TX - Terri 'Missy' Bevers, 45, killed in church/suspect in SWAT gear, Midlothian, 18 Apr 2016 #46

[SteveS]

And about MB's body...if she died quickly after entering, (within 2 minutes as reported) she must have been shot first. If reporting is correct, why did SP feel the need to hit and stab her around the face and chest?.

What makes you think that SP stabbed her at all? It's certainly possible, as are all kinds of unknowns, but not sure we have been given any indication that that's a thing that even happened.

 

[zee007]

Is leaving the doors opened another part of systematic approach? Meaning,
he doesn't care?

My take on it is that SP left the doors opened so they knew which rooms they have already covered.

The relaxed attitude from SP suggests that they didn't expect anyone/ expect to encounter anyone in the church anytime soon. They probably felt they had more than enough time.

If SP was there to murder her, it wouldn't make much sense to leave doors open and glass smashed thereby giving MB the opportunity not to enter the building and calling LE.

I'm not so sure that MB was "stabbed" around the face and chest. I think the description was "puncture wounds" and bullet wounds are technically puncture wounds but it seems the description of the wounds was intentionally vague.

As for why MB was shot and why SP simply didn't walk away, I think there are 2 main possibilities:

1. SP was startled by MB.
2. SP saw MB as a threat somehow (whether that's due to MB attempting to apprehend SP or MB stopping SP from reaching his/her objective).

It would be interesting to know how SP was behaving in the footage after the attack (Were they running or were they as calm as they were when they first appeared on camera?).

 

[SteveS]

It would be interesting to know how SP was behaving in the footage after the attack (Were they running or were they as calm as they were when they first appeared on camera?).

If there is any footage after the attack.

We have heard conflicting ideas about the possibility of after-attack video. But I don't think we've ever been told with certainty by someone who truly knows, that there is such video. My takeaway is that there is none, which means all we can do is guess what happened after MB entered the building and then was no longer seen.

LE has some facts beyond the video, from what was found at the crime scene and in the building, but we do not.

 

[Gumshoe Stories]

Razz, I’m going to comment inline in bold as usual, but as reference, I would like you to take a look at the following study:
https://popcenter.asu.edu/sites/default/files/problems/burglary_retail/PDFs/Butler.pdf

In this study, they focused on commercial burglary and interviewed prison inmates who were commercial burglars. They role-played with them on a number of topics including what scenarios are most conducive to burglary, what tools to bring, how many people, what would be the most effective deterrent to keep you from burglarizing the place, etc. I’m going to answer your questions in-line with references to this study where applicable. But I encourage you and everyone to read that paper. It isn’t very long and it really shows us how a burglar thinks.

@Gumshoe Stories Is leaving the doors opened another part of systematic approach? Meaning, he doesn't care?
Not referenced in the study but I would say yes, SP doesn’t care. Doors are an obstacle to SP - something that needs to be opened. Once open, they have no relevance.

The thing that gives me pause about this systematic approach thing is....he took his time, like there was nothing else better he had to do. I've read that burglars like to get in and out fast.

Depends on the situation, though. For a home burglary sure, in and out very fast because the risk of someone coming home unexpectedly is high. Home burglaries are often committed during the day, so anything can happen. But in this commercial burglary, SP has these potential factors working for them: (1) possibly already tested and found no alarm present; (2) target is on the outskirts of town (this church is almost in Waxahachie), so the odds of a police patrol are low; and there is no adjacent house or business overlooking the property that might result in someone noticing something going on. I don’t include Firefly Gardens across the street because no one would be there that time of night. I do wonder, though, if police looked into contractors who were working on that property in the months leading up to the murder - particularly those who might have worked in the 5 am to 6 am time frame. This could be relevant in both untargeted and Targeted scenarios. (4) It’s storming, which lowers the risk of a police patrol even more as well as reducing visibility from the highway.

So as you can see, for this burglar there really is no need to rush at all - except for the CG class they’re not counting on. The research study said that most commercial burglars try to get out within 20 mins. Considering that the burglar had been in the interior of the church 30 mins when Missy entered, I don’t consider that extra time to be all that significant. And for all we know, the burglar might have been just about to give up the effort and leave.

Often times church burglars will take sound equipment or musical instruments. This church was obviously set up for that scenario.
If SP was a burglar, especially a church burglar, he would have known that. And as far as we know, he didn't have help. Not sure why SP would have continued on after finding no money in the office?

Sound equipment and instruments ard very bulky. Not going to pull that off unless there are multiple accomplices and you have a large vehicle. And then it’s going to be difficult to fence that stuff. The research study found that by far the biggest motive for commercial burglaries is money. And it’s often because the burglar is unemployed and/or needing to finance an addiction. As far as continuing on after not finding money, you could theorize that the burglar is determined not to let their efforts go totally in rewarded.

And about MB's body...if she died quickly after entering, (within 2 minutes as reported) she must have been shot first. If reporting is correct, why did SP feel the need to hit and stab her around the face and chest?

There is something very odd about the surprised burglar scenario. @SteveS is correct. We have no specifics about Missy’s injuries. The public
documents started out just calling it “a head wound.” I can tell you that it was very nearly an open-casket funeral, so that should tell you something about alleged facial damage.

Just some other notes from the research study that I thought might be relevant:

1. The biggest deterrent to a commercial burglar is the presence of security guards. Consider that at SWFA, the Altima is driving and turning lights off when he comes around to where there are a couple of vehicles parked. He stops, and he immediately turns his lights back on. What if this made the perp less confident in SWFA being a target, which might have led to choosing the church as plan B.

2. Another effective deterrent is the presence of houses or businesses that overlook the target site. Creekside is attractive because other than Firefly Gardens (which would not be staffed overnight), there is nothing else there.

3. Attractive targets are those on the outskirts of town (Creekside is outside Midlo proper and is almost in Waxahachie).

4. Asked what tools they would bring to a burglary, the prisoners said among other things a hammer, crowbar, gloves, and a special outfit to keep from being recognized by cameras.

 

[zee007]

One thing I just wanted clarification on is how MB's body was when discovered at the scene.

I think in the body location info it was mentioned that MB was laying on her back. Was her body moved in that position to attempt CPR or was it always in that position?

 

[Gumshoe Stories]

One thing I just wanted clarification on is how MB's body was when discovered at the scene.

I think in the body location info it was mentioned that MB was laying on her back. Was her body moved in that position to attempt CPR or was it always in that position?

I don’t think you’ll get an answer on that one, not until way down the road after a suspect is arrested. Campers and first responders aren’t going to discuss that.

 

[No it's not]

@Gumshoe Stories
Is leaving the doors opened another part of systematic approach? Meaning,
he doesn't care?

The thing that gives me pause about this systematic approach thing is....he took his time, like there was nothing else better he had to do. I've read that burglars like to get in and out fast.

Often times church burglars will take sound equipment or musical instruments. This church was obviously set up for that scenario.
If SP was a burglar, especially a church burglar, he would have known that. And as far as we know, he didn't have help. Not sure why SP would have continued on after finding no money in the office?

And about MB's body...if she died quickly after entering, (within 2 minutes as reported) she must have been shot first. If reporting is correct, why did SP feel the need to hit and stab her around the face and chest?

There is something very odd about the surprised burglar scenario.

SP is seen wearing gloves throughout the church (in the MPD video we saw). MB may have been in a fight during which the killer either lost a glove or pulled it off and shot her. That is , if one is on the interrupted burglary scenario side.

ALL IMO

-Nin

 

[DeDee]

Did at least one bullet hit Missy's chest and another hit her in the head? Not bad shots for a church burglar to make. Did SP leave the bullet casing(s) laying around on the floor after the firearm expelled them? How did SP pull the trigger while wearing gloves?

Missy died, as per the ME: “the wounds on Missy’s head and chest were consistent with the tool the suspect was carrying throughout the building.” That tells me SP was always holding onto that awful hammer. SP is attacking with both the hammer and the gun with one in each hand?

A shot to the head, MS loses consciousness. A shot to the heart, she dies within a couple of minutes. If MB is alive inside the building for only 2 minutes, the attack must have occurred almost immediately.

If Missy was targeted, it makes perfect sense to me for the SP to make a big hullabaloo over pretending to burglarize the Church.
.
.

 

[SteveS]

If Missy was targeted, it makes perfect sense to me for the SP to make a big hullabaloo over pretending to burglarize the Church.
.

Unfortunately, until we already know who the perp was, we won't know if MB was targeted or not, so we won't be able to determine whether it was real burglarizing or pretend burglarizing. With the possibility of an interrupted burglary, they would look like the very same thing.

 

[No it's not]

I was looking at the dashboard of the Nissan Altima while the vehicle is leaving SWFA Outdoors. This particular phase I am calling "Green (Phase or) Video". Jethro came up with that term and it stuck.

I posted earlier, that the driver is laying something on (or close to) the dashboard. I thought it may be a (baseball kind of a) cap. Stoner mentioned in his videos, that it is a notebook or book of some kind. So the baseball cap ( if that's what it is) was positioned on top of that book/notebook.

BUT THERE IS SOMETHING ELSE!


Click to enlarge

(switching to another computer, just a second)..

-Nin

 

[No it's not]

Here it is:


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[No it's not]

And:


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[No it's not]

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Clip on ID (with a face..)? What is that?

-Nin

 

[No it's not]

Cellphone?

Click to enlarge

 

[Gumshoe Stories]

View attachment 294451
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Clip on ID (with a face..)? What is that?

-Nin

I’m more interested in this:

 

[zee007]

1. Mystery Object
2. Police Sign?
3. Face?

 

[Razz]

Did at least one bullet hit Missy's chest and another hit her in the head? Not bad shots for a church burglar to make. Did SP leave the bullet casing(s) laying around on the floor after the firearm expelled them? How did SP pull the trigger while wearing gloves?

Missy died, as per the ME: “the wounds on Missy’s head and chest were consistent with the tool the suspect was carrying throughout the building.” That tells me SP was always holding onto that awful hammer. SP is attacking with both the hammer and the gun with one in each hand?

A shot to the head, MS loses consciousness. A shot to the heart, she dies within a couple of minutes. If MB is alive inside the building for only 2 minutes, the attack must have occurred almost immediately.

If Missy was targeted, it makes perfect sense to me for the SP to make a big hullabaloo over pretending to burglarize the Church.
.
.

Yes, DeDee, Not only the ME said that about the tools but I thought the PD also said that she had been hit with a blunt object. Never was it mentioned by PD or anyone else that she had been shot. That was only uncovered by some excellent sleuthing by @Gumshoe Stories a long time ago and Silly Billy recently posted that fact several weeks ago. ( If there were others, excuse me for not mentioning you too.)

Were police keeping her being shot under wraps as that would be only something SP would know?

Could that have been why it appeared SP tried "to clean up the crime scene".
He was looking for the casings?

If this was a random church burglary gone wrong, he must have been messing his pants. (No good way to say that).

 

[Itsapuzzle]

View attachment 294451
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Clip on ID (with a face..)? What is that?

-Nin

Wow! What an amazing image capture! H’mm, what is it .... yes, could be cell phone, or maybe a two-way radio - or a drink bottle with screw top lid. Will look some more. Fascinating.

 

[Itsapuzzle]

View attachment 294451
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Clip on ID (with a face..)? What is that?

-Nin

Oh my goodness, it does look like a partial ID pic. Completely brilliant pick-up Nin.

 

[Razz]

And:

View attachment 294450
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When viewing this, it looks like the object has been "turned" to view it better. Essentially, it is on the driver's side dashboard. Yes?

I see a pencil with an erasure or I see a walkie talkie thing. A big one.

Looking at the windshield above where you've captioned "cellphone",
it appears there is a silver object attached to the windshield. A radar detector?