Found Deceased CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, Chaffee Co, 10 May 2020 *Case dismissed w prejudice* #104

[303gmf]

Just a vague memory. I certainly didn't know who AWP was at the time. In retrospect, they were clearly involved in her water search.

866K views · 17 reactions | WATER SEARCH for SUZANNE MORPHEW..! (Missing Person Case) Searching a frozen mine and river for Suzanne Morphew on Monarch Pass with AK (Kurt) from TubeCrime outside of Salida, Colorado. We're searching this section of

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The only thing that has stuck in my mind was that certain volunteer search partys were threatened and 'were encouraged' to back off'.

Consider this IIRC, but I will try to go back and see if I can find this.

JMO

ETA - hoping to jog someone's memory.

I remember as well, unfortunately not the details but they did leave after feeling watched

 

[mrjitty]

I am not sure I understand the question, but I'll take a stab at an answer. In Colorado, an Information or Indictment is a charging document: its role is to provide the accused with basic information what he is charged with, and why. It is not an evidentiary document and it requires no evidentiary support. It must meet the technical standards for notice under the Constitutional concept of Due Process.

The purpose of an arrest affidavit is to demonstrate to a judge that the authorities have probable cause to arrest the accused, and that the judge should therefore issue an arrest warrant. This serves as a basic check on the authority of the police and prosecutor and protects against arbitrary action. When a grand jury issues an indictment, this purpose is generally deemed fulfilled by the grand jury process (although in some cases a defendant can challenge the indictment as improvidently issued, in district court, after his arrest and arraignment).

A search warrant demonstrates to a judge that the evidence produced by an investigation demonstrates probable cause to search a person's property without consent. The facts presented must not only justify the intrusion on privacy rights, it must also support the scope of search requested by authorities. For this reason perhaps, significantly more evidence is presented in the affidavit that supports the request for a search warrant.

I'm not sure this answers your question, but as no attorney responded I'm filling in.

I understand what the documents all do.

What I am asking is if the detail does not go in the AA, where is that detail presented to the Court?

I am guessing that the Judge oks the arrest based on a streamlined 2 page summary, but then the prosecution immediately moves to file the information (i.e the complaint) plus the supporting affidavits for the prelim - so the detail is in the prelim affidavits and exhibits. These are then the subject of limited argumentation/challenge at the prelim.

So everything that was in the AA would have been filed - just in a different affidavit(s)

I am way too in the weeds on this LOL - it just triggered me because Bharara was saying federal search warrant affidavits are lengthy

 

[mrjitty]

@mrjitty regarding "i don't care what they think about their clients guilt, but it takes a fair amount of brass neck and shamelessness to mislead the Court and the public about the case when your client is obviously guilty.
Guilty client or not, no matter what their personal thoughts, I would think deliberately "misleading" is deemed an inappropriate technique in the practice of law. If an attorney is going to intentionally mislead why not intentionally plant evidence or outright lie . JMHO

Snipped for focus

To be clear (as we have discussed this in detail before) it is one thing to defend an obviously guilty client to the best of ones abilities - indeed that is what should happen

What i don't agree with is going on TV for example, to claim there is no evidence against your client and imply it is all a conspiracy. That is obviously not true, and when i did the bar, we were taught we were not allowed to do that sort of thing.

Frankly it smacks more of personal ambition, playing to the public, than it does to your client's legal case.

 

[CGray123]

I have a problem with defence attorneys who mislead the Court

i don't care what they think about their clients guilt, but it takes a fair amount of brass neck and shamelessness to mislead the Court and the public about the case when your client is obviously guilty

Misleading the court also risks sanctions for violation of the ethical standards for attorneys in Colorado:

Colorado Rules of Professional Conduct

Rule 3.3. Candor Toward the Tribunal

(a) A lawyer shall not knowingly:

(1) make a false statement of material fact or law to a tribunal or fail to correct a false statement of material fact or law previously made to the tribunal by the lawyer;

(2) fail to disclose to the tribunal legal authority in the controlling jurisdiction known to the lawyer to be directly adverse to the position of the client and not disclosed by opposing counsel; or

(3) offer evidence that the lawyer knows to be false. If a lawyer, the lawyer's client, or witness called by the lawyer has offered material evidence and the lawyer comes to know of its falsity, the lawyer shall take reasonable remedial measures, including, if necessary, disclosure to the tribunal. A lawyer may refuse to offer evidence, other than the testimony of a defendant in a criminal matter, that the lawyer reasonably believes is false.

(b) A lawyer who represents a client in an adjudicative proceeding and who knows that a person intends to engage, is engaging or has engaged in criminal or fraudulent conduct related to the proceeding shall take reasonable remedial measures, including, if necessary, disclosure to the tribunal.

(c) The duties stated in paragraphs (a) and (b) continue to the conclusion of the proceeding, and apply even if compliance requires disclosure of information otherwise protected by Rule 1.6.

(d) In an ex parte proceeding, a lawyer shall inform the tribunal of all material facts known to the lawyer that will enable the tribunal to make an informed decision, whether or not the facts are adverse.

 

[CGray123]

I understand what the documents all do.

What I am asking is if the detail does not go in the AA, where is that detail presented to the Court?

I am guessing that the Judge oks the arrest based on a streamlined 2 page summary, but then the prosecution immediately moves to file the information (i.e the complaint) plus the supporting affidavits for the prelim - so the detail is in the prelim affidavits and exhibits. These are then the subject of limited argumentation/challenge at the prelim.

So everything that was in the AA would have been filed - just in a different affidavit(s)

I am way too in the weeds on this LOL - it just triggered me because Bharara was saying federal search warrant affidavits are lengthy

To my knowledge, there is no summary of the AA in Colorado. The judge reads the full AA and signs it, then both the AA and the information are filed after the defendant is arrested. Most AAs are much shorter than the one in this case, which was not well edited and contained both speculation and character evidence that would not have been admissible at trial. This may have been the result of a hasty preparation of the AA, or it may have been a calculated effort to influence the jury pool. My take is that the AA was slapped together at the last minute because BM was talking about leaving Salida. This is consistent with the overall impression the case was filed prematurely, before adequate preparation was made for discovery and before a thorough evaluation of overall strategy. MOO

 

[GOBliaison]

I have a problem with defence attorneys who mislead the Court

i don't care what they think about their clients guilt, but it takes a fair amount of brass neck and shamelessness to mislead the Court and the public about the case when your client is obviously guilty

Thinking back now ... how far this time?...Oh yeah.
Second year, USD Law, both semesters, Evidence I & II...

"Hard facts make for bad law."
​

With hard facts rife in this case, may I offer a sort of analogy here wrt recent Sleuther back&forth(s)* re. defense counsel ethics vel non :

"Hard facts may well make for short shrift*."



​

 

[Seattle1]

I understand what the documents all do.

What I am asking is if the detail does not go in the AA, where is that detail presented to the Court?

I am guessing that the Judge oks the arrest based on a streamlined 2 page summary, but then the prosecution immediately moves to file the information (i.e the complaint) plus the supporting affidavits for the prelim - so the detail is in the prelim affidavits and exhibits. These are then the subject of limited argumentation/challenge at the prelim.

So everything that was in the AA would have been filed - just in a different affidavit(s)

I am way too in the weeds on this LOL - it just triggered me because Bharara was saying federal search warrant affidavits are lengthy

While I'd never seen a 120+ page AA prior to BM's arrest, I've also never seen a two-page AA in Colorado.

For example, I just looked up the AA for Patrick Frazee and it was 15 pages, and the search warrant for his residence was 30 pages. (Noting that Colorado Courts do not seem to make search warrants as readily available to the public).

And the AA for Letecia Stauch was 32 pages. JMO

ETA: add link

Home | Colorado Judicial Branch

www.courts.state.co.us

 

[CGray123]

Slightly O/T. AWP (Adventures With Purpose) has just found Kiely Rodni underwater in her car. She was a 16 yo that went missing after a party two weeks ago in Truckee CA. My thought are with her family and friends now.

I have a vague recollection that AWP was contacted regarding the search for Suzanne. I think they were waved off by someone. Anybody remember this?

JMO

ETA - Just found this feature by AWP on their involvement in the search for Suzanne.

866K views · 17 reactions | WATER SEARCH for SUZANNE MORPHEW..! (Missing Person Case) Searching a frozen mine and river for Suzanne Morphew on Monarch Pass with AK (Kurt) from TubeCrime outside of Salida, Colorado. We're searching this section of

WATER SEARCH for SUZANNE MORPHEW..! (Missing Person Case) Searching a frozen mine and river for Suzanne Morphew on Monarch Pass with AK (Kurt) from TubeCrime outside of Salida, Colorado. We're...

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Still hoping she will be found.

At about 15:00 of the You Tube video below, the AWP team says their security group recommended they pull out because of suspicious surveillance activity by unidentified people.

Suzanne Morphew search

 

[GOBliaison]

Just a vague memory. I certainly didn't know who AWP was at the time. In retrospect, they were clearly involved in her water search.

866K views · 17 reactions | WATER SEARCH for SUZANNE MORPHEW..! (Missing Person Case) Searching a frozen mine and river for Suzanne Morphew on Monarch Pass with AK (Kurt) from TubeCrime outside of Salida, Colorado. We're searching this section of

WATER SEARCH for SUZANNE MORPHEW..! (Missing Person Case) Searching a frozen mine and river for Suzanne Morphew on Monarch Pass with AK (Kurt) from TubeCrime outside of Salida, Colorado. We're...

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The only thing that has stuck in my mind was that certain volunteer search partys were threatened and 'were encouraged' to back off'.

Consider this IIRC, but I will try to go back and see if I can find this.

JMO

ETA - hoping to jog someone's memory.

Well, IIRC, very early-on:

• Our sheriff said 'thanks but no thanks' to the Salida Fire and Rescue 'Buds of BM', at least in certain surrounds, and
• with shotgun slung, diddling with his game cameras, Squire Barry reminded a visiting team [or teams] of searchers that they were (too) near his property line(s), and that he (BM) would/had already "searched" his land.

 

[Boxer]

<modsnip - quoted post was removed>

Prosecuction lost this before trial. I wanted to believe that they would able to could succeed in a no body case, but the first day of the PH showed the prosecution unprepared and that continued on. The case was going to be presented too weakly to succeed.

 

[Seattle1]

I must admit, that I have not seen many arrest affadavits, but those I have seen (e.g. CW and KA) have been a few pages at most. I think a lot of the content in BMs AA wasn't actually needed and should not have been included.

As provided above, I've never seen an AA at only a couple of pages in length. Specific to Colorado's CW, this AA is not a good and/or valid comparison here because this was a warrantless arrest affidavit after CW identified the location of the bodies and confessed during questioning. (Also, I'm not familiar with KA reference and therefore can't comment). AA

https://mediaassets.thedenverchannel.com/document/2018/08/20/arrest affidavit chris watts_95256653_ver1.0.pdf?_ga=2.164984255.1252855148.1661197711-659784717.1661197711

 

[justtrish]

I can't decide if Barry locked down his truck overnight but hid Suzanne farther away (couldn't have been me, I was anchored to PP all night) or if he barried her nearby, certain his Broomfield alibi would suffice.

So why did he lock down the truck? To prove he was home all night? Some other reason?

I do think Barry could've hiked with his Yeti to a secondary vehicle which would've created him a whole different starting radius.

I don't believe he turned around at Garfield on Sunday morning. His verb tense was off. As I recall, "I would have [turned]..." So what was he doing???? Lost half hour, lost 14 miles. He dodged, with the elkibi, but I don't buy it. It wasn't 14 miles for a helmet toss and turnaround. So what was he doing????

High on my list -- the burn site, a mine, an animal den, a burial pod, very close to PP.

JMO

I am thinking he was checking on his handy work maybe? If he disposed of her in the darkest of dark times and then decided he should go back and maybe just have a look (I'd say from afar and not actually at the site) to make sure his work was good enough. I found this sunrise/sunset chart from May 2020 in Salida. maybe not quite sunrise, but light would be starting to show or maybe he needed to check on something before the sunrise so he hurried up to put something else he forgot.

May 2020 Sunrise and Sunset Times in Salida, Colorado

Sunrise and sunset in Salida, Colorado, on May 2020 with day length, twilight and solar noon.

sunrise-sunset.org

I 100% believe he knew his truck would track him somehow or he thought it would otherwise why would he try to reset something the day before? I think he left his truck because he knew it would show where he was if he got out and opened the doors.

I also think wherever he put her is a place he had been before. I don't think he selected a random dumping spot or some area he wasn't sure of the terrain or the details of getting in/out of the area. With him being a big hunter he could have had spots in mind for 2 years as he hunted on the land close to his home. I don't think he necessarily had the plan to kill her for all that time, but he had enough knowledge about that area that he had a place in mind and I'm sure he was there before. I know looking 2 years back at cell info or truck data might not be possible, but I think it might show specific areas to focus on.

 

[jakat]

Thank you, jakat, for this research.

I'll just add that, per this table, sunrise twilight that date was 5:17:21 am.

<modsnip - off topic>

Yes, I skipped right over twilight and went to sunrise. We know he left PP at about 4-4:30 am because MG heard what she thought was his truck at that hour even though he said he left at 5 or 5:30. Another lie.

<modsnip - off topic>

 

[jakat]

(Not that Barry was considering the likelihood of a neighborhood-wide LE cadaver dog dragnet. Lest we forget, his cunning Cyclist Lion Attack and Wallwork Alibi ["CLAWA"] were assuredly unassailable .

 

[jakat]

RBBM

I think the black item in the back secured with yellow cords might be an RTV.

View attachment 360781

JMVHO.

It does look like it. The picture I remember was in his driveway at PP and he had the black truck back then.

 

[jakat]

Slightly O/T. AWP (Adventures With Purpose) has just found Kiely Rodni underwater in her car. She was a 16 yo that went missing after a party two weeks ago in Truckee CA. My thought are with her family and friends now.

I have a vague recollection that AWP was contacted regarding the search for Suzanne. I think they were waved off by someone. Anybody remember this?

JMO

ETA - Just found this feature by AWP on their involvement in the search for Suzanne.

866K views · 17 reactions | WATER SEARCH for SUZANNE MORPHEW..! (Missing Person Case) Searching a frozen mine and river for Suzanne Morphew on Monarch Pass with AK (Kurt) from TubeCrime outside of Salida, Colorado. We're searching this section of

WATER SEARCH for SUZANNE MORPHEW..! (Missing Person Case) Searching a frozen mine and river for Suzanne Morphew on Monarch Pass with AK (Kurt) from TubeCrime outside of Salida, Colorado. We're...

www.facebook.com

Still hoping she will be found.

I remember this. AWP was scared off from looking for Suzanne. In one of their videos they said there were men with guns on the other side of the river. They were surrounded by black cars and trucks. They were threatened. Who would do this? And why?

 

[mrjitty]

While I'd never seen a 120+ page AA prior to BM's arrest, I've also never seen a two-page AA in Colorado.

For example, I just looked up the AA for Patrick Frazee and it was 15 pages, and the search warrant for his residence was 30 pages. (Noting that Colorado Courts do not seem to make search warrants as readily available to the public).

And the AA for Letecia Stauch was 32 pages. JMO

ETA: add link

Home | Colorado Judicial Branch

www.courts.state.co.us

I think you've answered my question now @Seattle1 - thank you!

In summary, there could have been a better editing job to summarise the content to make it more concise - because the State need only rise to probable cause standard, which will be fully tested at the prelim, so no need to have the whole case (to date) in the AA.

What I particularly note, is that hearsay evidence etc is allowed in the AA - so this oft repeated criticism seems to be incorrectly made.

www.fletc.gov/sites/default/files/affidavit_writing_made_easy.pdf

Affidavits can, and usually do, contain hearsay information, because generally the rules of evidence do not apply. They can, and usually do, contain supportive information from multiple sources, including other officers and agents, documents, forensic examinations, expert analysis, witnesses, victims, and the affiant’s training and experience. Affidavits do not need to contain all information known by the affiant – they need only reach the level of probable cause to support the request. Probable cause only requires a fair probability, given all the facts and circumstances provided in the affidavit, along with the training and experience of those contributing to the affidavit, that evidence will be found (for a search warrant) or the subject committed a crime (for an arrest warrant).1

 

[mrjitty]

To my knowledge, there is no summary of the AA in Colorado. The judge reads the full AA and signs it, then both the AA and the information are filed after the defendant is arrested. Most AAs are much shorter than the one in this case, which was not well edited and contained both speculation and character evidence that would not have been admissible at trial. This may have been the result of a hasty preparation of the AA, or it may have been a calculated effort to influence the jury pool. My take is that the AA was slapped together at the last minute because BM was talking about leaving Salida. This is consistent with the overall impression the case was filed prematurely, before adequate preparation was made for discovery and before a thorough evaluation of overall strategy. MOO

BIB - my point continues to be that this material arose in the Prelim in any event - e.g. the Domestic Abuse/Violence evidence which was later restricted at trial. And that type of evidence is also allowed in the AA where rules of evidence do not apply. The Judge only rules on admissibility of evidence at trial once the prelim is decided.

So the complaints about the AA seem to be more in the grumpy judge category (too long!), and subsequent public access to that document (which could have been redacted), rather than the actual presentation of hearsay or inadmissible evidence which is allowed at the prelim stage in open court, covered by journalists.

Reading the AA, i don't get the feeling of lack of preparation - rather of a very thorough and complete investigation. So presumably someone intentionally decided to go this route for reasons we don't know.

But it's possible they simply felt that in such an unusual case, the Judge needed to see the full picture?

 

[Megnut]

BIB - my point continues to be that this material arose in the Prelim in any event - e.g. the Domestic Abuse/Violence evidence which was later restricted at trial. And that type of evidence is also allowed in the AA where rules of evidence do not apply. The Judge only rules on admissibility of evidence at trial once the prelim is decided.

So the complaints about the AA seem to be more in the grumpy judge category (too long!), and subsequent public access to that document (which could have been redacted), rather than the actual presentation of hearsay or inadmissible evidence which is allowed at the prelim stage in open court, covered by journalists.

Reading the AA, i don't get the feeling of lack of preparation - rather of a very thorough and complete investigation. So presumably someone intentionally decided to go this route for reasons we don't know.

But it's possible they simply felt that in such an unusual case, the Judge needed to see the full picture?

Yes! And IMO what is unique to this case is that the Barry contributed 3 30 hours of shifting (shifty) narratives to the investigation which wrote the AA into a book. It wasn't just one or three of his stories but really the whole of them that is so undeniably telling. You almost can't leave any of it out.

Had Barry lawyered up like most accused do, he wouldn't be less guilty. The AA just would've been shorter.

It's staggering really, what all he volunteered.

He didn't kill his wife... but he was running around the house shooting chipmunks. With a .22, no less. In the same areas he admitted to using two tranquilizer darts. Stunning admissions.

There's an irony about deception. What you lie about spills the truth.

JMO

 

[MountainDad]

Prosecuction lost this before trial. I wanted to believe that they would able to could succeed in a no body case, but the first day of the PH showed the prosecution unprepared and that continued on. The case was going to be presented too weakly to succeed

Defense team presented partial DNA evidence located in SM glove box to the court as a partial match to a possible sex offender in Arizona and Judge Murphy grants bail for murder 1 based on possibility of unknown sex offender abducted Suzanne and left a single partial DNA marker only in her glove box, planted the helmet, planted the bike, made BM lie through his veneered teeth, fake a job on mother's day, mess with his truck throughout the night, place his phone in airplane mode at crucial times, shoot chipmunks during the time of SM last sign of life etc etc etc. IMO it is very difficult to win a no body case. It is impossible if a Judge places such significant weight to a partial DNA marker, totally unrelated to the case.... Murphy recused after SD trespasses imo all staged by defense team for a recusal.... Llama takes over... Guts the case after deciding before the case to retire after the case...says publicly he was wanting to retire before he received the case....Llama enters private practice after retiring.

LS also needs to be held accountable for her failures to present a case. Was she even in court for the PH?LE was not on the same page, and had many missteps with the local sheriff deputies mishandling the bike scene and asking BM for evidence bags from the house. CBI and FBI seemed in competition for notoriety and ego boosting. Cahill, who shot himself with his own gun, threw a wrench in the case with testimony favoring the defense as a prosecution witness.Grusing talks with BM for thirty hours, gets a ton of lies- but no smoking gun irrefutable evidence or a confession. I've never heard Spezee say anything about the case except the one press conference. Why did fail at getting poncho market video? What info was in the search warrant for the concrete slab? Why not release info and ask the public for help? Why did Spezee not assist Andy Moorman with a search? BM arrives at the bike scene on Sunday, looks guilty as hell, talking about a mountain lion knocking SM off her bike and killing her. Do your job. Start asking questions! Then BM and theGeorge guy (workout frosted tips buddy who happens to be at the bike scene before BM)touch the bike and walk away. LE is suspect. They say it on bodycam. Why not question BM at that point?

Also- it's been on my mind about Jeff Libler and the affair. He knew vital info about SM disappearance and withheld that info. SM was having a years long affair with a married man with 6 kids- she goes missing- and he says nothing for 6 months? SM behavior with the affair imo pushed a controlling, manipulative BM over the edge. I believe BM was watching her sexting with JL that Saturday of her murder. BM had it planned. Too many coincidences, and the fact she has not been found clearly point to planning.