Still Missing CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, Chaffee Co, 10 May 2020 *arrest* #99

[MassGuy]

I think one of the most important aspects of this theory is actually the DNA....it will come down to, in my opinion, if prosecution can connect the needle sheath to Barry to the murder in a manner that meets inference as opposed to speculation. I never thought the "vet" was important to their case but I do think someone that can help a jury understand why Barry's DNA isn't on that dryer sheath would be important. I think they also have a hiccup that it wasn't found in the first search but we've heard everything from it was in the drum, to it was in the trap...I don't know where that sheath was. Chances are every single juror has done laundry before. I also don't believe for a heartbeat that Barry hasn't done laundry ever in his life so that tips to the prosecution. Even if you grew up in a household with laundry service, or a housekeeper, or a parent that did your laundry...just about every one lives alone at some point in their life and has to deal with their own dirty clothes, sheets and towels. I also don't buy the theory that people wash their sheets separate from other clothes, I probably wouldn't put dark blue jeans in with light colored sheets but sure I put filthy dirty clothes in with sheets and add a second rinse. Do it all the time for efficiency. So the odds of 12 jurors agreeing that no one washes their sheets with other clothes I don't think will fly. If defense can successfully counter then no inference can be drawn in my opinion and is just one more reason why I think the tranquilizing theory is weak. It could have happened that way absolutely, but I don't think prosecution has the evidential proof and never have.

Look at Barry's truck, and look at his gun safe; this man is like a small child.

I'd be surprised if he even threw his clothes in the hamper, much less washed his own.

Regardless, Suzanne wouldn't have missed that needle sheath. Only a total buffoon could have managed that.

Barry tells us the sheath is relevant, and he does so through his lies. If anyone believes he tranquilized antler-less deer in April, then I have a bridge to sell you.

 

[Seattle1]

I remember reading this. I also think Barry is full of you know what. He could have had plenty of other drugs or chemicals he used and not just the BAM. He threw it out so we have no idea what he might have had in the tranquillizer gun. He had many things we may not know about and he threw a lot of things away. He had a camera we wouldn't have known about if the officer didn't find that manual and then not find a camera that went with it. I was just trying to point out the veterinarian said the BAM would work in a person and it seemed there was a longer time frame mentioned for her being incapacitated from that drug. I think it's possible he had something else he could have used and she wouldn't have had 10+ minutes to run for her life, it may have been much quicker.

Yes, I agree.

Also, I believe the Vet specifically referenced BAM because it was determined through a veterinarian record search that BM had previously been issued an Rx for BAM (the brand name for a deer tranq). MOO

 

[Momofthreeboys]

^^bbm

Of course, the sheat was inside BM's shorts (or the bedsheet)!

In his own words, BM told Agent Grusing he used a tranquilizer dart in April 2020 -- (which very well could have been 10 days before SM's May 9/10 murder), and that he may have disposed of tranquilizer material during his Broomfield trash runs.

This ^^ after first telling investigators during his earliest interviews that he'd not used the dart Rx since Indiana.

BM could have (and should have) kept his mouth shut since the only evidence was a broken dart gun!

These facts are what make me nervous about Judge Lama. It seems to me that he's behind on the AA, and simply accepted IE's version when deciding the defense motion.

MOO

Judge Lama doesn't make me nervous. The prosecution does. There's a hearing on every motion. If they don't have the goods to make the case they don't have the goods...I have a hard time accepting they are simply inept in supporting the theories they came up with. Barry was dumb to even talk but that's water under the bridge.

 

[Love Never Fails]

I remember reading this. I also think Barry is full of you know what. He could have had plenty of other drugs or chemicals he used and not just the BAM. He threw it out so we have no idea what he might have had in the tranquillizer gun. He had many things we may not know about and he threw a lot of things away. He had a camera we wouldn't have known about if the officer didn't find that manual and then not find a camera that went with it. I was just trying to point out the veterinarian said the BAM would work in a person and it seemed there was a longer time frame mentioned for her being incapacitated from that drug. I think it's possible he had something else he could have used and she wouldn't have had 10+ minutes to run for her life, it may have been much quicker.

I’m hoping CBI agents found a record of purchase for what he did use.

 

[Love Never Fails]

Look at Barry's truck, and look at his gun safe; this man is like a small child.

I'd be surprised if he even threw his clothes in the hamper, much less washed his own.

Regardless, Suzanne wouldn't have missed that needle sheath. Only a total buffoon could have managed that.

Barry tells us the sheath is relevant, and he does so through his lies. If anyone believes he tranquilized antler-less deer in April, then I have a bridge to sell you.

Regarding the op saying Barry has washed clothes before or stating the way “she” washes clothes. Every juror is not going to be like the op.

1). Suzanne married a controlling narcissist who believed washing laundry was HER job, just as much as submitting to him sexually all the time was HER job. There will be a juror who has lived that. Bet on it.

2) As for washing clothes, I would never, I mean never, wash my dirty clothes with my sheets. That sounds disgusting. I don’t care how economical that is. I separate my clothes, colors from whites and dirty jeans are washed alone. My towels are washed separately too.

I also check out all the pockets before washing.

My point being that there will be jurors like me and they will know Suzanne did not wash those shorts.

 

[Love Never Fails]

Look at Barry's truck, and look at his gun safe; this man is like a small child.

I'd be surprised if he even threw his clothes in the hamper, much less washed his own.

Regardless, Suzanne wouldn't have missed that needle sheath. Only a total buffoon could have managed that.

Barry tells us the sheath is relevant, and he does so through his lies. If anyone believes he tranquilized antler-less deer in April, then I have a bridge to sell you.

You made a good point and I missed it. Barry IS like a small child. And when he doesn’t get his way he throws tantrums and walks out the door (for days) and then threatens suicide if he has to have an adult conversation.

 

[MrsWatson]

I remember reading this. I also think Barry is full of you know what. He could have had plenty of other drugs or chemicals he used and not just the BAM. He threw it out so we have no idea what he might have had in the tranquillizer gun. He had many things we may not know about and he threw a lot of things away. He had a camera we wouldn't have known about if the officer didn't find that manual and then not find a camera that went with it. I was just trying to point out the veterinarian said the BAM would work in a person and it seemed there was a longer time frame mentioned for her being incapacitated from that drug. I think it's possible he had something else he could have used and she wouldn't have had 10+ minutes to run for her life, it may have been much quicker.

BBM

There is a Rx of Suzanne's picked up right before she went missing that is unaccounted for. Never disclosed what it was. Pure speculation on my part, maybe a sleeping aid or Xanax?

(insert snarky joke about xanax rx as part of wedding vows to BM)

 

[Seattle1]

Judge Lama doesn't make me nervous. The prosecution does. There's a hearing on every motion. If they don't have the goods to make the case they don't have the goods...I have a hard time accepting they are simply inept in supporting the theories they came up with. Barry was dumb to even talk but that's water under the bridge.

If Judge Lama and his decision do not make OP nervous after several AA quotes on the subject, and the quoted ruling below, then I truly have no words.

And Prosecutor Hurlbert's response was valid and backed by case law.

The following is the most detail I've found quoting Judge Lama explaining his basis for denying the expert.

I'm troubled that he parrots defense attorney IE, and I think his reference to a knife on the counter clearly indicates that he can't make the connection to SM being incapacitated by a tranquilizer would explain why no forensic evidence was recovered or an obvious crime scene in the house (whereas a gunshot or knife would leave evidence).

More important -- Lama seems to completely ignore that BM placed a tranq dart in his hand April 2020 after he first told investigators that he had not used tranquilizers since leaving Indiana. MOO

More expert testimony blocked from Morphew trial

Defense Attorney Iris Eytan began by arguing again that this isn‘t a no-body homicide, but a missing person case.

Eytan said investigators found no syringes in the house containing the tranquilizer in question and that the syringe cap was not in a pair of Morphew’s shorts in the dryer.

She told the judge “The prosecution has made this needle sheath as their claim that Mr. Morphew murdered his wife.” Previous testimony in the case indicated that DNA was found on the tranquilizer cap but that it was not Barry Morphew’s.

Prosecutor Mark Hurlbert said the inference that Morphew used the wildlife tranquilizer on his wife is based on the fact that Morphew admitted he had used the tranquilizer on deer and that there was no blood evidence found in the Morphew home.

Hurlbert said the intent was for the wildlife expert to testify that if the tranquilizer could be used to kill a deer a parallel could be drawn that it could be used to kill a human.

In granting the defense motion to block the expert testimony, Judge Lama said to begin with, there was no trace of the tranquilizer in the house and in a no-body homicide, no direct evidence that Suzanne Morphew was tranquilized. Lama said it would simply be too speculative to allow the prosecution to proceed only on a theory that a tranquilizer was used on Suzanne Morphew.

[..]

Lama said similar speculation could be made that if a kitchen knife was found or if the gun was found in the safe, they could be the murder weapons.

Judge Lama clarified that he was not excluding the discovery of the syringe cap in the dryer as part of the prosecution’s evidence, only that the expert testimony was being excluded at trial.

 

[MassGuy]

You made a good point and I missed it. Barry IS like a small child. And when he doesn’t get his way he throws tantrums and walks out the door (for days) and then threatens suicide if he has to have an adult conversation.

It's one thing if a kid makes that threat, but it's another thing entirely when an adult does that to exert control.

Was Barry controlling? Was Barry psychologically abusive?

This one threat proves both; it's not in dispute.

 

[justtrish]

The other unusual thing was that law enforcement was immediately focused on him in spite of the fact he was known to them via the fire department and they likely shared mutual friends.

Something about the scene, his demeanor etc..

I can think of a few things without seeing all the interviews and having first hand accounts of any of the initial calls with police, etc.

He was gone on Mother's Day during initial COVID lockdown mess
He didn't call to report her missing, someone else did
He says the marriage is perfect, daughters bf says on initial interview that things were not perfect in Morphewland.
He gets out of his truck and well that entire performance was a D- at best
The scene on first look didn't look like a wreck at all, those officers picked up on it before they even know any other details about her being missing.
The dog that came out that first night didn't pick up her scent


This is just from what we all know in the first couple hours. Any one of these things without the others might have been easily dismissed, but add them all up and it is odd.

 

[MassGuy]

I can think of a few things without seeing all the interviews and having first hand accounts of any of the initial calls with police, etc.

He was gone on Mother's Day during initial COVID lockdown mess
He didn't call to report her missing, someone else did
He says the marriage is perfect, daughters bf says on initial interview that things were not perfect in Morphewland.
He gets out of his truck and well that entire performance was a D- at best
The scene on first look didn't look like a wreck at all, those officers picked up on it before they even know any other details about her being missing.
The dog that came out that first night didn't pick up her scent


This is just from what we all know in the first couple hours. Any one of these things without the others might have been easily dismissed, but add them all up and it is odd.

I think one of the biggest things was the fact that her last phone ping occurred at 4:23, which was before Barry even left for Broomfield.

There was certainly no shortage of things pointing his direction from the onset.

 

[Love Never Fails]

It's one thing if a kid makes that threat, but it's another thing entirely when an adult does that to exert control.

Was Barry controlling? Was Barry psychologically abusive?

This one threat proves both; it's not in dispute.

Your post brought back a memory that made me laugh. When one of my sons was a boy and I got onto him about not taking care of his clothes he yelled “I hate you!” He was about eight. That’s what kids do. He wanted to go outside and play and he had to wait.
To think a grown man would make a threat, it’s definitely about control.

 

[MassGuy]

Your post brought back a memory that made me laugh. When one of my sons was a boy and I got onto him about not taking care of his clothes he yelled “I hate you!” He was about eight. That’s what kids do. He wanted to go outside and play and he had to wait.
To think a grown man would make a threat, it’s definitely about control.

I was about the same age when my mom showed an embarrassing home movie to friends. In response, I threatened to jump out the second floor window.

My grandmother was visiting and got me a chair...

She called my bluff, just like Suzanne called Barry's.

 

[FromGermany1]

"M-m-mount-t-tain liiiiiiiiion."

JMO

The according instructions he missed as an actor, it seems. Lousy beginner!! Wailing voice: okay. Timing: not okay at all. Hadn't to be his "first" thought and apprehension. (No wonder: it wasn't his first thought. He knew!)

 

[justtrish]

Yes, I agree.

Also, I believe the Vet specifically referenced BAM because it was determined through a veterinarian record search that BM had previously been issued an Rx for BAM (the brand name for a deer tranq). MOO

I am curious if he had access to anything else. If there is a way to get some of these drugs without a vet prescription for it. I think it's possible what was found in the dryer was left over from him shooting a deer in April, but something caused him to wash those shorts. I just don't know what to think. I guess it's not even that big of a deal if he used it on her or not, the biggest thing we can gain from it is it shows another lie on his part and another piece to Barry that is not on the up and up (cutting antlers off by tranqing a deer). It shows another way he could have harmed her and he needed to throw some of this stuff away so it can paint a bigger picture that he was up to no good.

 

[FromGermany1]

I was about the same age when my mom showed an embarrassing home movie to friends. In response, I threatened to jump out the second floor window.

My grandmother was visiting and got me a chair...

She called my bluff, just like Suzanne called Barry's.

I was married to a man, who had no similarity to Barry, nothing at all. But when I begged for divorce, one day he disappeared and called me from the home of an unknown friend for telling me, he had a pistol right to his head at that moment. I had not much sympathie (I was done), I found it desperate and childish somehow - and it turned out fine, fGs. Nobody knows about that incident until today.

 

[Megnut]

:/

I think Suzanne may not be findable...

But... if she had been found, might her toxicology report have revealed an "overdose" of her own medication?

Drinking and drugging, just like he said.

Except for the tiny puncture wound...

We aren't sure he had BAM leftover from his tranqueing hay days in Indiana, but we know he had syringes...

And her rx is missing....

And according to Barry, her eyes were drunk eyes ... couldn't identify much beyond a sleeping, snoring lump...

Barry's shorts.
Barry's syringes.
Barry's ever changing stories.

We may never know exactly what he did to his wife and how he did it, but he was president of his club of deflection. It'd be foolish not to ask why -- why would he have a syringe sheath in his pocket on Saturday, May 9th?

If he hadn't screwed up, just that one little piece of plastic, there'd be a big question mark after how.

How did he do it?

How did he do it with nary a trace?

The sheath answers that.

He set out to sedate her and remove her from the home.

It was a near perfect crime, but as he had done for likely the whole of their relationship, he underestimated Suzanne's tenacity. She did not want to die. She fought cancer three times -- lymphoma-cancer twice, then her husband-cancer. The cracked door frame... the nail gouges...

The fear, the realization...

It's devastating.

JMO

 

[FromGermany1]

I am curious if he had access to anything else. If there is a way to get some of these drugs without a vet prescription for it. I think it's possible what was found in the dryer was left over from him shooting a deer in April, but something caused him to wash those shorts. I just don't know what to think. I guess it's not even that big of a deal if he used it on her or not, the biggest thing we can gain from it is it shows another lie on his part and another piece to Barry that is not on the up and up (cutting antlers off by tranqing a deer). It shows another way he could have harmed her and he needed to throw some of this stuff away so it can paint a bigger picture that he was up to no good.

I think, Suzanne as an experienced housewife had found the sheath earlier, if it was a pocket content from April. You would hear a grinding noise from time to time. And you would search for the reason. IMO

 

[Seattle1]

I think, Suzanne as an experienced housewife had found the sheath earlier, if it was a pocket content from April. You would hear a grinding noise from time to time. And you would search for the reason. IMO

I agree. Also, as both an earth-moving contractor and the condition that BM kept his $60K+ truck, I think SM most likely washed BM's clothing separately. She'd constantly be checking the washer/dryer for BM's after 'effects.' JMO

 

[justtrish]

I’m hoping CBI agents found a record of purchase for what he did use.

I wonder if ole Barry typically used a credit/debit card or if he paid cash.