TX TX - Elizabeth Barraza, 29, murdered setting up garage sale, Harris Co, Jan 2019 #7

[justtrish]

Another question: do you think that the driver removed the front plate and then put it back, or covered it for the deal, or simply the car was rented in a state that didn't require the front plate?

Here are the 19 states that did not require front plate in 2019. Texas needed two.

In 2019, 19 states did not require front license plates: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

I'd think that some cars have a higher chance to be pulled over by Texan police than others, but one also has to consider that Houston is in the south of the state. If the killer drove from another state, it would be closer to drive from Louisiana, and a car from Louisiana won't be pulled over out of curiosity in Texas - of this i am sure. I also think that no matter how the person looked next to the house, wig or whatever, they were pretty average while driving around in Texas.

Another chance is, I don't know how far did LE search for that car, and if the search included Galveston. If the killer had to wait for a convenient time, because that house sale was not carved in stone, after all, Galveston IMHO is a great place to stay because it is touristy.

Of course, they could have simply covered the front plate with something. But I suspect there was no front plate.

Any Texan here? Would people be stopped for driving around without a front plate?

Something else to consider is if the car was rented, it could be registered in another state and rented in Texas. We live in Missouri, and we rented a car last week for a road trip. We picked it up at our local Enterprise, but it had Texas plates. Sometimes people do one way rentals so it's common for rental companies that allow one-way rentals to have vehicles from other states. It could have simply been luck of the draw if the killer rented the vehicle.

It also could have been a manipulation on their part as well. When we lived in Hawaii it was so common for criminals to steal plates from vehicles and put them on another vehicle they had stolen. Sometimes they would even just swap plates and the person who had their plates stolen might not even notice for a while. One problem I see with that would be the person stealing the plates would have to be extra careful not to be on camera stealing them or leaving any prints at that scene as well because it would then link them to the shooting. Criminals are usually not so lucky the more complex something gets.

This case is so baffling to me because if it's random, WHY?? If it isn't, then it seems easier to solve because now many people could really have a motive to do this? I'm sure it's frustrating for the police as well.

 

[fridaybaker]

I for my part honestly thought of that date and reason of the sale it to be somewhat absurd (or unreasonable).
Why rummage about discarded household items just before the start into a happy weekend? Items, that hadn't been sold, would have had also to be carried back and put away again. A lot of effort was required.
Why was the little "pocket money" so urgently needed? If I hadn't had enough pocket money, I wouldn't have planned or booked the trip at all. But that's me of course.
Was it really about creating space quickly?
Did someone want to move into the house, because they (possibly not for the first time) wanted to abruptly separate from a partner? Did the person need space for their own household items for a certain time? Was it just an excuse to want to earn a little pocket money?

The timing of the garage sale would be a non-starter for me. However, her parents seem to think nothing of it. That it would have been absolutely normal for her. I can also say that I know someone who holds garage sales quite often. Every time she gets a few things she doesn’t want, she’ll do a sale and get a few bucks.

I don’t know. People are so different!

 

[fridaybaker]

I just watched a true crime show where the killer asked a friend to get him a truck, so the friend asked someone he knew if he could borrow their truck to move something and then they used that truck to move the body. I wonder if the police in this case could ask the public to contact them if someone borrowed their dark coloured Nissan truck near the end of January of 2019? And not just in Texas but anywhere in the US.

My Opinion Only

CrimeTheorist, I don’t know about nationwide, but certainly in the area and other areas that they were inquiring about, such as somewhere in Florida. But, I’d sorta think that it would have been a bit more helpful to do early on, rather than six years out….

 

[Charlot123]

I would also hope the police looked into anyone driving a dark coloured truck that was pulled over for speeding or following too close to another vehicle in the hours after the crime. The killer might have been pulled over by police either in Texas or another state because they were trying to get home quickly.

My Opinion Only

One wishes they were pulled over.

One of the reasons why the truck may not be found is because someone visited a grandpa in, say, Oklahoma, borrowed the family truck, and upon return, put it back into a garage/trailer and flew back home. The Nissan may still be staying there. I absolutely believe detective Ritchie when he says that he is a car man. If he says it is a dark Nissan pro 4X, I trust his intuition. It may not be of black color now, or maybe it was sold with someone’s full estate, including the house, three years later, and the relative is in the memory care, or what do we know? There is no vin number known AFAIK. I wouldn’t be surprised if some farmer in Oklahoma bought it, never hearing of Liz Barraza’s case. It was a “niche case” for a long time.

But the main thing is, the criminal(s?) had some reasonable time to move the car out of the area. All they needed to do was to get out of the area, on the main road and actually, drive normally. The road signs in Texas are good. They probably had a couple of days lead, as Liz was in the ICU. I also think that initially the LE was looking for the Nissans more or less in the own area. All that the driver had to do was not be pulled over for speeding in Texas. I honestly think that they got the car out of Texas, to the “one license plate” state.

The relationship between the person and Liz and between the car is Liz is different.

- There is some connection between Liz and the killer, not known to us and likely, not known to Liz (remembering the case of Namiko Takaba’s murder in Japan, just recently solved. I think, something like it; the motive could be pragmatic or still very nutty, but there is surprising awareness about Liz’s movements and…one obvious mistake. The mistake can’t be used by the LE, but it is self-evident to everyone).

- There is no connection between the car and Liz.

- But the car is connected to the killer. Perhaps it is not their own but not quite from the street either. I tend to think that the killer drove Japanese cars at that time.

Now, before the shooting, the driver could do whatever they wanted in Texas, use a wig, 501 outfit, risk, as there was no crime committed yet. So they were bold, just took care not to get the license plates on the camera close to Liz’s house. Their only problem was driving in Tomball just after the shooting. Once they were out, there was some leeway.

Again, Kohberger case comes to mind although I don’t think this killer is such a psycho. (A psycho still, but a different one.) However in Kohberger’s case, the initial protection was provided by the misattribution of the car’s year (2013 vs 2015). And in two weeks, the car was in Pennsylvania and highly likely, never to return. Now, at that time Idaho 4 was a big case but still a West Coast one. So the Hyundai Elantra was connected to the case, like Nissan is, but given how many people the victims knew (fraternities vs 501 Legion and all hobbies in Liz’s case), the cars are the links (in both cases) but would have been lost in all that information noise. Plus, I do think that Sergio sent the LE on a wild goose chase with 501, not sure whether intentionally, though.

As I am typing noise, I wonder. The last shot, in Liz’s face, could it be because she was screaming and the killer is hypersensitive to high-pitched sounds? Just a thought.

 

[Charlot123]

I for my part honestly thought of that date and reason of the sale it to be somewhat absurd (or unreasonable).
Why rummage about discarded household items just before the start into a happy weekend? Items, that hadn't been sold, would have had also to be carried back and put away again. A lot of effort was required.
Why was the little "pocket money" so urgently needed? If I hadn't had enough pocket money, I wouldn't have planned or booked the trip at all. But that's me of course.
Was it really about creating space quickly?
Did someone want to move into the house, because they (possibly not for the first time) wanted to abruptly separate from a partner? Did the person need space for their own household items for a certain time? Was it just an excuse to want to earn a little pocket money?

I can imagine how there is a certain commotion since the checks bounce, and some people feel upset and victimized, and in a certain emotional turmoil, everyone takes a side and walks an extra mile out of help.

The sad part it, that with the turmoil, other “emotional red flags” can be missed. And, people can, surprisingly, drop their habitual awareness because the situation is unusual.

 

[lonewanderer]

I just watched a true crime show where the killer asked a friend to get him a truck, so the friend asked someone he knew if he could borrow their truck to move something and then they used that truck to move the body. I wonder if the police in this case could ask the public to contact them if someone borrowed their dark coloured Nissan truck near the end of January of 2019? And not just in Texas but anywhere in the US.

My Opinion Only

Something else to consider is if the car was rented, it could be registered in another state and rented in Texas. We live in Missouri, and we rented a car last week for a road trip. We picked it up at our local Enterprise, but it had Texas plates. Sometimes people do one way rentals so it's common for rental companies that allow one-way rentals to have vehicles from other states. It could have simply been luck of the draw if the killer rented the vehicle.

It also could have been a manipulation on their part as well. When we lived in Hawaii it was so common for criminals to steal plates from vehicles and put them on another vehicle they had stolen. Sometimes they would even just swap plates and the person who had their plates stolen might not even notice for a while. One problem I see with that would be the person stealing the plates would have to be extra careful not to be on camera stealing them or leaving any prints at that scene as well because it would then link them to the shooting. Criminals are usually not so lucky the more complex something gets.

This case is so baffling to me because if it's random, WHY?? If it isn't, then it seems easier to solve because now many people could really have a motive to do this? I'm sure it's frustrating for the police as well.

One wishes they were pulled over.

One of the reasons why the truck may not be found is because someone visited a grandpa in, say, Oklahoma, borrowed the family truck, and upon return, put it back into a garage/trailer and flew back home. The Nissan may still be staying there. I absolutely believe detective Ritchie when he says that he is a car man. If he says it is a dark Nissan pro 4X, I trust his intuition. It may not be of black color now, or maybe it was sold with someone’s full estate, including the house, three years later, and the relative is in the memory care, or what do we know? There is no vin number known AFAIK. I wouldn’t be surprised if some farmer in Oklahoma bought it, never hearing of Liz Barraza’s case. It was a “niche case” for a long time.

But the main thing is, the criminal(s?) had some reasonable time to move the car out of the area. All they needed to do was to get out of the area, on the main road and actually, drive normally. The road signs in Texas are good. They probably had a couple of days lead, as Liz was in the ICU. I also think that initially the LE was looking for the Nissans more or less in the own area. All that the driver had to do was not be pulled over for speeding in Texas. I honestly think that they got the car out of Texas, to the “one license plate” state.

The relationship between the person and Liz and between the car is Liz is different.

- There is some connection between Liz and the killer, not known to us and likely, not known to Liz (remembering the case of Namiko Takaba’s murder in Japan, just recently solved. I think, something like it; the motive could be pragmatic or still very nutty, but there is surprising awareness about Liz’s movements and…one obvious mistake. The mistake can’t be used by the LE, but it is self-evident to everyone).

- There is no connection between the car and Liz.

- But the car is connected to the killer. Perhaps it is not their own but not quite from the street either. I tend to think that the killer drove Japanese cars at that time.

Now, before the shooting, the driver could do whatever they wanted in Texas, use a wig, 501 outfit, risk, as there was no crime committed yet. So they were bold, just took care not to get the license plates on the camera close to Liz’s house. Their only problem was driving in Tomball just after the shooting. Once they were out, there was some leeway.

Again, Kohberger case comes to mind although I don’t think this killer is such a psycho. (A psycho still, but a different one.) However in Kohberger’s case, the initial protection was provided by the misattribution of the car’s year (2013 vs 2015). And in two weeks, the car was in Pennsylvania and highly likely, never to return. Now, at that time Idaho 4 was a big case but still a West Coast one. So the Hyundai Elantra was connected to the case, like Nissan is, but given how many people the victims knew (fraternities vs 501 Legion and all hobbies in Liz’s case), the cars are the links (in both cases) but would have been lost in all that information noise. Plus, I do think that Sergio sent the LE on a wild goose chase with 501, not sure whether intentionally, though.

As I am typing noise, I wonder. The last shot, in Liz’s face, could it be because she was screaming and the killer is hypersensitive to high-pitched sounds? Just a thought.

Sheila Warren (dressed as a clown) worked at a dealership. A couple returned the car to her dealership by mistake and she used that car to kill her love rival.

I personally think someone “borrowed” (probably without permission) a visiting relative, a boyfriend (I think the shooter was female) or straight up took the truck while the person was sleeping using an excuse like “baby needs formula” or come to think of it, and even better excuse for something like ice cream at 4am because the were pregnant (just now thought of that).

I also think it’s entirely possible they absolutely bullied or harassed a male acquaintance/boyfriend/family member into using the truck knowing it was out of town and would likely not be traced back to them. If the likely female shooter was crazy enough to walk up to Liz and coldly shooter her point blank, I can only image the tactics she would use to force someone into getting her way (of borrowing the truck).

 

[Curiousobserver]

Wait, so far, I have seen nothing to indicate that the killer knew about the garage sale at all, let alone of the father initially planning to join and then changing plans. Where is this assumption coming from?

The car initially drove past the house, then turned around 180 degrees, then parked near her. So this theoretically even gave the driver the opportunity to see the lone female outside alone, even if they had initially not planned to murder her specifically at all, just someone (no, I don't personaly think that's the case, but looking at the odd actions of the car it cannot be ruled out). What is more, if the attacker planned to wait for, say, Sergios car to leave and then attack, then they could have just attacked her as she enters/exits the car or rang the doorbell and got the same end result (close-range shooting), but as she happened to be outside, that was not needed.

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that the killer did not know about her plans. I am just saying, that there is nothing factual that I can see that is pointing towards the killer knowing her plans - it is possible they did not.

Coincidences can look like well formulated plans if you have no idea what the intent was and everything works out perfectly.

It is still possible she didn't have any connection to this person.

This was my very first impression of this case in fact- that it was entirely opportunistic.

What changed my mind... The night before drive around the neighborhood, then the perp leaves and returns just a few hours later and hides for just the right amount of time and shoots her after she was on the ground. They really wanted her dead.

 

[BlaiseFinlay]

Having read Leonardo Notabartolo’s interview about the Louvre Heist, I came back to this case to discuss some issues.

There is a lot of information about the Goddard school, but I ended up not knowing whether the Nissan stood next to it but the security and wi-fi were off that day, or not.

If they did stay next to the school and the security was off, it may be not coincidentally.

Thinking in similar situations: Notabartolo, the organizer of the famous Antwerp diamond heist, says that there are always insiders. What he said next made me a rush to this thread.

He said, “Don’t assume that the thiefs could approach the Louvre at night without triggering the alarm. They had to know an insider mole who knew that on this day and in this time window, the signalization would be off.”

And then I thought about the car standing next to Goddard and the alarm being off that day, and thought that there should have been “a mole” there as well.

Thoughts?

My opinion of the significance of the Goddard school stop changed when I realized how short it was and that they went to wait somewhere else afterwards. They were there for mere seconds, before moving to a different place to wait. I think the timing with SB leaving was ultimately a coincidence (in that very narrow context), unless something about the location allowed them to see SB leaving or similar (which has never been alleged). I think they simply changed their minds about where to wait.

I think this detail has gotten attention simply because it’s one detail they know. They don’t appear to know where the killer moved to next, unless they’ve withheld that detail.

 

[BlaiseFinlay]

The Detective Ritchie interview mentioned the scenario in which the shooting was part of a gang initiation. Do we know of any active gangs in this neighborhood? My guess is that no other shootings similar to this one have occurred in recent history in that neighborhood. I do not know for sure. JMO

My understanding is this is unlikely to be a gang initiation shooting — gangs don’t want the attention a murder like this would bring.

 

[LinasK]

Great question. And a very good idea. In fact, surprisingly good. I always wondered how did the killer managed to not get on the nest camera.

Another thought, would it also be the marker showing where to stop the car so that the back plates don't get on the Barraza's Nest camera?

Another question is, why sell a treadmill? Of course, it could have been a cheaper version, but it seems that some planning went into Liz' shopping. Did they buy a new one, or did they for some reason stop using it? Or did they need to make a space for something else?

Sometimes I wonder if this "half-impromptu sale" was meant to clear space in the house, or in the garage, for some rearrangement.

Dozens of ideas were provided about the sale during these years, but my first thought would be, "to make some space, and better now, because later, when they come back, they'd be too busy to deal with the sale."

Of course, Liz's parents would know why. But we don't.

Questions: did they clean the garage?
Did they plan to buy a larger car?
Or, did they need to make more space in the house? For what, then?

We got rid of a treadmill because we weren't using it and it did take up alot of space. Got an exercise bike instead. Works well to exercise when it's too dark out or bad weather to go for a walk.

 

[BlaiseFinlay]

Both scenarios provided by SB.

True.

And I’ll add a 3rd hypothetical motive:

SB wanted to no longer be married to Liz, for reasons known only to him or to possibly both of them, but not suffer the financial and/or reputational consequences of that.

I put little weight on the fact he hasn’t collected the life insurance money. Doesn’t mean it wasn’t a motive, just means he is under suspicion. It hasn’t been clear whether he would be given the money if he claimed it. I think people can spin it either way. I personally think it’s strange to not claim it if you’re innocent, but I know others would crucify him if he did. But the better statement would be to claim it and donate it if you really don’t want the money. Which is why I tend to assume that he must not want the insurance company’s investigators to be working on the case as well.

Her dad planning to be at the garage sale is certainly an interesting detail. I wonder who was aware of that — both his original plan to come, and his change of plans. Not sure what to make of that detail. This is why the case is so interesting, it’s hard to get any theory to fit.

Mistaken identity remains possible too, based on the little we actually know. Random doesn’t seem plausible based on the earlier reconnaissance, if LE is right about that.

 

[Charlot123]

.

True.

And I’ll add a 3rd hypothetical motive:

SB wanted to no longer be married to Liz, for reasons known only to him or to possibly both of them, but not suffer the financial and/or reputational consequences of that.

I put little weight on the fact he hasn’t collected the life insurance money. Doesn’t mean it wasn’t a motive, just means he is under suspicion. It hasn’t been clear whether he would be given the money if he claimed it. I think people can spin it either way. I personally think it’s strange to not claim it if you’re innocent, but I know others would crucify him if he did. But the better statement would be to claim it and donate it if you really don’t want the money. Which is why I tend to assume that he must not want the insurance company’s investigators to be working on the case as well.

Her dad planning to be at the garage sale is certainly an interesting detail. I wonder who was aware of that — both his original plan to come, and his change of plans. Not sure what to make of that detail. This is why the case is so interesting, it’s hard to get any theory to fit.

Mistaken identity remains possible too, based on the little we actually know. Random doesn’t seem plausible based on the earlier reconnaissance, if LE is right about that.

JMO: men may be unhappy in a marriage, but seldom would they even consider a divorce unless there is someone else in mind.

Could it be the situation when their nerdy, (per SB) and child-free lifestyle (per det. Ritchie) was getting long in the tooth for him? Would that, plus insurance, be enough? Much depends on whether SB was greedy or not.

For most, falling out of love with the partner is not the reason to annihilate one. All the more so that the Barraza’s partnership was equal, and no kids. I see no net loss in the case of a divorce of a young, childless couple.

JMO: even if totally out of love, I don’t think that SB would organize anything himself. Even discuss in words. However, from the interviews, it appears that SB may appeal to women. He projects the air of “respecting women” and “being a good listener”, and many women tend to fall for such qualities. He is slightly thespian; such men would notice if a woman has a crush on them. JMO.

Question is, how would he behave if he felt that someone was too serious about him, to the degree of hating his wife? Would he continue to talk to “a friend” and discuss own and Liz’s plans for tomorrow or such? Boasting with his Nest camera? Not voicing the concerns? Or would he shed it off, “such nonsense comes into my head.” Either way, he is a subtle person.

By the same token, he may be uninvolved. Uninvolvement does not explain why the killer knew so much about Liz’s morning routine nor why the car had to wait till Sergio would leave. The latter, however, can have a mundane explanation (someone thinking, another man around the house, maybe having a gun on him, and me with this revolver). SB somehow being involved is the easiest way to explain it, of course, but the case has not been solved for six years, so it could be someone random, too.

Also: there is a chance that SB is not involved at all but also, in the killer’s split mind, he stays on the good side. One wonders if the case is triggered not only by hatred of Liz, but by the killer’s self-righteousness exculpating the murder.

Looking at the video, I can’t tell the gender. I slightly lean towards it being a man. Also: I have the feeling that Liz doesn’t recognize the person but also, doesn’t like who she sees in front of her. It is not impossible that what was shown to her was a photo of the person/people ten years ago, or such. I don’t think it was left at the CS. My guess would be, Liz was held “guilty” for perceived ruining of someone’s relationship. Or maybe, was dog-sitting and people blamed for something later.

Honestly, it would be my nr. 1 motive. One of her acquaintances was dating someone and Liz just asked a very correct question at the right time. The person dropped the date and it is a tiny thing but in the twisted mind of that date, all their life is now ruined because they are still unmarried. Or, she sat someone’s dog and the dog felt unwell that day, and the person kept the grudge for many years. There is a question how the person found out all this information about Liz, but maybe their work allows them to?

 

[shonyakay]

Is there any possibility that this crime could be due to road rage like if there was an encounter Liz had that morning with the perp while going to get Starbucks?

 

[61Montcalm]

Having followed the case from the beginning, I’m pretty much stumped. I’d think that a paid hit would be massively expensive and I just don’t see the Barazzas having access to that kind of money, or the connections really to pull off a paid hit. I’m sure the police in Texas will have looked into this in great detail. I have family in Galveston and Austin and they rate the State Troopers and Texas DPS very highly. There’s a reason people say “don’t mess with Texas.”

To me it sounds like someone with a grudge against Liz or Sergio. Planned quite well as we’ve seen with the Nissan pickup cruising the neighborhood in the early hours and then making a brazen escape through a notorious rush hour. By all accounts going off road at the end of a dead end street and chewing up grass that should’ve left mud all up the sides of the truck.

I’d say the culprit is a fellow Texan but probably with a grudge going back so far it’s not occurred to anyone. It could easily be a slight from high school, who knows. Or even earlier. Or someone deranged in the 501 group.

I think there’s a local connection somewhere - and I agree it’s very odd that the killer hid and waited, and may have known that Liz’s Dad had canceled attendance at the last minute.

 

[Sjöberg]

My guess would be, Liz was held “guilty” for perceived ruining of someone’s relationship. Or maybe, was dog-sitting and people blamed for something later.

Honestly, it would be my nr. 1 motive. One of her acquaintances was dating someone and Liz just asked a very correct question at the right time. The person dropped the date and it is a tiny thing but in the twisted mind of that date, all their life is now ruined because they are still unmarried. Or, she sat someone’s dog and the dog felt unwell that day, and the person kept the grudge for many years. There is a question how the person found out all this information about Liz, but maybe their work allows them to?

This has been my nr 1 direction as well, I get the feeling the killing was personal, that the shooter was the person that wanted her dead. There is also the driving-around-the-night-before (with the same vehicle, but not passing her house at all) and there was the talk of google searches about Liz (and her address?) going up for a few months (?) before the murder. If I had to guess, it was someone not local, with a grudge, either long-term (scorned lovers easily hate you for 10+ years and can be re-triggered) or something more recent (that might not have seemed such a big thing to Liz).

As I said previously, from what we know, she married Sergio in 2014, after meeting him while in college at Sam Houston State University (so sometime 2009-2012). She was born in 1989, so while she was super young when she married (24), it is also unlikely that she never had any prior relationships whatsoever. Liz had lived in Illinois, Missouri, Florida and Texas. That's a lot of locations. And not just a single town in each state, either; for example, we don't know, why she decided to transfer from SFA to SHSU.

 

[kityy]

As we said about the doorbell camera situation, I'm almost certain this isn't the first time a killer has oved around cameras. just think, how many stories are there involving cameras?

 

[Charlot123]

This has been my nr 1 direction as well, I get the feeling the killing was personal, that the shooter was the person that wanted her dead. There is also the driving-around-the-night-before (with the same vehicle, but not passing her house at all) and there was the talk of google searches about Liz (and her address?) going up for a few months (?) before the murder. If I had to guess, it was someone not local, with a grudge, either long-term (scorned lovers easily hate you for 10+ years and can be re-triggered) or something more recent (that might not have seemed such a big thing to Liz).

As I said previously, from what we know, she married Sergio in 2014, after meeting him while in college at Sam Houston State University (so sometime 2009-2012). She was born in 1989, so while she was super young when she married (24), it is also unlikely that she never had any prior relationships whatsoever. Liz had lived in Illinois, Missouri, Florida and Texas. That's a lot of locations. And not just a single town in each state, either; for example, we don't know, why she decided to transfer from SFA to SHSU.

You know, I think that it was a man, but also, that he had high hopes for her friend, and the friend broke up with him and said that “my friend Liz joked about you, and I suddenly understood that she was right”. I, too, question the transfer to another college, but it could be something smaller. She had a dog, I wonder if she used to dog sit or volunteer at animal control. Her parents have to think of mundane episode, short-term jobs.

But the person was stalking her. I’d still look at a job that would give him access to some data. Some credit score agency, or PI …something like it.

 

[Charlot123]

Having followed the case from the beginning, I’m pretty much stumped. I’d think that a paid hit would be massively expensive and I just don’t see the Barazzas having access to that kind of money, or the connections really to pull off a paid hit. I’m sure the police in Texas will have looked into this in great detail. I have family in Galveston and Austin and they rate the State Troopers and Texas DPS very highly. There’s a reason people say “don’t mess with Texas.”

To me it sounds like someone with a grudge against Liz or Sergio. Planned quite well as we’ve seen with the Nissan pickup cruising the neighborhood in the early hours and then making a brazen escape through a notorious rush hour. By all accounts going off road at the end of a dead end street and chewing up grass that should’ve left mud all up the sides of the truck.

I’d say the culprit is a fellow Texan but probably with a grudge going back so far it’s not occurred to anyone. It could easily be a slight from high school, who knows. Or even earlier. Or someone deranged in the 501 group.

I think there’s a local connection somewhere - and I agree it’s very odd that the killer hid and waited, and may have known that Liz’s Dad had canceled attendance at the last minute.

I would not be surprised if Liz moved (to Florida or Texas?) after high school but the person moved somewhere, too, and later moved to Texas. I would suspect that the person (I think a guy) looks absolutely mainstream, maybe slightly shorter than an average Texan, at least in comparison to Liz, and maybe it contributes into low self-esteem.

But you know, it is rather easy to get from New Orleans to Houston, for example. I think when the police looked for the car, they looked in Texas. The person may be living virtually on the eastern border of the next state. I suspect COVID time threw all investigations back, btw.

One more thing, there have been discussions that Liz said something before she lapsed into coma. I honestly doubt it is true, but if it happened, what if it is not a human, but an animal’s name? Liz liked humans, and dogs. I think that the connection could have been via an animal.

 

[sunspun]

Is there any possibility that this crime could be due to road rage like if there was an encounter Liz had that morning with the perp while going to get Starbucks?

I have suggested this very thing also, but there's the problem of the truck is known to have done a drive through Liz's neighborhood late the night before the shooting. Actually early morning on the morning of the shooting, because it was after midnight (I think about 2am). They say it looked as if they were scouting the route they would come in or leave when they did the shooting. Familiarizing themself with her neighborhood. Something like that.

So that would rule out it being any road rage when she went to Starbucks that morning.

BUT! What about if something like that had happened to her on her way home from work the evening before? Or actually, it might work better with this theory if something had happened on her drive to work. Not sure about that yet. She could have pissed someone off somehow on her way home from work or to work. The person could have held their rage in check for the moment, but they might be the type to never let things go. They could have let the anger build up until late that night before the shooting, when they decided to go drive around the neighborhood that they saw her turn out of or into that morning on her way to work or that evening on her way home from work.

They would obviously know what she was driving, so they could have driven thru the neighborhood looking for her car. Maybe they were really just playing around, sort of, bored with nothing else to do, and this task came to mind. Maybe they never seriously thought they'd find her house, but then they did spot her car, that same car that cut them off or whatever it might have been. So now they know where she lives.

Maybe they're up all night on a bender or something, and decide they'll just wait til she leaves for work, maybe follow her and maybe even harass her. But instead, they see that she isn't leaving for work. In fact, she seems to be hanging out outside, right in front of her house! They figure it out that she's having a garage sale that day. And what a coincidence this must seem! Maybe they take it as a sign that they were meant to be here that day, and knowing they're carrying their gun, they decide to make use of it, and get their revenge for whatever petty slight they probably imagined she did to them.

I don't know, that all may seem unlikely, but some version of that might be true.

Maybe it was a road rage thing just as she was leaving work, so they follow her home, but don't do anything until they've gotten good and mad about it later. Some people are like that. They file her address info away in their brain until they're having a really bad night later, and decide to go take it out on her. Or maybe they always knew their plan was to murder her, but they had to wait til they could borrow a vehicle or something so they would get away with it.

And it wouldn't have to be a road rage incident. Something could have happened at any time anywhere, and they just waited til a better time for them to commit murder. Seems like she should have known about it though, whatever incident she might have been involved in. Probably would have even told Sergio about it. But he didn't mention anything like that having happened anytime, so probably unlikely.

But it makes me open my mind to the possibility that she truly might not have known her killer at all. There are probably many ways that could have come about. Some people are crazy/evil/inhuman enough to do something like this to a stranger for the smallest of reasons, maybe for none at all.

 

[Charlot123]

Is there any possibility that this crime could be due to road rage like if there was an encounter Liz had that morning with the perp while going to get Starbucks?

Kinda not. A revolver. They came prepared.