Found Deceased CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, did not return from bike ride, Chaffee County, 10 May 2020 #13

[oviedo]

BBM:

1) We don't know what evidence LE has collected. There is no factual basis for claiming "a month and nothing.

2) Many, many husbands/wives have been arrested months, even years, after murdering their spouses.
The length of time an investigation takes has absolutely nothing to do with spousal guilt/innocence.

3) Claiming that it's "always the husband," is no more true than saying that "it's never the husband."
However, LE cannot and should not turn a blind eye to the statistical probabilities.
That doesn't mean they don't consider other possibilities, and follow up on leads that may point them in
another direction.

4) The belief that, "If I can't see anything going on, nothing must be happening," is a fallacy.
We can't see what LE's doing behind the scenes.
That doesn't mean they're not making progress.

JMO.

Thank you for this understanding. We only get one bite at the apple. Why jump the gun if we don't have to? There's a reason on a felony (in California) we have a three year statute of limitations to charge (not counting murder of course). I might know on day three of an investigation what the deal is, but why not take the extra time to gather my evidence? The second you charge someone, they can invoke their speedy trial rights. Why would I cut myself down to a mere 60 days on a homicide when I can have a lot more?

There is no doubt TONS of evidence in this case to go through. I'm not sure why people think they need to either arrest him NOW or announce he's been cleared and they need help after all. It's likely neither of those things. Just because we don't know what they're doing does not mean they don't know what they're doing.

Consider the intricacies of defendant rights once they've been charged. You (as a DA) do yourself no favors but jumping the gun, just to appease the public.

exactly both of you are spot on IMO
We don't know what we don't know
JMO

 

[CronesEye]

Hi @CronesEye thanks for the tip. I was looking back trying to find something and I just saw this! I will refer to SM from now on. Somehow I thought I had read we should use initials for everyone but the victim. I guess I sort of felt like SM is too impersonal for this beautiful woman who has disappeared. Like she is our friend that we care about even if we never met her! I’ll change it if I can find it. Thanks!

Sometimes I post late at night when I am tired, I'm sure we are suppose to use initials for everyone but the victim, however as you note the victim may be the exception. I have tried to search for the rules on this but can't find it anywhere. Can anyone help on this? Don't change it on my statement alone Lilypad, but on confirmation from other members, I am new. I completely understand the need to retain victims identity, connection and humanity.

 

[Stripehaven]

The constant investigation of him. Where is the investigation of anyone else? Are there posters or public pleas to ask about this car or any stranger in the area? I don't see anything.

Well, the most likely answer is that IF they are not looking at anyone else (which we don’t know), there must not be any evidence pointing toward anyone else. And IF they are ruthlessly investigating BM, there almost certainly is evidence leading them down that path.

 

[Melsworld]

{snipped by me for space}

From following various murder cases, my initial thought is: how long is a piece of string?

I've seen arrests happen within weeks and I've seen arrests happen 3 years out. Average is maybe 4 to 6 months. It all depends on if a body is found, what evidence exists, what that evidence can prove, and how comfortable a DA is in taking a case for indictment.

In my area a previous DA was very conservative and would not agree to prosecute a case until he was comfortable he could prove the charges and he would wait as long as it took, even if that took years, because if there's not enough evidence and a jury aquitts, that's it, no second chances.

In one famous and horrific case in my local area, Michelle Fisher Young was found murdered at home, the murder occurred in 2006 and the arrest for her murder didn't occur until 3 years and 1 month later. Her husband committed the murder and is in prison for life.

I should have continued reading before my post about Michelle's murder!

 

[Hannah3105]

I really have been up and down this past week in terms of my feelings about who or what is responsible.

I’ve obviously considered BM’s direct or indirect involvement, based purely on statistics. This was then further supported by the (IMO) insincere video plea, the reward which I found odd (IMO) and finally, the digging at his work site.

I’ve considered that it could have been suicide, due to my uncle taking his own life when he appeared (externally) to have what appeared to be the perfect life, with no reason to commit suicide.

I’ve considered an abductor, either someone known to her (perhaps a distant admirer) or a random, opportunistic sex attacker - although IMO given the location, I feel someone known to her is more likely than someone random.

I’m now firmly back at my original suspicion. Why? The TD video and the use of past tense. We “had” daughters/children. If my partner were missing, unless I knew he was no longer living, I wouldn’t use past tense.

JMO.

 

[happyday]

Kansas officials seek ID of body pulled from Ninnescah River

Just FYI—No new info on body except that autopsy is scheduled.

Authorities in southern Kansas are trying to learn the identity of a person whose badly decomposed body was pulled from the Ninnescah River over the weekend. Sheriff's deputies were called to an area in northeastern Sumner County, west of the Kansas Turnpike, on Sunday afternoon after someone fishing in the river spotted the body. Authorities say they are unable to speculate how the person died or whether the victim was a man or a woman because of the deteriorated condition of the remains. An autopsy has been scheduled at the Sedgwick County Regional Forensic Science Center in Wichita.

 

[LietKynes]

The problem is, we don't know when she disappeared.
The LE call for folks to save their cam recordings from May 8th on, doesn't mean necessarily that they were thinking SM would be alive and in those photos. They might have wanted to know if a cam had picked up someone moving a body, hiding evidence, not being where they should be. SM could have gone missing waaaay earlier: we just don't know.

bbm
When a "Like" is not enough !
Well said and thank you !

 

[Dave F.]

The map below is from Subculture Cyclery, one of the three premier mountain bike shops in Salida, showing the Monarch Crest Trail system for mountain biking. The original is found at the link. This is as good as it gets in North America, which is the home of the mountain biking sport. It's the top of their world, folks!

The long magenta line traces Monarch Crest Trail itself. As the name implies, the trail follows the continental divide at the crest of Monarch Pass. If I biker spills their water bottle on the trial, the water is either going to flow downhill eastward to the mouth of the Mississippi River onto the Gulf of Mexico, or westward to the mouth of the Colorado River in Baja, Mexico. You might say it depends on which way the wind is blowing as the water falls to the crest.

From approximately June 1 on through the summer, there is a toll shuttle up Monarch Pass to the Summit, where bikers can depart of their Monarch Crest ride. The shuttle will not operate on days when there is snow on Monarch Crest, for liability reasons. Many bikers prefer to park somewhere in the vicinity of Highway 50 and CR 225 turnoff, and ride their bikes to the Summit. The Fooses Creek descent, which roughly runs parallel to the Colorado Trail for hiking, yellow line. It drops rapidly down from the continental divide / Monarch Crest Trail to Fooses Creek Dam. Many bikers prefer this very stimulating route back to their parked vehicle.

A typical ride from Highway 50 / CR 225 to Monarch Summit, the across Monarch Crest Pass to Fooses Creek descent trail, and down to return to US 50 via CR 225 takes about 4 hours 17 minutes for a conditioned mountain biker. Some bikers prefer a short route, from the original trailhead below US 50 that is just west of CR 225 straight up the Colorado Trail / power line clear cut to Monarch Crest Trail, cutting the ride time roughly in half.

On Sunday morning May 10, 2020 there were quite a few mountain bikers enjoying a beautiful spring morning in at the very top of the Rocky Mountains, on the Monarch Crest Trail system. There may be numerous bikers who saw something, but have reported what they saw to LE rather than the news media. Mountain bikers are highly specialized sp[orts enthusiasts. They don't expect other people to understand what they do, or how they do it. The shop name "Subculture" really is a good label, I think.

I personally believe we are never going to know what happened to SM without mountain biker input. I'm very disheartened that I see no sign that LE is paying any attention, and of course I'm in opposition to the "in house-conspiracy" theorists. I believe that the bicycle which is being held in evidence was present when it all went down. IMO

MONARCH CREST TRAIL SYSTEM

 

[KLM6]

The constant investigation of him. Where is the investigation of anyone else? Are there posters or public pleas to ask about this car or any stranger in the area? I don't see anything.

Respectfully, we have no knowledge of who or what LE is doing or has done behind the scenes. Just because many aspects that we have seen appear to involve BM, doesnt mean the Sheriff is paranoid or has any vendetta. It means he has tips, clues, and/or reason to do what he is doing. Even so, if what you believe is true, what would be the CBI and FBI's excuse? Imho, the tip about the suspicious vehicle was unfounded, or LE simply doesnt need the public's assistance.

 

[branmuffin]

TEAL & YELLOW RIBBONS FOR SUZANNE IN SALIDA

Teal and yellow ribbons raise awareness for Suzanne Morphew

The teal seems to be the colour of her bike helmet. I wonder if those are her favourite colours.

 

[Feistyomi]

Today I weeble for innocent, which is truly a good thing....I tend to personalize myself into these cases, ok it is only my second rodeo, here... maybe I overempathize, not sure. I do know this, after threads of Letecia, I absolutely felt I was in Letecia’s brain, ie many of her random truths amongst the lies and I knew where the bloody 2x4 was... I did not like the experience.
On topic, as I have stated here, I am definitely biased, toward Barry’s innocence, because I do not want Suzanne to be just another woman killed by her husband. I tried to look at this case from BMs perspective.
What I’ve just realized is this?
Subconsciously, I have actually been looking at this from Suzannes perspective( not saying I am psychic at all)
Perhaps it is simply 44 years of trying to nurture empathy in my 4 kids and 4 precious grandkids. I will make my case for B thruout the day.

 

[oviedo]

The teal seems to be the colour of her bike helmet. I wonder if those are her favourite colours.

hmm teal is the color for ovarian cancer IIRC...
IMO

 

[branmuffin]

That was my thought too, a wood crate.

You mean like a wooden crate that would be used for shipping guns rather than storing them?

 

[sunflowerchick]

I wish we had more information or movement in this case. I have noticed when cases slow down, we tend to get snarky with each other. Where is Suzanne?

 

[branmuffin]

hmm teal is the color for ovarian cancer IIRC...
IMO

Oh dear. That's a tough one. And yellow is bone cancer.

Cancer ribbon colors: Chart and guide

 

[Herat]

hmm teal is the color for ovarian cancer IIRC...
IMO

Interesting point. But maybe teal is Suzanne's favourite color.

Maybe she's just not a pink person and it was breast cancer, not ovarian cancer? I am not a pink person and no one I know would dare put out pink ribbons for me no matter what type of cancer I had. I'd much rather have aqua blue. Yellow is an odd color, though. I wonder where that comes from. In the few photos we have of Suzanne, she is never wearing yellow.

 

[Bridger]

Yellow is an odd color, though. I wonder where that comes from. In the few photos we have of Suzanne, she is never wearing yellow.

Isn’t yellow the traditional ribbon color for missing people? “Tie a yellow ribbon round the old oak tree. It’s been three long years. Does she still love me?”

 

[theyellowtape]

Respectfully, we have no knowledge of who or what LE is doing or has done behind the scenes. Just because many aspects that we have seen appear to involve BM, doesnt mean the Sheriff is paranoid or has any vendetta. It means he has tips, clues, and/or reason to do what he is doing. Even so, if what you believe is true, what would be the CBI and FBI's excuse? Imho, the tip about the suspicious vehicle was unfounded, or LE simply doesnt need the public's assistance.

They always need the public's assistance, that's why they have tiplines and canvases, which are the cornerstones of most investigations. They would be powerless without the public's assistance. If people just "shut up and let them do their jobs" (as some naive cop fanboys and egotistical cops have been known to say), law enforcement's cold case backlogs would be exponentially more depressing that they already are.

Law enforcement, though to be admired and respected, ought not be assumed infallible or a sole source of case resolution anymore than they ought be assumed society's top experts or it's sole source or protection. Though they should be afforded a good measure of trust and benefit of doubt when something seems wrong or overlooked, they ought not be instantly assumed on top of it and having a good reason for appearing to miss something crucial.

Asking questions, keeps them sharp and honest and keeps us informed and willing to continue to trust. Both are necessary for our system of justice to work, otherwise what we would have is anarchy or a complete police state.

 

[Herat]

Isn’t yellow the traditional ribbon color for missing people? “Tie a yellow ribbon round the old oak tree. It’s been three long years. Does she still love me?”

Oh, great one, Bridger!! Thank you,

Yes, this all makes sense now.

I think chemotherapy for ovarian cancer would be more debilitating than for most conventional breast cancers.

My choice would the c0lors for prostate cancer and lymphoma, which would really confuse people. (OOPS, the colored ribbons chart won't post)

 

[branmuffin]

Interesting point. But maybe teal is Suzanne's favourite color.

Maybe she's just not a pink person and it was breast cancer, not ovarian cancer? I am not a pink person and no one I know would dare put out pink ribbons for me no matter what type of cancer I had. I'd much rather have aqua blue. Yellow is an odd color, though. I wonder where that comes from. In the few photos we have of Suzanne, she is never wearing yellow.

And she'd look fantastic in yellow. In Canada yellow was always associated with cancer awareness: yellow daffodils sold in the spring or little yellow plastic daffodil lapel pins. I see so many people wearing the ribbons these days, they are kind of hard to keep track of what they are for.

And this link makes it even more confusing.
65 Popular Colors for Awareness Ribbons and What They Mean | QLP