UK UK - Shelley Morgan, 34, stabbed, (Former Iowan), Bristol, 11 June 1984

[Pinkizzy]

How did the kids find her body in the woods? Was it the smell or did their dog find her? Did the kids play in the woods on a regular basis?

We should plot a map of her home, route on that day and the deposition site

 

[FOXINBOX]

Yes and yes and yes.

How did the kids find her body in the woods? Was it the smell or did their dog find her? Did the kids play in the woods on a regular basis?

We should plot a map of her home, route on that day and the deposition site

ABSOLUTELY
Sorry for shouting...got carried away, but I'm having difficulties even doing this bit for Chillenden. It should be the first thing.
The press are your first best friends on this one, but having just read James Frazer's book [Eminent forensic scientist guy] his comment "The Police are obsessed with control" is so true. Every scrap of info is drip fed.

 

[Pinkizzy]

Here's a similar case -

Diane Jones

Diane Jones was last seen alive at her home in Coggeshall, Essex, on 23 July 1983. She was later reported missing and her body was found in Martlesham three months later.

www.suffolk.police.uk

 

[dotr]

Here's a similar case -

Diane Jones

Diane Jones was last seen alive at her home in Coggeshall, Essex, on 23 July 1983. She was later reported missing and her body was found in Martlesham three months later.

www.suffolk.police.uk

Interesting..

UK - UK - Diane Jones, 35, Coggeshall, Essex, murdered 23 July 1983

https://www.suffolk.police.uk/news/cold-cases-0/diane-jones

www.websleuths.com

 

[TootsieFootsie]

Mystery still surrounds murder of Bedminster mum

Shelley Morgan was killed 38 years ago and police are no further forward in solving the case

www.bristolpost.co.uk

 

[dotr]

he missing Olympus OM20 35mm film camera serial number 1032853

Postcard showing the river from Bower Ashton, a 'significant' location in the murder of Shelley Morgan
''The mystery prompted Avon and Somerset Police to appeal for information in 2019 on the 35th anniversary of the murder.
In that appeal police released images of two postcards which they say may have a "significant bearing on their investigation".
The tear-off postcards are from a calendar sold by the local Bristol Hospice charity in the 1980s or 1990s.

One is of a scene overlooking the River Avon in Bristol, taken from Bower Ashton just below the Clifton Suspension Bridge, while the other is of St Andrew’s Church, from the direction of Backwell Hill.''

Mystery still surrounds murder of Bedminster mum

Shelley Morgan was killed 38 years ago and police are no further forward in solving the case

www.bristolpost.co.uk

 

[Jenesaisquoi]

Does anyone know if British police use M-Vac for DNA analysis? And if this would be a suitable case for it? @Whitehall 1212

I have been listening to some if the Citizen Detective podcasts and they have mentioned it as being a successful procedure for cold cases.

 

[Whitehall 1212]

Does anyone know if British police use M-Vac for DNA analysis? And if this would be a suitable case for it? @Whitehall 1212

I have been listening to some if the Citizen Detective podcasts and they have mentioned it as being a successful procedure for cold cases.

I'm not sure if has been validated for operational use by UK Forensics Labs.

It was being evaluated in 2018 at King's College, London with favourable results.

Maybe Covid got in the way of the evaluation being completed and reported on sooner.

Kings College M-Vac Research Results | M-Vac Systems, Inc

When It comes to DNA collection, the best detection starts with the best sample. Use the M-Vac.

www.m-vac.com

 

[dotr]

Shelley's case is the first one up approx. @1:00

 

[Jenesaisquoi]

Where would Shelley have developed her photos? Does anyone remember hearing that? At the university? At the house in Bristol? Would they be developed in a snapshot place if she was taking photos to then paint from?

I wonder if anyone used and developed the film? If any students worked in eg Boots photo labs or Jessops or whoever was around at the time and remembers any photo sequences that seemed odd?

 

[dotr]

2019 rbbm.

New details released following murder of Shelley Morgan in 1984 | Avon and Somerset Police

Shelley Morgan disappeared on 11 June 1984 after dropping off her two children at school.

www.avonandsomerset.police.uk

''DS Sarah Barnston, of the MCRT, said: “Shelley was passionately interested in art and the theatre and was attending art classes at the Bristol Polytechnic Art College. She left home that day intending to photograph and sketch in the Leigh Woods area so it’s possible her work and the locations she was visiting that day hold the key to her killer’s identity. We remain of the belief that her killer must have had access to a vehicle and may have had links through work or other associations to Backwell and possibly the Leigh Woods or Clifton areas of Bristol.



“In addition, Shelley’s camera equipment has never been found, particularly an Olympus OM20 camera, which cost £130 at the time. This camera is still popular with collectors and photography students now. The missing 35mm camera will have the serial number 1032853 on it.''

“Our latest re-investigation has identified new material of interest which may have forensic potential, utilising the latest scientific techniques. We’re keeping Shelley’s family updated on any progress. Her sister recently flew over from the USA to meet some of our team and we’re as committed as ever to solving Shelley’s murder and bringing the person or people responsible to justice.''

 

[Jenesaisquoi]

The sidelined woman detective who solved a brutal cold case murder

Dedicated Detective Sergeant Julie Mackay, solved the cold case murder of 17-year-old Melanie Road who was raped and murdered after a night out in June 1984.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Talking about Christopher Hampton who murdered Melanie Road, and is convinced he also murdered Shelley.

 

[dotr]

The sidelined woman detective who solved a brutal cold case murder

Dedicated Detective Sergeant Julie Mackay, solved the cold case murder of 17-year-old Melanie Road who was raped and murdered after a night out in June 1984.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Talking about Christopher Hampton who murdered Melanie Road, and is convinced he also murdered Shelley.

Very interesting, thanks for the link.. rbbm.

63-year-old Christopher Hampton from Bristol, who had lived locally at the time of the attack, admitted to the murder of Bath teenager Melanie Road almost 32 years after she died

''Then, in 2015, came a breakthrough. Julie had made another request to access the DNA database — and this time she found a 'screamer'. 'It means someone with DNA very similar to the attacker who is screaming to be eliminated,' she explains.

The screamer was a woman, a Bath local who had been swabbed by police following a row between her and her boyfriend in which she broke his necklace.

Police contacted her and it emerged that her father, Christopher Hampton, was a painter and decorator from Bristol who had lived locally at the time of the attack. He had no criminal record and seemed an unlikely fit.

'If you met him you wouldn't think in a month of Sundays he would be capable of what he did,' Julie says.''

 

[Wurzel]

A few months back I spent some time collating all the information that has been officially released on the case, and produced a website to have all the information in one place. I've now seen the site has been shared by someone on another site, so if anyone on here is interested:

Home → Shelley Morgan Murder

Bristol mother Shelley Morgan was murdered on 11 June 1984. This website is to keep her memory alive and highlight the police investigation remains active.

shelleymorganmurder.com

It's nothing special and probably shows I should have paid more attention in my English language and literature classes at school with my use of words. I've enhanced some photos with AI, and added some misc bits of info about location/map.

I was unaware until pulling the information together that the police had provided the serial number of the lense attached to the OM20 - the late evening Crimewatch Update programme of 6 November 1984 following a call from a viewer. To the best of my knowledge the lense serial number has never been mentioned since, despite the camera and lense can be separated and sold accordingly.

Away from the above, on the subject of the two postcards, just to add that the photos were taken by two individuals - one male/Clifton and one female/Backwell (LRPS accredited). I know both names, and they died some years back.

 

[Pinkizzy]

We need to investigate similar crimes that happened around the time of Shelley's murder

 

[dotr]

We need to investigate similar crimes that happened around the time of Shelley's murder

For starters there are these guys..

Bristol man jailed for sex offences dating back to 1980s

Leroy Hall is serving six-and-a-half years for attacking two women he offered lifts to.

www.bbc.com

''A man has been jailed for nine years for sex attacks carried out in the 1980s and 1990s.
Leroy Hall was sentenced at Bristol Crown Court on Friday after being convicted of charges of rape, false imprisonment and indecent assault against two women.
One victim was just 17 when Hall, of Chaplin Road in Easton, attacked her.
The woman said she was "still angry" about what happened and thinks about it "every day of my life".
In the late 1980s, the victim got into a car driven by Hall in Bristol and was taken to the Eastville area of the city where he raped her.
She reported what happed to police in 2017 after seeing a newspaper article with a picture of Hall and recognising him as her attacker.''

Man pleads guilty to 1984 murder of Melanie Road

Christopher Hampton, 64, from Bristol, originally denied murdering 17-year-old, who died from multiple stab wounds

www.theguardian.com

''Man pleads guilty to 1984 murder of Melanie Road
Christopher Hampton, 64, from Bristol, originally denied murdering 17-year-old, who died from multiple stab wounds''

Melanie Road murder: Man jailed for life 32 years after killing

A man whose daughter's DNA profile led police to his door is jailed for the murder of a girl he sexually assaulted and repeatedly stabbed 32 years ago.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Wurzel]

Christopher Hampton's name is one that is linked regularly with Shelley's murder, but there are some differences.

Similarities:
- Both murdered in June 1984, and within a few days of each other
- Both stabbed to death, and stabbed multiple times

Unsimilar:
- Time of day
- Shelley was abducted / Melanie was not
- Shelley was raped / Melanie was not

Motive:
- The judge in Melanie's case said "It was a lengthy and brutal attack for your own sexual gratification." That sexual gratification was from the multiple stab wounds not any physical sexual contact.
- The police when discussing Shelley's murder refer to it as "sexually motivated" I assume because she was raped, and have not provided any details as far as I am aware as to why they think she was stabbed multiple times - could the multiple stabs wounds also be "sexual gratification".

Not sure about anyone else, but when I think about multiple stab wounds to an individual I think:
- The attacker wants to ensure the victim is definitely dead, and therefore cannot identify the attacker
- After the initial couple of stab wounds the attacker thinks nothing of what they have just done and continues stabbing
- The attacker has built up frustrations or anger inside them, and they release that through a frenzied knife attack on someone

With Melanie murdered on the 9th June and Shelley on the 11th June, there perhaps a slim possibility of someone being triggered Melanie's murder to murder Shelley.

 

[Pinkizzy]

Some killers use a knife as an extension of their sexual organs.

 

[Blue-moon]

Christopher Hampton's name is one that is linked regularly with Shelley's murder, but there are some differences.

Similarities:
- Both murdered in June 1984, and within a few days of each other
- Both stabbed to death, and stabbed multiple times

Unsimilar:
- Time of day
- Shelley was abducted / Melanie was not
- Shelley was raped / Melanie was not

Motive:
- The judge in Melanie's case said "It was a lengthy and brutal attack for your own sexual gratification." That sexual gratification was from the multiple stab wounds not any physical sexual contact.
- The police when discussing Shelley's murder refer to it as "sexually motivated" I assume because she was raped, and have not provided any details as far as I am aware as to why they think she was stabbed multiple times - could the multiple stabs wounds also be "sexual gratification".

Not sure about anyone else, but when I think about multiple stab wounds to an individual I think:
- The attacker wants to ensure the victim is definitely dead, and therefore cannot identify the attacker
- After the initial couple of stab wounds the attacker thinks nothing of what they have just done and continues stabbing
- The attacker has built up frustrations or anger inside them, and they release that through a frenzied knife attack on someone

With Melanie murdered on the 9th June and Shelley on the 11th June, there perhaps a slim possibility of someone being triggered Melanie's murder to murder Shelley.

Media reports do state that Melanie Road was raped - for example, here from the Bristol Post.

Nonetheless, while cases do seem extraordinarily similar, the fact that police don’t seem to have linked them suggests that something doesn’t quite match.

 

[tes1984]

A few months back I spent some time collating all the information that has been officially released on the case, and produced a website to have all the information in one place. I've now seen the site has been shared by someone on another site, so if anyone on here is interested:

Home → Shelley Morgan Murder

Bristol mother Shelley Morgan was murdered on 11 June 1984. This website is to keep her memory alive and highlight the police investigation remains active.

shelleymorganmurder.com

It's nothing special and probably shows I should have paid more attention in my English language and literature classes at school with my use of words. I've enhanced some photos with AI, and added some misc bits of info about location/map.

I was unaware until pulling the information together that the police had provided the serial number of the lense attached to the OM20 - the late evening Crimewatch Update programme of 6 November 1984 following a call from a viewer. To the best of my knowledge the lense serial number has never been mentioned since, despite the camera and lense can be separated and sold accordingly.

Away from the above, on the subject of the two postcards, just to add that the photos were taken by two individuals - one male/Clifton and one female/Backwell (LRPS accredited). I know both names, and they died some years back.

Great work creating the website.
Do you have any more information about the camera lens?