Australia Samantha Murphy, 51, last seen leaving her property to go for a run in the Canadian State Forest, Ballarat 100km NW of Melbourne, 4 Feb 2024 #6

[OptimusLime]

I wonder if this will turn out to be a road rage incident rather than related directly to being intoxicated and having an accident that he covered up? You're driving along not feeling too great, a jogger runs out in front of you and something starts...

The police have charged him with murder, categorically stated it was a deliberate act. The car may be the weapon, but that's not road rage, that's called murder.
He also moved her body to God knows where. The facts of the case will come out in court, not the public arena.

 

[SLouTh]

Unless what the experts were saying was BS to fool the perp into believing he was off the hook.

I truely believe that was a Police / Media strategy in full play ..for exactly that reason, …. while all the time having him under Police surveillance …..

IMO

 

[Macha]

… the resemblance is concerning … as is the lack of consideration on the part of the accused with regards to anyone’s feelings… except his own it seems….

"You remind me of my mother. I hated my mother". Norman Bates Psycho

 

[acutename]

The thing is, if he was under the influence and possibly didn't even sleep that night at all, would he really have managed to run her over then hide Samantha so well? I don't know I'm just struggling a bit with that theory but who knows. I'm still in disbelief over the whole thing, it is senseless. JMO.

exactly! delirious but still "functional" when necessary

 

[nhmemorymaker]

Truly ignorant about the legal aspects here....but...
Is there any way LE could push the murder charges to get the perp and his defence to own up. /. fess up???.. But LE expecting to end up with road rage or manslaughter?

 

[SLouTh]

The thing is, if he was under the influence and possibly didn't even sleep that night at all, would he really have managed to run her over then hide Samantha so well? I don't know I'm just struggling a bit with that theory but who knows. I'm still in disbelief over the whole thing, it is senseless. JMO.

It is totally senseless…..He should have called 000 for an ambulance and Police …. Instead of trying to hide it … presumably, an ill advised / not thought out attempt to keep his license for his job, independence etc

If he grew up in the local area, and had a 4WD then he would likely know a lot of secluded spots in all that forrest area ….

I just hope his parents may be able to talk him into revealing where Sam’s body is ???

IMO

 

[RobinCAL]

The thing is, if he was under the influence and possibly didn't even sleep that night at all, would he really have managed to run her over then hide Samantha so well? I don't know I'm just struggling a bit with that theory but who knows. I'm still in disbelief over the whole thing, it is senseless. JMO.

Agreed, ever since the age of him has been released, i didn't think he could have cleaned up so well all alone but who knows...wild case thats for sure .

 

[touch]

It is totally senseless…..He should have called 000 for an ambulance and Police …. Instead of trying to hide it … presumably, an ill advised / not thought out attempt to keep his license for his job, independence etc

IMO

I know you've said that this is your opinion only but I just wanted to point out that the police have explicitly said this is not what happened.
It was not an accidental hit and run, it was a deliberate attack.

 

[Kemug]

I am thinking more of a thrill kill (with his car) IMO

Maybe - there she was, and "it seemed like a good idea at the time."

 

[Nikynoo]

I wonder if this will turn out to be a road rage incident rather than related directly to being intoxicated and having an accident that he covered up? You're driving along not feeling too great, a jogger runs out in front of you and something starts...

To be honest, if he was partaking into the early hours of Sunday morning, there is no way he was not still under the influence of alcohol/drugs

 

[SLouTh]

Truly ignorant about the legal aspects here....but...
Is there any way LE could push the murder charges to get the perp and his defence to own up. /. fess up???.. But LE expecting to end up with road rage or manslaughter?

I’m not sure either, but I would suggest it could be worth a plea deal for a manslaughter charge, if it was an accident ???

However if Police have enough evidence to prove that it was a deliberate act to kill Sam, then I am not sure ???

IMO

 

[acutename]

Maybe - there she was, and "it seemed like a good idea at the time."

there is a common bumper sticker around here that says: "Watch Out; I learned to Drive by Playing Video Games." So maybe he thought he was playing a video game : (

 

[Nikynoo]

I know you've said that this is your opinion only but I just wanted to point out that the police have explicitly said this is not what happened.
It was not an accidental hit and run, it was a deliberate attack.

Actually, the police person was supporting the charge of murder. With murder, there needs to be intention. IMO the murder charge was made because the accused was not cooperating, to provide leverage, so to speak.

JMO

 

[Nikynoo]

If it was not a vehicle accident, why did LE request info on any vehicle that has recently sustained damage?
If it was vehicle related, it may not have even been his car.

 

[Whatson]

Maybe - there she was, and "it seemed like a good idea at the time."

Or he was driving/riding like an idiot, almost hit her and she yelled at him or gave a gesture and he doubled back in a moment of rage

 

[Nikynoo]

Or he was driving/riding like an idiot, almost hit her and she yelled at him or gave a gesture and he doubled back in a moment of rage

Yes, this too! Or similar.

 

[SLouTh]

I know you've said that this is your opinion only but I just wanted to point out that the police have explicitly said this is not what happened.
It was not an accidental hit and run, it was a deliberate attack.

I know that, and further up thread I raised the possibility of Sam being driven “AT” and “run down” on purpose ….

But there is also this….

One line of inquiry police are pursuing is whether Ms Murphy, a mother of three, was struck by a car after leaving her Eureka Street home at 7am. Police have only said she died as the result of a “deliberate” act.

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/accused-killer-patrick-orren-stephenson-went-on-massive-bender-night-before-mum-went-missing/news-story/2626da44c0d68d2466fa4c62212e2dfe

There is also the chance that Sam was the victim of some other fatal modus operandi, that does not involve a car …. But we don’t know yet …

IMO

 

[Angeline]

Her words
Sissy Austin IG
I also don't feel its a case of "pinning all regional attacks on this guy"
The police would be trying to rule out the link themselves, it'd be commonsense, especially with the locations involved we now have forming a list, a link is possible but not guaranteed and I'm sure she's aware of this, police too.

I just read Sissy's post. She has good reason to be mad, and she's right, we should all be mad. We've just seen how LE can catch someone if they really want to, but they told her they couldn't do anything unless he struck again.

Her injuries were pretty graphic. It's not like she was making it up. They should've used the same investigative tactics they're using now. They basically left women vulnerable to attack by a psycho on the loose, and we all know attacks often escalate in severity.

I mean, we don't know if it's the same perp, but it's shocking that they didn't seem to care about her attack at the time.

 

[RobinCAL]

If this was a case where he hit her with the car, unless there is CCTV of the act, I doubt the police can say it was deliberate, right ?

 

[SLouTh]

If this was a case where he hit her with the car, unless there is CCTV of the act, I doubt the police can say it was deliberate, right ?

There is this …..

a short piece of CCTV gleaned early on in the investigation was a key element in Mr Stephenson becoming a suspect.

And I have wondered if Sam somehow managed to record or even just voice record some parts of what happened on her watch or phone … and Police have been able to retrieve that data??

IMO