Found Deceased VA - Morgan Dana Harrington, 20, Charlottesville, 17 Oct 2009 - #1

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The longer she is missing, the faster I am losing hope about this...I have had a bad feeling since first hearing about Morgan. My daughter, whose middle name is Morgan, is the same age and in college less than an hour away from us as well. We talk with her everyday...sometimes several times/day...just as Morgan's parents do.This case just hits way too close to home for me and my heart goes out to her parents. Praying...trying not to lose hope...come home, Morgan!
 
West said:
I would hope so! I wouldn't necessarily expect Morgan's friends to go on a media blitz about their missing friend and roommate right now. I am sure they are upset and have a variety of emotions running through their heads now.

I just think that perhaps if there was a more detailed account of what happened that evening that perhaps more people and tips would come forward. For example, what lot was Morgan's car parked in--near where the missing purse was found? Police confirmed that Morgan's purse and cell phone were found in the parking lot between JPJ and the athletic fields. How did the friends get home later that evening? What was the plan for after the show for the group? Police said that Morgan contacted her friends while she was outside to say she couldn't come back in--the last known contact Morgan had with her friends. Nothing here about arranging a ride home with other people, meeting up after the show somewhere etc.

I know LE is saying car wasn't important but perhaps something involving the car drew her outside of the arena.

If LE has knowledge that perhaps Morgan could have eft the arena area on foot/with someone else/in someone's car, this might help to generate leads in the greater community and throughout VA/East Coast etc. Right now investigation seems focused on the area directly surrounding the arena with plans to fan out to nearby athletic fields/buildings in the coming days.

I hope the LE on this case do their due diligence in brainstorming all possibilities and hopefully tracking down a happy resolution for the Harrington family and Tech community. However, as time goes on with little to no updates on new info/clues etc., I am not having a good feeling about this....
Click to expand...

Right. Some of the bad missing cases start out with tight info release and let tips loose so slowly the public interest wanes and memories fade. Jennifer Kesse and Maura Murray come to mind as slow/no tip investigations. Seems the really sophisticated and successful investigators use the media to magnify their efforts and keep the case in the public eye from early on. I can't decide if LE here is cunning and in control or relatively clueless. Time will tell.

C6
 
LE stated Morgan's purse was found and turned in on Sunday morning. The purse was easy to find and in near a smaller parking area. He added, even though no one asked, that he would not comment if her purse was found on a hard surface or a grass surface.
 
esse1 said:
LE stated Morgan's purse was found and turned in on Sunday morning. The purse was easy to find and in near a smaller parking area. He added, even though no one asked, that he would not comment if her purse was found on a hard surface or a grass surface.
Click to expand...

Thanks. That's an unusual tidbit to add unrequested. It's obviously a message to someone whom LE would think has relevant knowledge of the purse and the area. I'll have to sleep on it.

C6
 
crypto6 said:
Thanks. That's an unusual tidbit to add unrequested. It's obviously a message to someone whom LE would think has relevant knowledge of the purse and the area. I'll have to sleep on it.

C6
Click to expand...

Tis interesting.

Esse1 - I do believe you have much more to add to this discussion.
 
LE also said not to get hung up on 8:30 to 9:30 timeline. In fact I'm thinking something may have happened after the concert let out. Metallica did not get on stage untill about 10:15. Morgan could have been safe and waiting outside and then found trouble once the concert was over.
 
My children said a prayer for Morgan before bed tonight, and my husband and I will as well.

Morgan, please come home soon :(
 
I have read the entire thread....

1. I think the parents were probably a bit strict... I mean really did I read in this thread that a pastor, rev, or a minister lives with her parents. I don't really care what kind of church it is... the pastor lives at her parents home. Also about the parents, this is in the South, they are trying to make people understand that just because she is a Metallica it doesn’t mean she is a delinquent. Virginia is part of the bible belt and prejudices against metal music and rap is prevalent. Preconceived notions run deep and appearance can mean a lot with certain church crowds. Some people are just naturally close to their parents and their parents think they know all but they don’t know squat. She could be acting one way and telling her parents something else. No one knows… MOO!

2. She wore a Pantera shirt to a Metallica concert. To me that indicates she loves Metal. Now I am a huge Metallica fan so that’s not derogatory however I know that a lot of drugs are available at lots of concerts. Was a drug problem beginning to surface with Morgan or was she already experimenting? She had the tickets for 6 months but a lot can change in 6 months. I know its doubtful but I would rather Morgan be high and strung out

3. LE won't discuss her "condition" other than to say she was basically walking and talking. All that meant to me is that she was quite possibly high as a kite, not drunk. Is it just me or are her pupils really dilated in some of these pics they have been showing on TV and on websites.. It seems the older she got the more her countenance changed in her eyes. This does not give any predator the right to abduct or harm her in anyway. Being high as a kite does however let ones guard down and gives any creep an in.

4. The info that really bothers me is that the friends say she was getting or would get a ride. I know the LE is not divulging everything but I hope for Morgan’s sake they are getting better answers from these “friends” than what has been released to the media. I want the answer to the most important question…. Did the “friends” know where she was going and with whom she was going? I hope my next statement doesn’t upset a lot of folks but this friend situation is beginning to remind me of Natalie Holloway…. How long has she been gone and still the friends haven’t told their last few nights before she disappeared.

5. I hope she’s alive and comes home…. This is so sad…. MOO
 
I looked through a few cache'd links to try and find more info about the parking for the Metallica concert, and any reason she might have left the arena. Here is the link I found, which should help clarify some things for us. Hope this helps....It is a super super long link but should work if you copy and paste it all in the browser. If not then I can upload it to photobucket or here either one.

I would like to know where they parked at, did they purchase parking before the concert or did they do the $10.00 parking at the garage which was 10-15 minute walk. If we knew this it could clarify even more. There is a map at the link with garage locations and which one is prepaid, and which one is $10 the day of the event. Maybe she was walking to her friends car, if they did park at the $10 parking area. If she was a 10-15 minute walk...alot could have happened.

HTH, Kel

http://docs.google.com/gview?a=v&q=...hDEonm&sig=AFQjCNHhPUxDfwttCqFNElVjlxlnuqBAbg
 
Had she ever been to a concert before? If this was her first big show, she would probably not have known that she couldn't leave and come back in (and with the amount of traffic going in and out, I don't find it strange at all that no one said, "hey, you can't come back in" before she got out the door). It could also account for reasons for leaving - maybe she got too close to someone who was dancing and thrashing around and got popped in the face (explaining why a girl saw her crying and looking as if she'd been hit). That could have been enough to turn her off and make her say, "forget it, I'm leaving!" and head outside. Pot smoke *may* have made her sick - but that early in the show, I doubt it would be that heavy. Maybe the friends decided to try out something new (a drug of whatever sort) and it didn't agree with her - that would explain the friends being awfully quiet. The sheer noise of the opening bands may have even turned her off.

I'm partial to the idea that she somehow got outside and realized she couldn't get back in, and most likely didn't have the cash on her to buy a scalper ticket. Now maybe a scalper offered to walk with her to a nearby bank machine so she could obtain the cash for a ticket (common practice in downtown Toronto, but I'm not sure about this area), and either had bad intentions himself or left her after exchanging ticket for money to hurry back to make more sales, and something happened on the way back. But I'm thinking it's more likely that she was fooled by someone posing as security or a roadie who saw her strike out with the scalpers and said, "hey, I'll get you back in" ... something I'd certainly be suspicious of, but again, if she's not a big concert-goer, she might fall for it, and who knows what happened from there?
 
No good friend in their right mind would leave someone strung out on drugs go to the bathroom or somewhere alone - makes me wonder if they were huge fans too and refused to risk missing a second of the concert by going with her to the bathroom or were they the ones drinking and on drugs and she was rejecting that and wanted out-could they have had an argument.
There really is something very odd about this being her car and she saying she'll find another way home (so they presumably had the keys?) yet they still wait for her.
About the purse -if someone found it before the person who handed it in Sunday-maybe thet person checked it for cash and dumped it far from where it was found. Maybe the belongings had spilt out, the phone was in pieces and the battery was maybe lying near the bag but the person did not see it...
I still think the "condition" may not have been drugs or alcohol but rather the condition of having been hit by someone. Could she have been hit by someone randomly at the concert -someone whose advances she rejected? This has happened to me in the past-a stranger coming on to me and getting physical when I told him to leave me alone. Just thoughts...
 
cianne said:
Had she ever been to a concert before? If this was her first big show, she would probably not have known that she couldn't leave and come back in (and with the amount of traffic going in and out, I don't find it strange at all that no one said, "hey, you can't come back in" before she got out the door). It could also account for reasons for leaving - maybe she got too close to someone who was dancing and thrashing around and got popped in the face (explaining why a girl saw her crying and looking as if she'd been hit). That could have been enough to turn her off and make her say, "forget it, I'm leaving!" and head outside. Pot smoke *may* have made her sick - but that early in the show, I doubt it would be that heavy. Maybe the friends decided to try out something new (a drug of whatever sort) and it didn't agree with her - that would explain the friends being awfully quiet. The sheer noise of the opening bands may have even turned her off.

I'm partial to the idea that she somehow got outside and realized she couldn't get back in, and most likely didn't have the cash on her to buy a scalper ticket. Now maybe a scalper offered to walk with her to a nearby bank machine so she could obtain the cash for a ticket (common practice in downtown Toronto, but I'm not sure about this area), and either had bad intentions himself or left her after exchanging ticket for money to hurry back to make more sales, and something happened on the way back. But I'm thinking it's more likely that she was fooled by someone posing as security or a roadie who saw her strike out with the scalpers and said, "hey, I'll get you back in" ... something I'd certainly be suspicious of, but again, if she's not a big concert-goer, she might fall for it, and who knows what happened from there?
Click to expand...

Oh woops-I had not read your post sorry! Yes you raise some very good points that are very possible. I was wondering too about whether she needed to get to a bank machine or a drug store or some urgent thing she needed as good enough reason to leave
 
dimples37398 said:
I looked through a few cache'd links to try and find more info about the parking for the Metallica concert, and any reason she might have left the arena. Here is the link I found, which should help clarify some things for us. Hope this helps....It is a super super long link but should work if you copy and paste it all in the browser. If not then I can upload it to photobucket or here either one.

I would like to know where they parked at, did they purchase parking before the concert or did they do the $10.00 parking at the garage which was 10-15 minute walk. If we knew this it could clarify even more. There is a map at the link with garage locations and which one is prepaid, and which one is $10 the day of the event. Maybe she was walking to her friends car, if they did park at the $10 parking area. If she was a 10-15 minute walk...alot could have happened.

HTH, Kel

http://docs.google.com/gview?a=v&q=...hDEonm&sig=AFQjCNHhPUxDfwttCqFNElVjlxlnuqBAbg
Click to expand...

It would seem from latest reports that it was her car after all, not her friends, at least I think!
 
Hi there! I'm almost done slogging through all 20+ pages of this thread. I have a couple of small comments, and don't want to forget, so I'm sorry if they were mentioned in the next pages.

If she tried to call/text her friends during the concert, there's a good chance they didn't get it at the time she sent it. The noise is astounding, and they would never have heard it ring or beep; with the crowds, even the vibrate function may not have been felt.

I think we're back to believing that it was NOT her car that went to the concert, right? If that is accurate, and she was stuck out in the parking lot for the rest of the evening and it was cold, she may have struck out for the near-by restaurants to get a drink and get warm. She likely didn't have her coat with her, as it's a hassle to have in the concert and the girls probably locked them in the car and dashed inside.

I was going to make the comment (someone else did earlier though) that she may have lent her phone to someone, who turned aside and 'palmed' the battery, giving her the empty shell to put back in her purse. So, she felt reasonably safe with an (unworking) phone when she shouldn't have.

I was always surprised at the way Beth Holloway 'forgave' and stood up for Natalie's friends. Seems these parents are too. I don't get it.

These posts were also on the Metallica MySpace page:

"I was at the concert, and me and my husband saw her a # of times. The last time we saw her was during the intermission befoe Metallica started. I reported this to the Unversity police...I hope it helps a little." (posted 658pm)

"My Boyfriend says he saw her sitting just above us and I'm guessing after she dissapeard someone else took her seat because he says he didnt see her anymore!!!" (posted 424pm)

This one was neat: "took 129 pictures & have enlarged ALL of them and gone over them with a fine tooth comb to see if I could spot Morgan....no luck unfortunately!"

This one kinda tickled me, and voiced what many have said here: "I can't believe anyone would abduct someone outside of one of your concerts. "

"..When I was walking back to my hotel I heard what I though to be shattering glass and screams. :( I hope shes ok. .. " (posted 816pm)

"I was gunna go to the concert but it was sold out," (posted 1025pm) -- the point being we've seen it posted that there were still tickets, but this guy thought not ... just a small difference, but a difference nontheless.

This fellow said what I think we all pretty much think about all the cases on WS: "If she was kidnapped i hope they find the guy (or girl) who did it, so a bunch of metal heads can stomp a mudhole in that bas#ard"
 
wadahoot said:
snipped
I think we're back to believing that it was NOT her car that went to the concert, right? If that is accurate, and she was stuck out in the parking lot for the rest of the evening and it was cold, she may have struck out for the near-by restaurants to get a drink and get warm. She likely didn't have her coat with her, as it's a hassle to have in the concert and the girls probably locked them in the car and dashed inside.

respectfully snipped by me
Click to expand...


Yes, you're right-wow it's so confusing. I had initially at the very beginning clearly understood she drove part way with her own car and then met up with her friends and drove in their car - I had even read somewhere that she was the designated driver despite it being the roommate or roomate's sister's car (wonder why-had they started drinking already?) but then there were all these false reports saying it was her car in the parking which got really confusing.
 
When was Morgan reported missing? Could Morgan and her friends gone to a party after concert and maybe died of alcohol poisoning so friends made it appear that something happened @ the concert?
 
If you dont have time to click all the lniks, these are some tidbits from the linked articles below that I hadn't read or heard before on this thread.

So according to this first one below, there was at least a fourth girl in their group of Amy, Amanda, and Morgan at the concert. Don't know if these reports below of seeing her should be taken as grain-of-salt sightings.

"JMU student Sarah Snead attended the concert with Harrington and does not wish to speak with media."

" Two users commented on the Facebook event said that they had seen Harrington outside the arena around 9:30 p.m. Saturday.

One said she was walking alone on the bridge on Alderman Road, while the other said she was walking away from the arena with four men wearing black T-shirts and jeans."

http://breezejmu.org/2009/10/22/search-for-tech-student-continues/#

" 'You pursue things as they occur,' said state police Lt. Joe Rader, who spoke at the press conference. 'The timeframe is very critical.'

ader declined to comment on calls made by Harrington or what had been uncovered through her cell phone records. Rader added that there appeared to be no signs of struggle in the area where her personal items were found.

Dan Harrington, Morgan’s father said he had bought tickets for Morgan and her group months before the show.

Harrington said, 'Metallica wasn’t necessarily her type of band, but she likes all types of music, and that was a band she wanted to see.' "

http://www.collegiatetimes.com/stories/14487

....and a bit from this article: Some of it sounds like mis-reporting (?) b/c didn't the dad report her missing? (not the friends)

" Amy Melvin traveled to Charlottesville to see the Metallica concert with Harrington, along with two others. Melvin said the group was separated from Harrington before the concert and did not see her during the concert.

She said Harrington did not take the automobile they had brought to Charlottesville.

Melvin and the two other group members reported Harrington missing.

Father Dan Harrington is a psychiatrist at Carilion Clinic in Roanoke. " [/b]

http://www.collegiatetimes.com/stories/14457

On JVM show Morgan's father said that Morgan had told her parents that she intended to spend the night at JMU. (in Harrisonburg, I believe)

(Video: part of the presser) (Other info on this site)
http://www.morgandanaharrington.com/

" According to University of Virginia police, Morgan Dana Harrington, a Virginia Tech junior, was last seen leaving the John Paul Jones Arena shortly before Metallica's set Saturday night. Her friends had no idea why she was leaving the venue, but assumed she'd be returning."

http://www.examiner.com/x-25804-Music-Examiner~y2009m10d21-Girl-20-missing-after-attending-a-Metallica-concert-in-Charlottesville-VA

"*UPDATE: Police are now saying that the arena does have a security system and that thay are currently reviewing the footage. "
http://blogs.discovery.com/criminal_report/2009/10/morgan-dana-harrington.html
.
 
Excellent, thank you for doing that Kant- very helpful
 
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