Midlothian need them?

It would take a lot more for me to question Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Austin, even Fort Worth. But here? County seat Waxahachie? I’m curious.

 

[lonewanderer]

Texas Rangers is a title. An historically revered title. Though many if not all states have similar agencies with more modern investigative acronyms. Pretty sure even Rhode Island has a state criminal investigative agency. There are more small towns than major cities. They’re needed.
Why didn’t/doesn’t Midlothian need them?

It would take a lot more for me to question Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Austin, even Fort Worth. But here? County seat Waxahachie? I’m curious.

Do we know if this was investigation was Midlothian PD or a county/towns sherrifs office?

Through the huge amount of true crime content I’ve consumed, I’ve noticed often that many sheriffs offices across the US are accused of having too much pull and quite often don’t have many people to answer to.

 

[DeDee]

Texas Rangers is a title. An historically revered title. Though many if not all states have similar agencies with more modern investigative acronyms. Pretty sure even Rhode Island has a state criminal investigative agency. There are more small towns than major cities. They’re needed.
Why didn’t/doesn’t Midlothian need them?

It would take a lot more for me to question Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Austin, even Fort Worth. But here? County seat Waxahachie? I’m curious.

The Texas Ranger Division, also known as the Texas Rangers and also known as Diablos Tejanos (Spanish for 'Texan Devils'),[4] is an investigative law enforcement agency with statewide jurisdiction in the U.S. state of Texas. It is based in the capital city Austin. In the time since its creation, the Texas Rangers have investigated crimes ranging from murder to political corruption, acted in riot control and as detectives, protected the governor of Texas, tracked down fugitives, served as a security force at important state locations, including the Alamo, and functioned as a paramilitary force at the service of both the Republic (1836–1846) and the State of Texas.

State of Texas does provide guidelines as to appropriate Ranger attire, including a requirement that Rangers wear clothing that is western in nature. Currently, the favored attire includes white shirt and tie, khaki/tan or gray trousers, light-colored western hat, "ranger" belt, and cowboy boots. < present-day Rangers wear the familiar "star in a wheel" badge

Texas Ranger Division - Wikipedia

Midlothian Police Dept is in charge of Missy's murder investigation.

In April 2021, the Dallas News reported the Midlothian Police Dept added a retired federal agent who joined the department’s investigators and is focused primarily on the Bevers case.

April 14, 2021
Nearly five years after the murder of Texas woman Missy Bevers, the Midlothian Police Department announced that a retired federal law enforcement agent is now looking at the case for anything that might have been missed, Fox 4 reports.
Update: FIVE YEARS since ‘Gladiator mom’ Missy Bevers murder

Another case I'm following is located in Comanche, OK. Comanche borders TX. Victim's body was found on HWY 81 which is a major N - S corridor. In a podcast, the victim's family members claimed the TX Rangers became involved because several house party attendees crossed the state line to go to it. (Noah Presgrove)

 

[AnonymousSeesYOU]

I’m not here to question Ellis County Sheriff. I know nothing of their involvement in the investigation and doubt that if/when they were asked to assist they’d offer anything less than their best. Midlothian has its own police department. And with what little they say, they offer they’ve tracked down thousands of tips/leads.

Fairly confident it was a volume of tips/leads that was extraordinarily beyond the norm. Otherwise why would they report it? Also fairly confident there was a state criminal investigative agency (Texas Rangers) on hand in the early hours with capacity to handle the tips, process the evidence but they (TR) no longer report/assist. What happened? Where are they?

Pretty sure it’s not just Midlothian’s fault, the fault is most likely shared between agencies. But this case - Missy Bevers - remains unsolved. Until it’s resolved let’s just try to do better with new cases. And to do that, we might need to pick at egos, funding, scabs, hold hands - whatever.

Perhaps hindsight will lead us.

 

[SteveS]

I really don't agree with all this bashing of LE, and the misinformation that is being strewn in this thread.

While Midlothian is not a giant metropolis (it had about 30,000 when MB died), it also doesn't have the number of crimes you'd see in a big city, where resources are then divided among many cases. So solving this murder has been on the top of their list from day one. Saying otherwise is untrue, unfair, and perhaps slanderous.

The fact is that the initial investigation and gathering of evidence utilized a combined task force that included not only MPD but also ECSO, FBI, ATF, DEA, Tx Rangers, and more, with many of them there in person rendering assistance on the very morning of the murder. Others came later. The help was welcomed and utilized. There has never been any attempt by the MPD people to go it alone, to let it sit, to do it their own way and ignore more expertise, or any of the other things being said or implied, and the casual slander about them is really uncalled for.

If you don't think those combined LE people had the best resources and plenty of workers and tools to analyze whatever they had to the nth degree, you're not thinking.

The fact that they have brought in yet ANOTHER resource, to see if fresh eyes might see something that has been missed, doesn't mean they just suddenly woke up. In fact, they have done this same type of thing MULTIPLE times before, periodically bringing in one outside resource after another, all along, trying to see if someone has a path to a solution. They are actively trying.

Ultimately, the problem in solving this crime is not from a lack of hard work, but due to a lack of basic evidence. They have very limited footage on a less-than-precise camera, of a person whose face you can't see, who you can't even be sure of their sex or ethnicity or weight. There is no way to get a better image with super technology when the cam didn't record more detail in the first place. The costume apparently left no physical traces of the person behind, and there's been no discovery of any other footage of this person. We can wish it was more, but it is what it is - and it's just not enough.

They've also apparently crawled up the butt of everyone they can imagine who might have had motive and a way to be there that night, and up the tailpipe of every car that might have been at SWFA even though the link to MB's murder is iffy. It's all they have, so they chase. So far, no cigar.

This case isn't missing hard work or smarts. It's missing evidence. Unfortunately, you only have what you have, and if it doesn't have an answer, you have to hope for something to pop up somehow. There's no reason to cast aspersions on the people who are already working smart and hard to solve this.

 

[lonewanderer]

I really don't agree with all this bashing of LE, and the misinformation that is being strewn in this thread.

While Midlothian is not a giant metropolis (it had about 30,000 when MB died), it also doesn't have the number of crimes you'd see in a big city, where resources are then divided among many cases. So solving this murder has been on the top of their list from day one. Saying otherwise is untrue, unfair, and perhaps slanderous.

The fact is that the initial investigation and gathering of evidence utilized a combined task force that included not only MPD but also ECSO, FBI, ATF, DEA, Tx Rangers, and more, with many of them there in person rendering assistance on the very morning of the murder. Others came later. The help was welcomed and utilized. There has never been any attempt by the MPD people to go it alone, to let it sit, to do it their own way and ignore more expertise, or any of the other things being said or implied, and the casual slander about them is really uncalled for.

If you don't think those combined LE people had the best resources and plenty of workers and tools to analyze whatever they had to the nth degree, you're not thinking.

The fact that they have brought in yet ANOTHER resource, to see if fresh eyes might see something that has been missed, doesn't mean they just suddenly woke up. In fact, they have done this same type of thing MULTIPLE times before, periodically bringing in one outside resource after another, all along, trying to see if someone has a path to a solution. They are actively trying.

Ultimately, the problem in solving this crime is not from a lack of hard work, but due to a lack of basic evidence. They have very limited footage on a less-than-precise camera, of a person whose face you can't see, who you can't even be sure of their sex or ethnicity or weight. There is no way to get a better image with super technology when the cam didn't record more detail in the first place. The costume apparently left no physical traces of the person behind, and there's been no discovery of any other footage of this person. We can wish it was more, but it is what it is - and it's just not enough.

They've also apparently crawled up the butt of everyone they can imagine who might have had motive and a way to be there that night, and up the tailpipe of every car that might have been at SWFA even though the link to MB's murder is iffy. It's all they have, so they chase. So far, no cigar.

This case isn't missing hard work or smarts. It's missing evidence. Unfortunately, you only have what you have, and if it doesn't have an answer, you have to hope for something to pop up somehow. There's no reason to cast aspersions on the people who are already working smart and hard to solve this.

If I made it sound like I was questioning LE, I apologize.

I was interested in the agencies involved, thanks for sharing this information!

This case is really tough to figure out for sure.

 

[lonewanderer]

@SteveS quick question:

I know its pretty obscure of my to ask, but you get the chance to look at this door much?

I have wondered if there was pry marks on it or not. The weird way they are standing and moving makes me wonder if they were just using the door for leverage instead of actually trying to pry it open.