MO - William Van Note, 67, & Sharon Dickson, 59, slain, Sunrise Beach, 2 Oct 2010

New Posts

D

davehead21

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 30, 2008
Messages
2,076
Reaction score
194
I was surprised not to see a thread about this on here. This is a REALLY strange case.

The golden years were shaping up nicely for accountant William Van Note.

The 67-year-old retiree had several boats and a waterfront vacation home at central Missouri's Lake of the Ozarks. He could jet off to a winter getaway on Florida's Gulf coast, and had plenty of money in the bank after a career preparing taxes and renting out downtown office space in Liberty, a country town 15 miles north of Kansas City.

And soon, after 20 years together, he and longtime companion Sharon Dickson were going to wed, hoping that the union would be a new start after previous failed marriages.

They never got the chance. In October 2010, an intruder shot the couple in their lake home, killing Dickson and leaving Van Note critically wounded with a gunshot wound to the head. He died four days later, after his daughter told doctors that he would prefer to die rather than be kept alive by medical intervention.

What happened next set the stage for a unique legal case: Van Note's daughter, Susan, was accused by prosecutors of pulling the trigger and forging her father's signature on the document doctors relied on to end his medical treatment. The case, which essentially accuses her of "death by forgery," has captivated the small Missouri community since her September arrest. Legal experts say it's a case with little, if any, precedent.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/mo-lawyer-accused-forgery-fathers-death-17356073

Her bond was set at 1 million dollars cash and she is now out of jail.

http://www.kctv5.com/story/19750184/susan-van-note-free-on-bail
 
I had to see WHAT "death by forgery" was. At first I was thinking maybe she did it to ease him out of his pain; that perhaps they had talked about this and he just never got around to doing the paperwork, but after reading this, and finding the neighbors said they weren't surprised, I've changed my mind. How sad.
 
is her name Susan or Liz? the linked article above calls her Liz throughout but her mugshot says Susan
 
It seems rather strange that they're not focusing on finding the intruder who shot her father. That crime almost seems to be forgotten.

Another issue not discussed is her father's condition after the shooting. Was he in a coma, did he have irreversible brain damage? Would he have died anyway without having life support removed?

I'm not defending the daughter's actions, but it seems they're not focusing on the real crime.
 
Betty P said:
It seems rather strange that they're not focusing on finding the intruder who shot her father. That crime almost seems to be forgotten.
Another issue not discussed is her father's condition after the shooting. Was he in a coma, did he have irreversible brain damage? Would he have died anyway without having life support removed?

I'm not defending the daughter's actions, but it seems they're not focusing on the real crime.
Click to expand...
BBM

It says they're accusing her of pulling the trigger, and then forging the document to stop life support. Why not just charge wher with murder?
Van Note's daughter, Susan, was accused by prosecutors of pulling the trigger and forging her father's signature on the document doctors relied on to end his medical treatment.<SNIP>
Click to expand...
 
I was wondering why they hadn't charged her for the murder of the GF but saw this in the OP article:

She has pleaded not guilty, and if convicted could face a lengthy jail sentence or the death penalty. She has not been charged in the death of her father's girlfriend; prosecutors say they are pursuing the cases separately.

Friends of both victims and the suspect describe a troubled father-daughter relationship weakened by the divorce of Susan Van Note's parents three decades ago. The couple had two children, but William Van Note's only son and namesake died as a teenager. They are now buried next to each other.
Click to expand...

I imagine his upcoming marriage had a lot to do with this also...she wouldn't inherit as much....
 
Confusion said:
BBM

It says they're accusing her of pulling the trigger, and then forging the document to stop life support. Why not just charge her with murder?
Click to expand...

She is being charged with murder, first-degree. From the article in the OP--

Susan Elizabeth Van Note, who goes by Liz, is a 44-year-old attorney who specializes in end-of-life issues, and advertised herself for offering "compassionate representation of clients." She's jailed on a $1 million cash bond, facing charges of felony forgery and first-degree murder.
Click to expand...

Also, two other people are being charged with second degree murder in the case. They're accused of acting as witnesses to the forgery.

http://www.kansascity.com/2012/09/10/3808046/lawyer-charged-in-fathers-death.html
 
That is a really bizarre crime. It almost looks like something out of a movie.
 
http://www.kansascity.com/news/state/missouri/article2228512.html

A Missouri lawyer accused of killing her father and his girlfriend and later forging documents to become personal representative of her father&#8217;s estate has been ordered to remain in jail until she repays part of money from the estate that she spent on herself...

The estate had an estimated value of $1.6 million, according to court records. Van Note&#8217;s powers as personal representative were suspended on Sept. 17, 2012, after she was charged with her father&#8217;s murder...

Van Note&#8217;s criminal trial is scheduled to begin February 17 in Laclede County.
Click to expand...
 
http://www.lakeexpo.com/news/lake_n...cle_21e92894-d4f8-11e6-a957-cffdb4d40452.html

A Lee&#8217;s Summit woman charged with murdering her father and his girlfriend is scheduled for trial next month, after the judge declared a mistrial last summer.

Susan Elizabeth (Liz) Van Note, charged in 2012 with the 2010 deaths of her father William Van Note and his long-time companion, Sharon Dickson, is scheduled to stand for trial on Feb. 6, 2017, in Laclede County Circuit Court in front of Judge Kenneth Hayden.
Click to expand...
 
Wow, what an unbelievable story! How could she? Her parents had been divorced for 30 years! I guess she was good until he decided to get remarried. Blows my mind, an attorney forging living will documents.
 
Van Note trial starts today with jury selection

http://www.lakenewsonline.com/news/20170205/van-note-trial-starts-today-with-jury-selection

The double-murder trial of Susan Elizabeth Van Note is set to get underway Monday morning with jury selection beginning at 9:00 a.m. in Laclede County Circuit Court.

Two weeks of trial have been scheduled for the weeks of Feb. 6 and 13 after both sides agreed to proceed during a pre-trial conference last month via telephone under Judge Kenneth Hayden.

Van Note, who was a Lee's Summit lawyer, is accused of killing her father William Van Note, 67, and his girlfriend Sharon Dickson, 59, on Oct. 2, 2010 at her father's lakefront Sunrise Beach home.
Click to expand...
 
http://www.lakenewsonline.com/news/...-daughter-relationship-possible-other-suspect

The disputed relationship, or lack thereof, between Susan Van Note and her father William Van Note was the subject of opening statements by the prosecution and defense team Tuesday morning in the second day of the double-homicide trial...

Gilley described William Van Note as a wealthy businessman and someone Susan did not get along with. He described their relationship as "volatile" and said the jury would hear conversations between Susan and investigators where she referred to her father as an "*******, jerk, and obnoxious" and that she "actively avoided" him...

Defense attorney Tom Bath described the relationship much differently and said investigators failed to track down additional leads, while focusing their investigation on Susan.
Click to expand...
 
Witness: Van Note &#8216;started yelling at the doctor to take (her father) off life support&#8217;


LEBANON, MO.
Stacey Dory says she thought she was just doing a favor for an old friend from high school.

Susan Elizabeth Van Note had told Dory and husband that her father had been shot and stabbed in a home invasion. They asked if they could do anything for her. Van Note said there was one thing, Dory testified Wednesday at Van Note&#8217;s double-murder trial.

Van Note wanted them to witness a &#8220;financial document&#8221; she and her father had been working on.

They agreed. They signed.

&#8220;Then she stood up and said she was on her way to the hospital to see her dad,&#8221; Dory testified.

The document, Dory said she learned later, was a health directive that Van Note took to a Columbia hospital to demand that her father be removed from life support.

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/news/state/missouri/article131421004.html#storylink=cpy
 
Susan Van Note video: &#8216;I hope he wakes up and has something to tell you guys&#8217;

Camden County Medical Examiner Keith Norton, who performed the autopsies, testified Thursday that both victims suffered gunshot and stab wounds. Dickson was stabbed 18 times, with some of the wounds to her aorta and lungs, including one that penetrated 4 1/2 inches deep.

As the video played for the jury Thursday, Susan Van Note sat motionless and appeared to show no reaction. In the video, she frequently laughed with the detectives.

At one point, she asked them, &#8220;Sharon was shot and stabbed, is that right?&#8221;

She told the detectives that she and her father had a great relationship and how she felt about Dickson.

&#8220;I loved Sharon,&#8221; Van Note said. &#8220;She was great.&#8221;

She complimented Dickson for her grace in putting up with her father, whom she described as sometimes cranky and hard to get along with.

&#8220;She&#8217;d just smile and go on,&#8221; Van Note said. &#8220;She was just such a nice person.&#8221;

And she had to put up with a lot, she said.

&#8220;If my dad was around a woman for 10 minutes he&#8217;d be asking her to take her top off and show him her, uh, body parts,&#8221; she said. &#8220;Even the waitress.&#8221;

Much more at link!

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/news/state/missouri/article131689039.html#storylink=cpy
 
The Kansas City Star Retweeted
donald bradley &#8207;@dbradleykc 21m21 minutes ago
State rests in Van Note murder trial
 
http://www.kansascity.com/news/state/missouri/article132173944.html

Defense attorney Tom Bath on Saturday pursued a &#8220;somebody else did it&#8221; line of defense. He produced testimony that one of the victims, William Van Note, the defendant&#8217;s father, loaned a man $600,000 in 2005. Andrew Alvey, a private investigator, testified that the man put up 11 properties as collateral, including his personal residence. The man fell behind on his payments and William Van Note foreclosed.

In the 10 days prior to the crime, William Van Note and the man had six phone conversations, including one around 6 p.m. the night of the attack, Alvey said.

Bath also showed a police video of the crime scene that he said shows a file in William Van Note&#8217;s home office opened to a document relating to business dealings with the man.

The private investigator and law enforcement officials have said the man can not be found. The Star is not using the man&#8217;s name.
Click to expand...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

DNASolves

Who is Escambia County John Doe (1989)?

Members online

... and 102 more.
Total: 3,867 (members: 103, guests: 3,764)

Online statistics

Members online
103
Guests online
3,764
Total visitors
3,867
Totals may include hidden visitors.

Forum statistics

Threads
591,530
Messages
17,953,974
Members
228,522
Latest member
Cabinsleuth
Back
Top