Found Deceased CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, Chaffee Co, 10 May 2020 #100 *Case dismissed w/o Prejudice*

[GatorFL]

So I am also wondering if there is some significant CYA going on.
Barry has been jailed for almost a year. He has been jailed under multiple charges.
The sentencing for the forgery could be a year.
My question is: If Barry were to file a civil case wrt being falsely accused BUT was also convicted of forgery and sentenced pretty much to time served, is there any basis for a civil case?
Is it possible that with conviction looking less certain, the DA decided that now would be a good time to drop the current murder charges without penalty?
I am ignorant about the laws regarding this so any enlightenment is definitely welcome. But this has been churning a bit in the back of my head.

IANAL but I do think the prosecutor bailed on the case because she didn't have much of a case.

I think Barry may file suit to recover some of his spend based on the murder charge. I don't think the other charges would overrule this.

The separate matter of any potential sentence on the forgery/voter fraud is interesting. If convicted I wonder if time served is the outcome?

 

[EggSalad]

The way she spoke to Lauren,who has behaved totally professionally , was absolutely disgraceful . She should be called out for that and made to give a public apology.

IIRC, didn’t Lauren have a lengthy interview with BM that was never released? I’d have to imagine LE has a copy of it, and it hurts BM. Thus his legal team is trying to discredit Lauren.

 

[CGray123]

And of course, Lauren knows the real facts and Iris does not?

I don't think she will, but we shall see.

ITA. LS has never assumed the role of judge or jury. She invited BM to tell his story, and gave him much editorial control as a condition of his participation. She interviewed witnesses who were willing to go on camera. She reported what was said by witnesses and decided by the judge during the proceedings. All professional and above reproach. I doubt that she will offer a rebuttal/editorial concerning IE's remarks, which is not her role as a reporter. She doesn't need to do that, and it would only lend itself to IE's characterization of LS as a BM adversary - prejudiced against her client. LS will maintain a professional neutrality.

 

[mrjitty]

I actually think it made both of them look extremely tacky.

He murdered his wife.

Fine if you get him off. That's your job

But smooching?!?

 

[10ofRods]

As far as we know, the weapons charges against Barry are still in place. That means he cannot be running around hunting chipmunks or anything else (with a gun). I hope that one moves forward (and the voter fraud case too, of course).

 

[mrjitty]

If the reporter DID get that information from May, it’s unfortunate the reporter did not say that or get May on camera saying it. I’d like to hear an experienced prosecutor weigh in.

It’s my understanding that pretrial orders suppressing evidence CAN be appealed and in this case, the prosecution team had filed a motion to reconsider. To my knowledge, we were still awaiting a ruling on that motion.

So, with the judge granting the motion for dismissal without prejudice without first ruling on the other outstanding motion (for reconsideration of the order suppressing evidence), I don’t understand why a subsequent prosecution wouldn’t resume the place of the first, with the question of overturning or reducing suppression of evidence still to be ruled on.

Would the trial restart at the same place or would there need to be a new preliminary hearing?

If the prosecution did have the body it strikes me the case would likely be quite different. Would be odd for sanctions to remain on a new trial.

 

[justtrish]

I think it is possible the RR data has revealed something and that is why the defence keep bleating on about the dna found on the glove box.

I am sure it's common for random abductors to take your car and you to a remote location to dump you and then return your car to the garage and leave only Dna on the glovebox, while also just leaving your purse, money, credit cards, etc just on the seat and on the way back just decide to throw your bike out and your helmet.. oh and all this while your husband is at the house you know having a steak dinner and all that.. ugh ridiculous and no way around it, if the RR moved after 2:45pm on Saturday and before 5am on Sunday, it was not a random sexual abuser abductor, it was only one person.

 

[CGray123]

Is suing and interviews the way that charged but not convicted people recoup their legal costs? Makes me wonder if we'll see a lot of both coming up soon.

Nah. LS's publications are very clearly First Amendment protected, and there are penalties for SLAPP lawsuits.

BM won't be filing a civil suit, because discovery in that lawsuit would provide a great deal of new evidence the prosecution could use against him.

So, I'd be very surprised to see civil litigation. That said, I've been surprised before...

 

[CGray123]

Would the trial restart at the same place or would there need to be a new preliminary hearing?

If the prosecution did have the body it strikes me the case would likely be quite different. Would be odd for sanctions to remain on a new trial.

My understanding is that a new charge would start from the beginning, with a new arrest warrant, a preliminary hearing, and the full panoply of options for both sides. I may or may not be right about that.

This happens so rarely that it's impossible to say there's a hard and fast rule. But there seems to be a very clear principle: the prosecution won't be allowed to employ this strategy in bad faith.

Any future prosecution really must be free of the kind of problems that plagued Linda Stanley's. This is so important that I believe she should ask the judge to appoint a special prosecutor. Both judges have been critical of her conduct, and her association with the decision to re-file would significantly burden any future proceedings.

 

[justtrish]

With due respect, I don't know what else they could have said. For legal reasons, they needed a plausible, good faith reason for their request to dismiss without prejudice, stated in their motion.

But I agree with you to this extent: heaven help the DA if the claim wasn't made in good faith. The defense will certainly revisit the issue if the case is re-filed without a body.

I can't imagine they would make that claim if there isn't really an area of interest they can't search. There would be others that know about this at this point. LE likely received the tip or digital data that leads them to believe she is in a specific location. If snow has been on the ground since Sept. that tip could have came in sometime between the PH and now and they haven't been able to dig. Maybe they have used ground penetrating radar that shows disturbances.. if there is snow and the ground is frozen, there isn't much that could be done. I don't think they would make that specific of a claim if it wasn't true. They could just leave it as, there are areas we need to search still, or there are snow covered areas we are interested in ruling out.. etc They said specifically covered in 5 feet of snow. I think it's more likely this is true and not just an excuse to get dismissal.

 

[10ofRods]

Nah. LS's publications are very clearly First Amendment protected, and there are penalties for SLAPP lawsuits.

BM won't be filing a civil suit, because discovery in that lawsuit would provide a great deal of new evidence the prosecution could use against him.

So, I'd be very surprised to see civil litigation. That said, I've been surprised before...

Exactly. Can you imagine the deposition content from such a case?

It would go on a long time, the State has lawyers on payroll, the civil law firm that Barry hires would be nuts to encourage him to do it. IMO.

 

[10ofRods]

My understanding is that a new charge would start from the beginning, with a new arrest warrant, a preliminary hearing, and the full panoply of options for both sides. I may or may not be right about that.

This happens so rarely that it's impossible to say there's a hard and fast rule. But there seems to be a very clear principle: the prosecution won't be allowed to employ this strategy in bad faith.

Any future prosecution really must be free of the kind of problems that plagued Linda Stanley's. This is so important that I believe she should ask the judge to appoint a special prosecutor. Both judges have been critical of her conduct, and her association with the decision to re-file would significantly burden any future proceedings.

I agree. I believe the initially filed case is now dead, a new one would be…a new one.

 

[Skigh]

He murdered his wife.

Fine if you get him off. That's your job

But smooching?!?

I wonder if Barry has invited her for a celebratory one steak dinner at the Antlers hotel. Wig optional .

 

[Love Never Fails]

Nah. LS's publications are very clearly First Amendment protected, and there are penalties for SLAPP lawsuits.

BM won't be filing a civil suit, because discovery in that lawsuit would provide a great deal of new evidence the prosecution could use against him.

So, I'd be very surprised to see civil litigation. That said, I've been surprised before...

I think Barry and his daughters are packing right now for a trip to the islands.

 

[Diddian]

Would the trial restart at the same place or would there need to be a new preliminary hearing?

If the prosecution did have the body it strikes me the case would likely be quite different. Would be odd for sanctions to remain on a new trial.

I just don't know, but would love to hear/read the opinion of a prosecutor familiar with the matter.

 

[O.Incandenza]

Would the trial restart at the same place or would there need to be a new preliminary hearing?

If the prosecution did have the body it strikes me the case would likely be quite different. Would be odd for sanctions to remain on a new trial.

The only logic I can see for it is that it would prevent a prosecutor from just dismissing a case and trying again with a new judge any time they got a major evidentiary ruling they didn't like. That could definitely be abused. But I would be surprised if a rule like that extended to sanctions based on missing deadlines. It seems like the prejudice to the defense is cured by dismissing the case. They will now have adequate time to prepare and respond to expert witnesses (assuming the prosecution doesn't miss the deadlines again).

 

[LandManatee]

Now that Barry is a temporary “free man” does anyone know how to contract his bobcat services? I heard LE needs assistance with removing 5ft of snow in a mountainous area he might be familiar with. Asking for a friend.

 

[Diddian]

The only logic I can see for it is that it would prevent a prosecutor from just dismissing a case and trying again with a new judge any time they got a major evidentiary ruling they didn't like. That could definitely be abused. But I would be surprised if a rule like that extended to sanctions based on missing deadlines. It seems like the prejudice to the defense is cured by dismissing the case. They will now have adequate time to prepare and respond to expert witnesses (assuming the prosecution doesn't miss the deadlines again).

That makes sense to me.

Another thing that makes sense: the expenditures BM has made for the services of his attorneys from May 2021 until today are essentially like expenditures he would have made had he exercised the wisdom to engage them as soon as it was apparent he was being investigated. I believe he used public defenders for his first appearance or so and then hired his current attorneys a couple of weeks after arrest. His new attorney team quickly made demands for early trial, compressing both the discovery period and the "learning curve" for getting up to speed on both their relationship with their client and their understanding of what he was facing.

If I were on a jury hearing claims that BM is owed anything for dismissed charges, I'd want any damages he might be owed to be reduced by the fees he would have paid had he hired them earlier AND the damage he did to himself by producing so much evidence for LE in the absence of hiring them earlier.

 

[WingsOverTX]

Barry Morphew is diabetic so maybe the (very large) needle sheath is his? Even though his DNA is not on it, per evidence?

That is what IE said at minute 13:51 in her diatribe/press conference yesterday.

Just found this interesting. Needle caps for tranq darts are much larger than those for insulin needles, aren't they?

MOO

 

[Diddian]

Barry Morphew is diabetic so maybe the (very large) needle sheath is his even though his DNA is not on it?

That is what IE said at minute 13:51 in her diatribe/press conference yesterday.

Just found this interesting. Needle caps for tranq darts are much larger than those for insulin needles, aren't they?

MOO

She'll say ANYTHING to produce confusion.