Found Deceased CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, did not return from bike ride, Chaffee County, 10 May 2020 #42

[oviedo]

While I think that would be very helpful, IMO, I'm not sure it's absolutely necessary. While I agree that any defense would certain try to establish reasonable doubt along those lines - what would the theory be? That she staged her disappearance (and, in the process, essentially framed her husband) and ran off willingly? That this is a modern-day Overboard story and she bumped her head and got amnesia and is living with a kind hillbilly somewhere, having no clue who she is? That she was kidnapped, with no demands or trace left behind? I think any scenario in which SM is alive is far-fetched at this point (which is another outcome of this exhaustive search - rules out a 'bump her head, is confused, gets in the water or wanders into the wilderness' scenario). It's certainly helpful to have those things and I think any prosecutor will be patient, hoping something like that surfaces - but if the rest of the circumstantial evidence is strong enough, I don't believe they need absolute proof she is deceased to move forward with charges. JMO, MOO.

and i also think they have blood evidence from the house - that's just my speculation of course but 2 search warrants to me equals something significant - and they are still sealed. I think we are in for a bit of a wait - especially if anything found during the search is being tested... we wait.
IMO

 

[Queasy Gumshoe]

We really don’t know what evidence LE has, and we likely will not until this case goes (hopefully) to trial.

We do know that the Puma Path home security system was said to not be working. We don’t know if it was broken or purposely disabled.

BM’s vehicle was taken by LE. Not sure which vehicle, but AM believes that LE obtained GPS or EVI evidence.

Agree with the timeline not making sense. That is, in part, what makes BM’s movements that weekend very suspicious.

Finally, the media didn’t cover this story as well as we would have liked. LS of Fox21 did a tremendous job, but was pulled off prior to the weekend search. The PE guys (despite some on-camera drama) kept the story in the spotlight and offered great assistance to Andy in terms of public outreach.

Thank you!!!

 

[Sportn]

Agree with you.
All my opinion only:
I can imagine that someone does know something, after the fact. BM has a tendency to explain, like we saw with TS in Gannon's case.
Listen...let me show you what happened...
He draws people and attention to himself like a magnet to fill the bottomless pit of his ego. He needs them like he needs air.

I think that he will have known in advance that LE would question certain things and gone to those in his circle with pre-slained excuses, that at the time were believed. But these excuses will be proved false as time goes on. I expect the Broomfield alibi to crumble. Like the non-existent Denver fireman training. Like the bike ride. Not everyone in his circle are going to remain on his bandwagon.

Moo

I think someone knows something as well. While I hate the PE references to the "5", we know the 5 is referring to some unknown individual. MK closed one of their last search updates with a comment aimed directly at the "5". If that reference is not directed at Barry himself (and I don't think it is aimed at BM) then there is someone else of interest that they are aware of and appealing for them to step forward with what they know. JMO

 

[Queasy Gumshoe]

We really don’t know what evidence LE has, and we likely will not until this case goes (hopefully) to trial.

We do know that the Puma Path home security system was said to not be working. We don’t know if it was broken or purposely disabled.

BM’s vehicle was taken by LE. Not sure which vehicle, but AM believes that LE obtained GPS or EVI evidence.

Agree with the timeline not making sense. That is, in part, what makes BM’s movements that weekend very suspicious.

Finally, the media didn’t cover this story as well as we would have liked. LS of Fox21 did a tremendous job, but was pulled off prior to the weekend search. The PE guys (despite some on-camera drama) kept the story in the spotlight and offered great assistance to Andy in terms of public outreach.

THANK YOU!!

 

[Queasy Gumshoe]

@Queasy Gumshoe I always find it helpful to start with the media thread when I want to get up to date on a case. I think you'll find some of your answers there. @oviedo does a wonderful job, keeping it up to date.
Thank you.


CO - CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, Chaffee County, 10 May 2020 , MEDIA,MAPS,TIMELINE *NO DISCUSSION*

Thanks!!!

 

[MsBetsy]

While I think that would be very helpful, IMO, I'm not sure it's absolutely necessary. While I agree that any defense would certain try to establish reasonable doubt along those lines - what would the theory be? That she staged her disappearance (and, in the process, essentially framed her husband) and ran off willingly? That this is a modern-day Overboard story and she bumped her head and got amnesia and is living with a kind hillbilly somewhere, having no clue who she is? That she was kidnapped, with no demands or trace left behind? I think any scenario in which SM is alive is far-fetched at this point (which is another outcome of this exhaustive search - rules out a 'bump her head, is confused, gets in the water or wanders into the wilderness' scenario). It's certainly helpful to have those things and I think any prosecutor will be patient, hoping something like that surfaces - but if the rest of the circumstantial evidence is strong enough, I don't believe they need absolute proof she is deceased to move forward with charges. JMO, MOO.

I think in any case where there is not a body they need to have physical evidence that indicates the victim is no longer living. If they find enough blood to indicate she could have survived without medical attention, that would be solid evidence, imo. If they found bone fragments that would definitely point to her being deceased.

In the no body cases I've followed over the years that have been successful, there has always been absolutely proof that the victim could not have survived, a confession, or both.

I think that's the main reason it's so hard to gather enough evidence to ensure a conviction.

 

[10ofRods]

I think in any case where there is not a body they need to have physical evidence that indicates the victim is no longer living. If they find enough blood to indicate she could have survived without medical attention, that would be solid evidence, imo. If they found bone fragments that would definitely point to her being deceased.

In the no body cases I've followed over the years that have been successful, there has always been absolutely proof that the victim could not have survived, a confession, or both.

I think that's the main reason it's so hard to gather enough evidence to ensure a conviction.

Maybe. There was a case mentioned in this thread yesterday and if I read it properly, the evidence was mostly video. They didn't find the body until something like 15 years after the conviction (buried on the perp's property - which had been searched many times, I think they eventually had GPR). I don't think there was much or any blood evidence.

I'm probably just being pie-in-the-sky hopeful on this one though, which is hard to do right now.

 

[Dalgliesh]

@branmuffin, @steeltowngirl: Colorado adopted the Colorado End of Life Options Act in 2016. It has procedural protections that would not protect the kind of informal assisted suicide that you speculated on in your posts. A husband who killed his wife with her permission would commit Murder in the First Degree, After Deliberation. MOO

 

[Hoosierfan72]

I'm not a psychologist, but I, for one, think BMs going to be living in his own personal hell. The search is over and she wasn't found - but this isn't the end for BM:

• IMO, BM actually has a sliver of a conscience (as evidenced by his extreme distancing language used when speaking about her) and that guilt will eat away at him from the inside out. While anyone who murders their spouse is clearly sick and evil, I don't believe BM is a sociopath in the literal sense of the word - and because of that, I do think there's a chance we see that guilt work within him that might provide a break in this case (confession to someone close to him, additional behavior that leads LE to new evidence, etc.) I know that may be a minority opinion, but I still hold out some hope on this front.
• Image is clearly important to BM. There's no coming back from this (short of an arrest and conviction of someone other than him - and not tied to him - for SMs murder). He will never again be the BMOC. He will never again have the trust of strangers. That picture-perfect life that he seemed to be so intent on showing the world - it's gone forever, never to be recovered or rebuilt. The world knows what he did and there's no place he can go and get away from it.
• Related to that, BM's inner circle - the few people close to him that believe in him - is going to grow smaller, not larger. His paranoia, his b-splaining, his inability to keep a story straight - it's going to drive a wedge in those relationships, including with his family. Some may have circled the wagons around BM for the moment, but I believe as time passes, the truth has a way of sneaking to the surface. I believe BMs family are good people - not the kind of people who would turn a blind eye to evil - and as the fog lifts, they'll be able to see more clearly. BM will see those few things that he has left that matter at all get slowly stripped from his life.
• BM might have enough money to get by - but that money can no longer buy BM what he's desperate for - status and admiration. BM may have gained the world, but he's lost his soul.
• I hope LE continues to put some pressure on BM - to the point that every time he sees flashing lights, his heart rate double, he starts to sweat and he feels the panic that one might at the moment of realization that the gig is up. And I'm still hopeful that one day it will be.....

All of this clearly MOO, JMO - with likely some wishful thinking sprinkled in.

 

[10ofRods]

Good points. Also, in a recent article AM states it was the FBI that gave him the chlorine smell information. Take it for what it’s worth, but I don’t think AM made that up, as a matter of fact, this small leak was probably done on purpose. JMO

Ah - thank you! I think I'll remember that now. Yes - I think it was the officer who said Mt Lion walked by, AM personally observed the elk remnants, and the FBI mentioned the bleach. It remains a puzzlement as to why the FBI was there so early, it could be as simple as CSSO not having appropriate resources - but why they thought it was criminal activity so early on...I'd love to know.

 

[Knox]

You’re no help to Andy if you try to co-launch his search with a viewership of zero.

There’s no point having a yt channel if nobody watches your videos.

So you find ways to drum up interest and hook/bring people back for the next one.

Some people may not like the style (riddles etc) - fair enough, but I’m a bit flummoxed why others are opposed to PE seeking publicity and promoting what they are doing?

Thank you.

I've been mulling this over for a day or two. I had a bad taste in my mouth after watching the Monday night PE episode, it was awkward to watch the dynamics between Chris & Mike that night. Not only that, I sort of felt Chris was playing Andy a bit.

You're right though. The publicity and push for the search which came through PE was invaluable to Andy.

 

[Knox]

Yes, those are ground probes. I have a few of the red handled "T" type as seen in the video. The others are rods that are being driven into the ground by a slide hammer. This tells me the ground is very hard as the "T" handle type are usually more than enough to probe disturbed ground. Looks like shovel digging and tossed into the loader bucket and dumped in a pile. Curious that no one is probing the pile with a metal detector for artifacts such as rings, belt buckles, shoe eyelets or teeth with amalgam fillings. Also do not see a GPR unit anywhere nearby. I think having to pound the rods in told them right away that this was naturally packed soil, not disturbed as in a burial site. When using the "T" type probes, you get a distinctive feel and "click" when you hit bone.

As usual your knowledge is valuable, thank you for answering!

Any ideas why a dog may have hit there?

 

[oviedo]

I think in any case where there is not a body they need to have physical evidence that indicates the victim is no longer living. If they find enough blood to indicate she could have survived without medical attention, that would be solid evidence, imo. If they found bone fragments that would definitely point to her being deceased.

In the no body cases I've followed over the years that have been successful, there has always been absolutely proof that the victim could not have survived, a confession, or both.

I think that's the main reason it's so hard to gather enough evidence to ensure a conviction.

there is one that had no blood evidence that I followed - 2005 - Christie Wilson - just video she was last seen with her killer - they used her lack of credit card/banking/ not seen anywhere - no contact with family to successfully arrest and convict her killer - and they found her body this year. on his property. and through a tip. It can happen but it is rare - IMO any blood evidence could be used in an arrest depending on where it is found. I do wonder about the chlorine/bleach and if it inhibits luminol testing?
JMO
I think I will go check the guardianship docket. He may be feeling like it's ok to move some assets now.
JMO

 

[Sportn]

I'm not a psychologist, but I, for one, think BMs going to be living in his own personal hell. The search is over and she wasn't found - but this isn't the end for BM:

• IMO, BM actually has a sliver of a conscience (as evidenced by his extreme distancing language used when speaking about her) and that guilt will eat away at him from the inside out. While anyone who murders their spouse is clearly sick and evil, I don't believe BM is a sociopath in the literal sense of the word - and because of that, I do think there's a chance we see that guilt work within him that might provide a break in this case (confession to someone close to him, additional behavior that leads LE to new evidence, etc.) I know that may be a minority opinion, but I still hold out some hope on this front.
• Image is clearly important to BM. There's no coming back from this (short of an arrest and conviction of someone other than him - and not tied to him - for SMs murder). He will never again be the BMOC. He will never again have the trust of strangers. That picture-perfect life that he seemed to be so intent on showing the world - it's gone forever, never to be recovered or rebuilt. The world knows what he did and there's no place he can go and get away from it.
• Related to that, BM's inner circle - the few people close to him that believe in him - is going to grow smaller, not larger. His paranoia, his b-splaining, his inability to keep a story straight - it's going to drive a wedge in those relationships, including with his family. Some may have circled the wagons around BM for the moment, but I believe as time passes, the truth has a way of sneaking to the surface. I believe BMs family are good people - not the kind of people who would turn a blind eye to evil - and as the fog lifts, they'll be able to see more clearly. BM will see those few things that he has left that matter at all get slowly stripped from his life.
• BM might have enough money to get by - but that money can no longer buy BM what he's desperate for - status and admiration. BM may have gained the world, but he's lost his soul.
• I hope LE continues to put some pressure on BM - to the point that every time he sees flashing lights, his heart rate double, he starts to sweat and he feels the panic that one might at the moment of realization that the gig is up. And I'm still hopeful that one day it will be.....

All of this clearly MOO, JMO - with likely some wishful thinking sprinkled in.

Couldn't agree more. The holidays are approaching, who is going to be making that Thanksgiving turkey or decorating the house for Christmas? Who is going to fill that house with the love that SM brought? Can't even imagine that soulless emptiness he will be facing at a time when families usually unite.

 

[MakitTakit]

For those forensic and dog tracking experts, if someone were killed and within a short period of time wrapped in plastic and sealed tight - more or less shrink wrapped, and then buried roughly five feet deep in the ground, would tracking dogs be able to detect this, and, would smells be left in the "chain of custody" along the way (eg, a bobcat or vehicle/truck)? I mentioned this yesterday but several years back I rented a bobcat with an auger attachment to help plant trees. This allowed me to dig roughly 24" diameter holes three feet deep within a minute or two. With an attachment, I could have gone ten feet down, again, within minutes. Of course doing this would require doing a mechanical thingy to attach the auger. If a bobcat were used in helping to hide SM, the quickest way to dig a hole is not by digging something out with a bucket but rather using an auger, something that would leave a small footprint and that anyone using a bobcat for landscaping or working on a tree farm would be very familiar with using.

 

[Knox]

"EggSalad, post: 16389440, member: 267221"]
I doubt the CBI person jumped out of their seat when AM produced Tree invoices and that area was secured and looked at only for this all to be a big nothing burger.
Her body wasn’t at those sites but what if we have 4 dogs hits and evidence at 4 separate sites, all associated with BM. That is a great piece of a no body trial.

RSBM- Playing devil's advocate and using your post as a launch.

True the common denominator is Barry. But would a good defense attorney use the fact nothing was actually found at those sites (to our knowledge) to his advantage?

Could an attorney also say the common denominator was Andy or one of the searchers? Planting evidence?

Of course all of that is nonsense, but planting reasonable doubt in just one juror's mind is all it takes.

I can only imagine what BM's attorney will be like, if he's smart he'll hire a woman to represent him. I can see it now, meek little Barry in a sweater his mama knitted for him. The same pained expression on his face as in the 26 second plea for Suzanne's return

 

[elliefant]

I'm not a psychologist, but I, for one, think BMs going to be living in his own personal hell. The search is over and she wasn't found - but this isn't the end for BM:

• IMO, BM actually has a sliver of a conscience (as evidenced by his extreme distancing language used when speaking about her) and that guilt will eat away at him from the inside out. While anyone who murders their spouse is clearly sick and evil, I don't believe BM is a sociopath in the literal sense of the word - and because of that, I do think there's a chance we see that guilt work within him that might provide a break in this case (confession to someone close to him, additional behavior that leads LE to new evidence, etc.) I know that may be a minority opinion, but I still hold out some hope on this front.
• Image is clearly important to BM. There's no coming back from this (short of an arrest and conviction of someone other than him - and not tied to him - for SMs murder). He will never again be the BMOC. He will never again have the trust of strangers. That picture-perfect life that he seemed to be so intent on showing the world - it's gone forever, never to be recovered or rebuilt. The world knows what he did and there's no place he can go and get away from it.
• Related to that, BM's inner circle - the few people close to him that believe in him - is going to grow smaller, not larger. His paranoia, his b-splaining, his inability to keep a story straight - it's going to drive a wedge in those relationships, including with his family. Some may have circled the wagons around BM for the moment, but I believe as time passes, the truth has a way of sneaking to the surface. I believe BMs family are good people - not the kind of people who would turn a blind eye to evil - and as the fog lifts, they'll be able to see more clearly. BM will see those few things that he has left that matter at all get slowly stripped from his life.
• BM might have enough money to get by - but that money can no longer buy BM what he's desperate for - status and admiration. BM may have gained the world, but he's lost his soul.
• I hope LE continues to put some pressure on BM - to the point that every time he sees flashing lights, his heart rate double, he starts to sweat and he feels the panic that one might at the moment of realization that the gig is up. And I'm still hopeful that one day it will be.....

All of this clearly MOO, JMO - with likely some wishful thinking sprinkled in.

ITA. Also it is a MASSIVE secret he is carrying and he will be bursting at the seams with it. I have lost count of the number of true crime thingies I have seen where the perp just could not stop himself from eventually blabbing to somebody, either the full admission or just enough tidbits to put the case together.

 

[Warwick7]

(more at link.)[/QUOTE]

Yep. Wondered about that, as well as the blanket and towel.

JMVHO.

I had to jump a few pages in this thread. @crhedBngr what is this about towel and blanket?

 

[10ofRods]

Agreed - in general, there's a big reluctance for a DA to take a purely circumstantial case on....

I think they have witnesses to a few aspects of this case.

 

[LietKynes]

You’re no help to Andy if you try to co-launch his search with a viewership of zero.

There’s no point having a yt channel if nobody watches your videos.

So you find ways to drum up interest and hook/bring people back for the next one.

Some people may not like the style (riddles etc) - fair enough, but I’m a bit flummoxed why others are opposed to PE seeking publicity and promoting what they are doing?

Agreed and great post. ^^^

I am hopeful that people will continue to be on the lookout for anything unusual in the areas BM went according to his phone pings and gps.

It saddens me to think that if he had help she may not be found.
I want for the Moorman family and her daughters to have closure.

But-- who is hanging around BM at this time ?
As in rats who refuse to leave a sinking ship; but circle the wagons lest their secret be revealed.
Sorry that's a poor analogy but just an image in my mind.
And if the shoe fits....

If I were LE --I'd be side eyeing anyone who was close with BM before and now.
What are their movements ?
IF Suzanne is whole (sorry to type that), would BM and/or helpers try to move her under cover of night ?
Imo.