Still Missing CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, Chaffee Co, 10 May 2020 *arrest* #82

[Lyanna]

How could BM have caught Suzanne sending selfies to another man if he turned off the game camera's and wasn't in the nearby area and no evidence of him using some sort of spyware on his phone ?

Also, crime of passion doesn't that have to be committed in the moment - so how can they explain away the turning off the camera's earlier in the day and then BM taking time to go to garage and load up tranq dart/gun etc.

Sorry, not well today and my head a little fuzzy and am rambling and asking pointless questions but they're bothering me.

 

[MrsWatson]

I don't see BM doing any interviews or his legal team making any sort of statements. BM has shown he had no interest in showing his face. He was "The Husband" when we first heard Suzanne was missing.

I have no doubt the Daily Mail will figure out where he ends up living and we'll know. My personal hopes are a tent in someone's yard with specific bathroom and kitchen times allotted.

I think the DNA on the glove box and bike will be a non-starter. One DNA expert witness will scuttle that.


moo

 

[kshultz06082]

Recalling LS recap last night where she confirmed that mom, both sisters, and their husbands were present in court on Friday. That means TD's mom was there and still not a peep from the initial family spokesperson. I'm curious, what topics are off the table for discussion in that house?... I believe TD was collateral damage for BM. Ran right over him and didn't look back. MOO

TD = Tyson Draper, the youtuber. I think you mean TN, Barry’s nephew. Just pointing this out for accuracy's sake.

 

[Ontario Mom]

How could BM have caught Suzanne sending selfies to another man if he turned off the game camera's and wasn't in the nearby area and no evidence of him using some sort of spyware on his phone ?

Also, crime of passion doesn't that have to be committed in the moment - so how can they explain away the turning off the camera's earlier in the day and then BM taking time to go to garage and load up tranq dart/gun etc.

Sorry, not well today and my head a little fuzzy and am rambling and asking pointless questions but they're bothering me.

I think the very act of turning those cameras OFF, just hours before Suzanne's last contact with anyone, ever, is pretty damning and points directly to premeditation. I know we discussed it at the time he was reported to have been looking for some mythical turkey that MM shot (sure he was, and I'm Mary Poppins, y'all) that he might of been doing exactly that and BAM! that is indeed what he was doing.

 

[TIGER0822]

I am very angry with the prosecution. First degree murder was a terrible decision. Murder in the second degree would have had a much higher chance of success. ‘Ambition o’er leaps itself and lands on the other side’ (Shakespeare)

 

[Skigh]

I don't see BM doing any interviews or his legal team making any sort of statements. BM has shown he had no interest in showing his face. He was "The Husband" when we first heard Suzanne was missing.

I have no doubt the Daily Mail will figure out where he ends up living and we'll know. My personal hopes are a tent in someone's yard with specific bathroom and kitchen times allotted.

I think the DNA on the glove box and bike will be a non-starter. One DNA expert witness will scuttle that.


moo

I very much hope the Daily Mail will publish pictures of BM's accommodation and how much it cost along with the most interesting parts of the AA.

 

[Skigh]

I am very angry with the prosecution. First degree murder was a terrible decision. Murder in the second degree would have had a much higher chance of success. ‘Ambition o’er leaps itself and lands on the other side’ (Shakespeare)

I disagree. It appears to me ,from everything I have read so far that BM premeditated Suzanne's murder so certainly should be Murder1.

I am expecting to be even more convinced,once the AA is opened tomorrow.

 

[Warwick7]

I think the very act of turning those cameras OFF, just hours before Suzanne's last contact with anyone, ever, is pretty damning and points directly to premeditation. I know we discussed it at the time he was reported to have been looking for some mythical turkey that MM shot (sure he was, and I'm Mary Poppins, y'all) that he might of been doing exactly that and BAM! that is indeed what he was doing.

Oh yes! He was calculated and deliberate in what he was doing.

From the moment he told MG he was leaving to go make his wife happy her demise was cemented.

 

[CGray123]

Ha - I almost always have more to say, right?

Colorado's practice of "lesser included charges" is designed to help those hung juries. If the jury is deliberating after instructions about Murder One and they are deadlocked with, say, 3 jurors saying nay, then the Judge is likely to given them instructions for Murder Two (both kinds). That often helps the jury reach consensus, because it's still murder, it's still a stiff sentence, and the people who think it's Murder One can be persuaded, hopefully, that the consensus will work.
....

BBM, EBM.

It appears that Colorado law has changed to prohibit the practice of instructing a jury to consider a lesser included offense without the consent of the prosecution. From an article by Colorado defense attorney H. Michael Steinburg:

"Lesser Included Offenses

Sometimes a jury is leaning to convicting on a lesser included offense (a crime that is less punitive than the crime charged in the original complaint and information or indictment).

The practice of instructing the jury to return a verdict on the lesser included offense is now prohibited by 18–1–408(8). A judge cannot alleviate a jury deadlock over the degree of guilt by instructing the jury to return a guilty verdict on a lesser-included offense unless the prosecution consents. If ANY juror is convinced by the facts and the law that the defendant is guilty of a greater offense, the jury cannot be instructed to return a verdict on a lesser-included offense."

 

[TIGER0822]

I disagree. It appears to me ,from everything I have read so far that BM premeditated Suzanne's murder so certainly should be Murder1.

I am expecting to be even more convinced,once the AA is opened tomorrow.

They have no idea how he murdered her. No idea how he transported or discarded the body, no physical evidence. Knowing who ‘dunnit’ and proving it beyond a reasonable doubt are very different.

 

[HongKongPhooey]

They have no idea how he murdered her. No idea how he transported or discarded the body, no physical evidence. Knowing who ‘dunnit’ and proving it beyond a reasonable doubt are very different.

All this said, the judge felt there was enough to go to trial for murder 1.

 

[Momofthreeboys]

All this said, the judge felt there was enough to go to trial for murder 1.

He took a conservative approach and will leave it to a jury. I thought it was a coin toss honestly whether he would dismiss or bind over. Binding over was the safest choice for the judge evidently.

 

[Love Never Fails]

I agree with you, I think the state's biggest problem is that the alternative theory for Murder 2 would be very plausible to a jury. A husband walking in on his wife of many years sending bikini pictures to another man is a Lifetime Murder Mystery plotline. I think the challenge will be convincing the jurors that this was planned before he walked in on her texting. It will be interesting to see if the defense is going to stick with the idea that he has no idea what happened or if they will directly address some type of heat-of-passionate explanation to help the jurors away from Murder 1.

I think the state needs to spend this time walking through a very smooth, very comprehensive theory. The presentation can't be disjointed or haphazard. They need the story to flow enough for the jurors to truly believe them that this is exactly what happened.

Your last paragraph says it all. The State came across as very disjointed during the ph. I believe they can get their act together and deliver so there is no reasonable doubt, but IMO they need to step up their game.

 

[CGray123]

So the next time BM appears in court is for a hearing on his motions (1) for sanctions against the People for discovery violations and (2) to prevent the jury from hearing some evidence. Does anyone have thoughts on what they want suppressed, and why?

 

[Love Never Fails]

All this said, the judge felt there was enough to go to trial for murder 1.

I saw it as the judge delivering for both sides. He says it’s possible this is a murder one. Then he provides bail. Barry will be out for 8 months devising a plan.

 

[HongKongPhooey]

I saw it as the judge delivering for both sides. He says it’s possible this is a murder one. Then he provides bail. Barry will be out for 8 months devising a plan.

And then in 8 months he will be standing trial for murder. Bring that on.

Surely an outcome of the prelim could be that a case does not go to trial, otherwise it makes a mockery of the process. So the judge took that active decision, where he could have dismissed it.

Comments here are suggesting the "conservative" judge somehow shirked a decision and stayed on the fence.

The decision was, it's going to trial.

Thats how I see it anyway.

 

[elliefant]

I only followed Kelsie Schelling’s case towards the end so am not an expert on it - @Seattle1 was very knowledgeable about her case. That trial too was in Colorado, recently, and had some of the same gaps re method of killing/disposal etc, but the jury appeared to have no hesitation in convicting (rightly imho), based on the other evidence. Suzanne’s case seems to me to have evidence at least as strong, so I shall put my faith in the good people of Colorado to get it right again.

 

[Love Never Fails]

And then in 8 months he will be standing trial for murder. Bring that on.

Surely an outcome of the prelim could be that a case does not go to trial, otherwise it makes a mockery of the process. So the judge took that active decision, where he could have dismissed it.

Comments here are suggesting the "conservative" judge somehow shirked a decision and stayed on the fence.

The decision was, it's going to trial.

Thats how I see it anyway.

I agree with you. I’m not saying the judge shirked anything. I would rather Barry had stayed in jail. I am convinced he planned and premeditated her murder. He is sneaky and cruel.

I am also saying his bail is on the prosecution because we all know the ph was worse than boring and not well presented. I would find him guilty. But...jurors might disagree with me. They will have a mans fate in their hands. Not all of the world belong to Websleuths.

The prosecution needs to step up. And the defense team has a reputation to uphold. They will bring their best game.

 

[Skigh]

And then in 8 months he will be standing trial for murder. Bring that on.

Surely an outcome of the prelim could be that a case does not go to trial, otherwise it makes a mockery of the process. So the judge took that active decision, where he could have dismissed it.

Comments here are suggesting the "conservative" judge somehow shirked a decision and stayed on the fence.

The decision was, it's going to trial.

Thats how I see it anyway.

Well said ,HKP. I totally agree with you. We have to remember it is going to trial as murder 1 and we will be able to read what is in the AA tomorrow.

 

[Love Never Fails]

I am very angry with the prosecution. First degree murder was a terrible decision. Murder in the second degree would have had a much higher chance of success. ‘Ambition o’er leaps itself and lands on the other side’ (Shakespeare)

We can all disagree. Murder one with definite premeditation and cunning and cruelty is the right call. Come on prosecutors! Prove it to the jury!