Found Deceased MI - Venus Stewart, 32, Colon, 28 April 2010 - # 5 *D. Stewart guilty*

[spamelope]

Subtle shift in how things have been worded in the newest article. The older ones say things like this:
Anyone with any information about her whereabouts is asked to call Michigan State Police at 269-483-7611.
I take that to mean, if you think you know where Doug buried her, please call.
The newest plea is this:
If anyone has seen Venus, please contact the MSP White Pigeon Post at (269) 483-7611 or after hours at the Rockford Regional Dispatch Center at (616) 866-6666.
http://www.southbendtribune.com/article/20100518/News01/5180362/-1/googleNews
Do they mean, hey, if you saw a corpse that looks like her, please give us a jingle.
Or is LE beginning to wonder if Venus is alive?

 

[spamelope]

It is pretty standard for the wife the recieve custody is what I meant. Unless she is an unfit mother for some reason, and there isn't any evidence for that in this case.

Not unfit, but the DV convictions will play heavily in a final decision. That is one of the things taken into consideration for custody in the link I posted earlier. I don't think she would win a custody battle. I think it's entirely possible DS agreed to let the girls stay with her til he could get back to MI and get on his feet. MOO

 

[pufnstuf]

Not unfit, but the DV convictions will play heavily in a final decision. That is one of the things taken into consideration for custody in the link I posted earlier. I don't think she would win a custody battle. I think it's entirely possible DS agreed to let the girls stay with her til he could get back to MI and get on his feet. MOO

But he filed for divorce in Virginia on March 30. She left in February, sometime after the 22nd.

I don't think that they were going to agree on anything.

The only way that Michigan would insert itself into a custody issue is if it were an emergency custody issue, unless Venus and the children had been in MI for over 180 days.

Even though he's moved back to Michigan, the divorce filing in Virginia is still standing, because that's where both had been residents.

Right now, Doug has two lawyers. A divorce lawyer in VA and a defense lawyer in MI. Yet their house went into foreclosure. Venus doesn't have a lawyer in Virginia (according to the ct records I saw), and I don't know if she does in MI.

So much is yet to be known about this case.

About the DV conviction and how that would play into the divorce and custody in MI... I wonder if the judge would even weigh that in a custody battle, considering that he's already given her a PPO against Doug. Evidently he believes that Doug is a danger to Venus.

Sigh... so much to think about in this case. None of it is obvious, is it?

 

[SuziQ]

But that is pretty standard though, I'm sure his attorney would have explained it to him, it would have come as no surprise. Sorry, I don't buy that as the motivation.

That would be true in a normal marriage that was ending where there aren't any spouses missing. Standard procedure or not, for many husbands, who have murdered their wives, divorce and taking the kids is a bitter pill to swallow and the last straw. WS threads are filled with murdered wives cases, who's last words were probably, "I want a divorce and I'm taking the kids".

 

[Calliope]

and it would be just as awful if the man is innocent for his daughter to see her mother made ugly unfounded allegations against her father. I would consider insufficient evidence in the same light as the allegations are unproven. In other words, it is impossible to declare someone innocent but we do go by the assumption innocent until proven guilty.

This man has not been convicted of the crime of molesting his children and as I understand it, at least as previously posted, LE investigate the allegations of sexual abuse and did not find enough evidence to charge him. how is this different than a rumor? Imo, this IS an allegation NOT fact until LE finds at least enough evidence to convict, no?

JMO

ETA: I should have said charge him with the crime rather than convict.

Thank you.

 

[Calliope]

The only potentially incriminating things found in the truck was the possible blood stain and the reciept. The blood stain might well be his, or very old, and we don't know enough about his alibi to know if the reciept is incriminating or not.

And that receipt was found ... what? Two weeks ago now? Plenty of time for the police to have seen the videos.

Yet DS remains a free man.

 

[Calliope]

It's really not that standard for one person to have temporary custody and the other only be allowed telephonic visitation. That's not standard at all.

ONLY allowed visitation by phone? I missed that along the line. DS wasn't allowed to see his children in person?

 

[Natal]

And that receipt was found ... what? Two weeks ago now? Plenty of time for the police to have seen the videos.

Yet DS remains a free man.

The reciept in itself is not enough because it doesn't place him at the scene. At best (or worst, depending on your point of view) it may place him in Ohio the day before.

So, it depends on what his alibi is. For example, what was he doing on sunday and where was he on monday. If his alibi holds for monday, but he can't account for sunday, it doesn't matter if the reciept was there or not because it doesn't place him at the scene and there would be evidence that he was elsewhere. If his alibi for monday does not hold, then the reciept would place him in the vicinity of the great leaks area the day before, and therefor he *could* have been in Colon on monday, allthough it doesnt prove that he actually was.

In other words if he turns out to be involved the reciept can be used to build a picture of his movements prior to the incident, but they would still have to find something else to actually place him at the scene. That could be the tire tracks, if they match, or dirt or other "local" evidence that might have adhered to the vehicle. That was the surprising thing about the search warrant they executed on the truck, they didnt take the evidence you would have expected them to look for first in such an investigation.

 

[Natal]

ONLY allowed visitation by phone? I missed that along the line. DS wasn't allowed to see his children in person?

Unless we see the actual court order we can't be sure what exactly it specified. I think the telephone visitation is what was reported in the media, but that may just be paraphrasing what they were told he was actually doing, not what he was allowed to do.

 

[thesaint]

I just hope they kept or are keeping an open mind, despite saying he is the only POI, otherwise they will have a very cold trail if he is somehow ruled out as having any guilt in this abduction/possible murder.

Thank you. That's what I've been trying to convey in these threads.
I wish the police would stop dancing at way-more-than-arm's length with Doug.
Get in his face and he in yours and see what comes of it.

Maybe the police will find out--either through verbal or non-verbal communication or some other avenue--that maybe Doug shouldn't be their primary/only POI.

Or maybe the process/experience will confirm their convictions and they can
turn up the heat on Doug.

Either way, I don't see how they are getting any closer to finding Venus with their current approach.

 

[thesaint]

In other words if he turns out to be involved the receipt can be used to build a picture of his movements prior to the incident, but they would still have to find something else to actually place him at the scene. That could be the tire tracks, if they match, or dirt or other "local" evidence that might have adhered to the vehicle. That was the surprising thing about the search warrant they executed on the truck, they didn't take the evidence you would have expected them to look for first in such an investigation.

You are referring to tire impressions, dirt scrapings etc? or are there other pieces of evidence you'd have expected them to havetaken, or at least looked for, in those initial warrants?


As I mentioned before, there's no weapon of any sort listed on those warrants. which gives hope that if Doug was involved in Venus' abduction, he didn't do that which can't be undone. : (

 

[thesaint]

How could he possibly talk someone else into killing his wife: just drive fourteen yours; wait behind the wood pile, with a tarp; and maybe she will put the mail out.

I like your style, mr (or ms) blackdog It's simple, direct and always interesting.

 

[thesaint]

I think if he did this and had help, it had to be someone very close to him who lived in Michigan, but just my opinion...

Does Doug have siblings?

What age are his parents?

How about his friends from the armed services?

Does anyone know at what rank Doug left the armed services?
If he was any sort of Officer or NCO, he could conceivably have military "friends" who regarded him highly and would, well, who knows.

There's a saying about friends help you move... : (

 

[thesaint]

What bothers me in this case is that LE seems to have forgotten that DS is presumed innocent.

Yes, and not just for reasons of civil liberty and fairness, but also for investigatory (?) reasons in a missing persons case.

 

[thesaint]

I drove passed the house on Walnut street tonight: it's not very big, it's almost on the railroad tracks, and it's in foreclosure. Maybe he charged it on his visa.

Hey, see what I mean? :bow::bow::bow:

 

[crystalgenie]

Subtle shift in how things have been worded in the newest article. The older ones say things like this:
Anyone with any information about her whereabouts is asked to call Michigan State Police at 269-483-7611.
I take that to mean, if you think you know where Doug buried her, please call.
The newest plea is this:
If anyone has seen Venus, please contact the MSP White Pigeon Post at (269) 483-7611 or after hours at the Rockford Regional Dispatch Center at (616) 866-6666.
http://www.southbendtribune.com/article/20100518/News01/5180362/-1/googleNews
Do they mean, hey, if you saw a corpse that looks like her, please give us a jingle.
Or is LE beginning to wonder if Venus is alive?

I needed a laugh... :rotfl:

 

[LIONKING21]

Good Morning
Too answer the question about if DS has siblings or not - yes - he is the youngest of a family of 5. 4 girls and 1 boy. IMHO, there would be no help there

I have thought about the military connection also, and I'd like to look into it more, but I think that Newport News has a pretty big Marine presence in the city, meaning alot of squad headquarters etc. I could be wrong on that
But if both cars were both up here around the time of the abduction, and then back in Virginia the next few days ????
Thanks

 

[BeanE]

Well, I thought it was pretty clear that it was a hypothesis so I was confused why you would want a link.

Oh yes, it was clear you were hypothesizing. What wasn't clear to me was if your hypothesis was based on some information that had come out or not. I just wanted to be sure I hadn't missed any info.

I never ask for links for hypotheses or theories or opinions - it would be futile - there are no links to thoughts I do, of course, ask for substantiation of facts, if a hypothesis or opinion is based on fact, and I am unfamiliar with that fact. And if I'm not sure if a hypothesis or opinion is based on fact, I sometimes ask.

Thanks for clarifying that for me, Natal.

 

[BeanE]

Well, it was temporary and he didn't live in state, so that would have been a practical way of handling it for the time being I guess. Supervised visitation isnt worth much if you can only be there once a blue moon.

The possibility that he didnt show up is an interesting one, one wonders if he perhaps had somehow been blindsided by all of this, especially if he didnt have representation. That would explain going off the deepend.

Even if parents live at a distance, visitation is usually written into the order so ensure that the child has access to the parent. If the parent chooses not to live up to their responsibilities to spend time with their child, that's a separate issue. I would love it if visitation orders were issued that required that parents spend time with their children. It's unfortunate there's no way to make a parent live up to their responsibilities.

For the hearing, he would have received notice - there's no blindsiding about it. And of course, it would have been entirely his choice whether or not to retain representation. So, with the notice that's required, and the right we all have to representation, the logistics of the hearing shouldn't have been an issue.

I do recognize that some parents are neither mature nor responsible, or they have bad tempers, or whatever, and may actually become angered at having responsibilities toward their children that necessitate time, travel, spending money, etc. I don't know if that fits Doug or not.

 

[believe09]

Ohh, I think we are allowed to voice our opinions and name someone guilty from day one. We are a discussion board. I am not at all bothered by what we say or who we judge. What bothers me in this case is that LE seems to have forgotten that DS is presumed innocent.

I dont think LE has forgotten it-POI is a relatively new catch phrase that encompasses being a suspect but not being arrested. He would be a POI regardless of what we now know simply because he is her husband, he is the father of the children, they had/have a contentious relationship, she recently obtained full custody on a temporary basis and had an active restraining order against him.

What makes him media fodder, so to speak, or trial by media-the fact that he has lawyered up and has been repeatedly non cooperative with the police department. To the point that they (LE) feel the need to point it out via spokesperson. They believe this woman was kidnapped and they believe that he has some key answers to inside their marriage and he does not want to share. Police 101 would indicate there is a problem here.

In this day and age we demand LE tell us why this egregious situation has not been taken care of-LE defends themselves and expresses frustration using the same tool.

To get back to the release of the notes: Absolutely LE could have prevented her father from releasing them...they could have impounded them, told him that they would charge him with obstructing the investigation if he released them yada yada. They have not. They are not stupid-so I think that it was done with a certain amount of guidance to exert a certain amount of pressure on DS. JMO.