TX TX - Terri 'Missy' Bevers, 45, killed in church/suspect in SWAT gear, Midlothian, 18 Apr 2016 #49

[SteveS]

I have wondered exactly what constitutes as gun violence. Do harpoons and crossbows count? Someone posted the answer to this years ago and it made it sound like it was specifically gunpowder and bullets involved. There have been a few cases of homemade/improvised firearms and rifles before.

There is also not shortages of cases where the stab wounds were so bad, it was assumed the victim was shot at first.

One other theory is that the perp used one of his tools to (at least attempt to) remove the bullets from Missy, causing confusion about the existence of puncture wounds.

I believe it was LordonArts who used a case search feature circa 2018 or so and it narrowed down to Missy's specific age and exact date of death, not naming her by name but stating the victim was female and died from a gunshot wound. Many posters have claimed this as gospel, but I have never personally seen a link for this information and anyone that brings it up evades posting any evidence of their findings. I don't discount it, but I would like to check it out for myself.

I have provided this for you before. The page is a screen grab straight from the FBI's UCR files. (They were in person and investigating it from the day of the murder.)
1 They have a massive database on crimes committed in the US, which by law is made available to LE and to researchers.
2 Their search engine seemed almost impossible to navigate from the outset - having been told it was there somewhere, it took me MANY MANY hours of various inputs to finally find a path to the info. You have to use what we know, in odd screens where they ask for this but not for that, and eventually work your way to a results screen.
3 I did find the info multiple times (and shared it in this forum) and others found ways to do the same. The crimes are not listed by name, so you have to enter some parameters to make it unique. It's helpful that Midlothian and Ellis Co have few unsolved murders.
4 Each time took trial-and-error and MANY hours of persistence. You have to put in just the right search inputs, in just the right order, and navigate through multiple searches to get what is buried there. I would try this, then that, over and over. I landed back at start with much frequency.
5 I learned the hard way that there's not a defined path to get there again - it can be repetitious and feel like luck, and what works one time doesn't seem to work the next. You have to find the right search page, then use just the right parameters (what we know of the crime, the victim, etc), and hope you do it in the right order.
6 Also it's behind a wall that does not let you copy a URL and return to the results at your leisure. Each time, you have to trial-and-error anew for many unpredictable hours.
7 Unfortunately, in the years since, they kept changing their search screens and input options, making the path different and more difficult imo. The last time was my personal "last time" and I just made a screen shot and decided "never again."
8 Depending on the path you take, the search results come up in varying ways. Below is the result I happened to get the last time, when I decided I wasn't doing it again.
9 It could be easy now. I dunno. I don't have any reason to undergo the beating again and find out.

FWIW, there is a website (Murder Accountability Project) that D/L'ed the database and layered their own search engine on it. The info was there as well in their own search results, although formatted a bit differently. There may be other research orgs that have it online. That could be a secondary path. I can't promise who has what, anymore. But they had the same info, of course -- she was killed with a "Handgun - pistol, revolver, etc". If one is too frustrating, maybe another works for you. But it was always a long project for me to look up each time, and some times I would bail because I couldn't figure out how to get there this time with their latest overlays.



If you wish, you can theoretically look it up yourself.

 

[DeDee]

There is also a lot of confusion about the correct chronological order of this footage.

I am unsure if the perp with the hammer is the first segment, inbetween, last, etc.

True. There may be a correct version of the sequence posted in the threads. Gumshoe Detective put the [was it four?] sections in a certain sequence for us long ago.
Also, when viewing the released version, we only really know the beginning is when the Swat Perp exits the kitchen and enters the Northern Hallway heading West where they push against the wall with the palm of their hand a couple of times as they sashay along.

 

[lonewanderer]

I have provided this for you before. The page is a screen grab straight from the FBI's UCR files. (They were in person and investigating it from the day of the murder.)
1 They have a massive database on crimes committed in the US, which by law is made available to LE and to researchers.
2 Their search engine seemed almost impossible to navigate from the outset - having been told it was there somewhere, it took me MANY MANY hours of various inputs to finally find a path to the info. You have to use what we know, in odd screens where they ask for this but not for that, and eventually work your way to a results screen.
3 I did find the info multiple times (and shared it in this forum) and others found ways to do the same. The crimes are not listed by name, so you have to enter some parameters to make it unique. It's helpful that Midlothian and Ellis Co have few unsolved murders.
4 Each time took trial-and-error and MANY hours of persistence. You have to put in just the right search inputs, in just the right order, and navigate through multiple searches to get what is buried there. I would try this, then that, over and over. I landed back at start with much frequency.
5 I learned the hard way that there's not a defined path to get there again - it can be repetitious and feel like luck, and what works one time doesn't seem to work the next. You have to find the right search page, then use just the right parameters (what we know of the crime, the victim, etc), and hope you do it in the right order.
6 Also it's behind a wall that does not let you copy a URL and return to the results at your leisure. Each time, you have to trial-and-error anew for many unpredictable hours.
7 Unfortunately, in the years since, they kept changing their search screens and input options, making the path different and more difficult imo. The last time was my personal "last time" and I just made a screen shot and decided "never again."
8 Depending on the path you take, the search results come up in varying ways. Below is the result I happened to get the last time, when I decided I wasn't doing it again.
9 It could be easy now. I dunno. I don't have any reason to undergo the beating again and find out.

FWIW, there is a website (Murder Accountability Project) that D/L'ed the database and layered their own search engine on it. The info was there as well in their own search results, although formatted a bit differently. There may be other research orgs that have it online. That could be a secondary path. I can't promise who has what, anymore. But they had the same info, of course -- she was killed with a "Handgun - pistol, revolver, etc". If one is too frustrating, maybe another works for you. But it was always a long project for me to look up each time, and some times I would bail because I couldn't figure out how to get there this time with their latest overlays.

View attachment 501050

If you wish, you can theoretically look it up yourself.

Thanks for taking the time to go over it again, it does seem a QUITE a bit of work to get there!

I appreciate the screenshot, too.

This very clearly shows she was the victim of some type of gunshot wound.

I wonder she was shot with a .22, the most commonly used murder weapon, that has very small bullets. If the puncture wounds were in her head, I could see the perp being able to extract them fairly easily. I don't think they would have made it far. (Pure speculation).

Do you have any theories on this?

 

[SteveS]

Thanks for taking the time to go over it again, it does seem a QUITE a bit of work to get there!

I appreciate the screenshot, too.

This very clearly shows she was the victim of some type of gunshot wound.

I wonder she was shot with a .22, the most commonly used murder weapon, that has very small bullets. If the puncture wounds were in her head, I could see the perp being able to extract them fairly easily. I don't think they would have made it far. (Pure speculation).

Do you have any theories on this?

Thank you.

I tend toward the simplest story needed - Loser Perp was probably trapped or startled by MB, LP shot her 3-4 times, and then ran out the door nearby, that they had entered. I don't assume LP even knew how badly MB had been hurt, when they fled.

We can add more things, but they have to be formed by our own imagination or theory, not by basic facts. Some of them can be true, but no need to have them to explain what we know.

For example, rather than something fancy with bullets, LP just ran away, with bullets going where they went. (Extracting them takes time that didn't exist, and we don't have evidence that creates a need for that to have happened).

 

[lonewanderer]

Thank you.

I tend toward the simplest story needed - Loser Perp was probably trapped or startled by MB, LP shot her 3-4 times, and then ran out the door nearby, that they had entered. I don't assume LP even knew how badly MB had been hurt, when they fled.

We can add more things, but they have to be formed by our own imagination or theory, not by basic facts. Some of them can be true, but no need to have them to explain what we know.

For example, rather than something fancy with bullets, LP just ran away, with bullets going where they went. (Extracting them takes time that didn't exist, and we don't have evidence that creates a need for that to have happened).

I do recall another poster noticing there was a boarded up area, as if glass had been shattered. I have thought it was possible the glass shattered from bullet damage.

The perp did have a very small window of leaving the scene, and that's why I have always said attempted to extract (if they attempted to at all). For instance, maybe they started to try and then ditched the idea quickly. Or, they didn't try at all and like in other cases, the bullets weren't seen until autopsy.

Some think she was ambushed, some think she was attacked after being startled by the perp, either ways I can see a similar attack happening and possibly a beating/shooting combination out of reaction.

 

[SteveS]

I do recall another poster noticing there was a boarded up area, as if glass had been shattered. I have thought it was possible the glass shattered from bullet damage.

The perp did have a very small window of leaving the scene, and that's why I have always said attempted to extract (if they attempted to at all). For instance, maybe they started to try and then ditched the idea quickly. Or, they didn't try at all and like in other cases, the bullets weren't seen until autopsy.

Some think she was ambushed, some think she was attacked after being startled by the perp, either ways I can see a similar attack happening and possibly a beating/shooting combination out of reaction.

There was indeed a boarded up area. It was the NE corner entrance. I saw it with my own 2 eyes in the weeks after the murder, by visiting the church and looking. More than once. But I saw no indication of gunshots. I saw the property and looked at all the damages, and angles, and inside the various windows, many times. I took pics from far and close, but didn't see anything of real interest - it was just a boarded up outer entrance. At one point I shared some of them here, 8 years ago.

I still drive down that highway with some regularity (the area has changed a lot).

My belief was that the NE was where LP first tried to gain access, because that side was more hidden from the road and also had an overhang (it was raining hard that night). The damage didn't look like he got though the 2nd layer of NE doors, which seems confirmed by the church video (or lack thereof). So I would guess he tried the NE, then bailed for some reason, then went to the kitchen door with less glass but perhaps a window not as tough.

LE transcripts of those first PCs don't mention the NE afai recall, but that LE felt the evidence indicated he entered and exited via kitchen door on the N side. That exit would have also been not many feet from where MB's body was found.

As for perp taking time to find and dig out bullets? I find it more likely he just fled. There's nothing that says the bullets were missing from the scene (or the body). But as close-lipped as LE has been, we really don't have a single word about what was found there and what wasn't, so who knows.

 

[lonewanderer]

There was indeed a boarded up area. It was the NE corner entrance. I saw it with my own 2 eyes in the weeks after the murder, by visiting the church and looking. More than once. But I saw no indication of gunshots. I saw the property and looked at all the damages, and angles, and inside the various windows, many times. I took pics from far and close, but didn't see anything of real interest - it was just a boarded up outer entrance. At one point I shared some of them here, 8 years ago.

I still drive down that highway with some regularity (the area has changed a lot).

My belief was that the NE was where LP first tried to gain access, because that side was more hidden from the road and also had an overhang (it was raining hard that night). The damage didn't look like he got though the 2nd layer of NE doors, which seems confirmed by the church video (or lack thereof). So I would guess he tried the NE, then bailed for some reason, then went to the kitchen door with less glass but perhaps a window not as tough.

LE transcripts of those first PCs don't mention the NE afai recall, but that LE felt the evidence indicated he entered and exited via kitchen door on the N side. That exit would have also been not many feet from where MB's body was found.

As for perp taking time to find and dig out bullets? I find it more likely he just fled. There's nothing that says the bullets were missing from the scene (or the body). But as close-lipped as LE has been, we really don't have a single word about what was found there and what wasn't, so who knows.

Sorry if it is a repetitive question, but what direction did Missy enter from?

Was the NE entrance more friendly for entering from something like a car drop-off as opposed to the kitchen?

I also lean towards no bullet extraction or attempts, as it was a very tight time window.

I have wondered the context of the boarded up entrance too, thanks for the clarification. I would imagine if it was from gunshots, it would have been close range at high caliber if it busted the windows completely out. Otherwise I would imagine the holes with spiderwebs around it. Lots of factors go into that too, caliber and window pane size, proximity etc etc.

Did you get the chance to closely look at that one door, where the perp is awkwardly trying to pry it from the wrong direction? Did you notice and rough marks or lack there of? I have questioned if they were trying to pry the door or if they were using the door as leverage to manipulate an object. Its the way they are standing and how they use their hips that makes me think its possible they are balancing something (think like a large flashlight you didn't want to set on the ground or on a table and just used to wall for leverage instead).

 

[AnonymousSeesYOU]

I rather thought the entry was/has been fairly, though evidently, perhaps not definitively, resolved. I submit YouTube The Interview Room Missy Bevers video with Gumshoe stories as a model presentation. Gumshoe has presented what he suspects are the released taped recordings in temporal order. It differs from the order released and it appears, if he’s correct, the tapes were released, streamed in order of camera number, but not in temporal, real time order. If correct, it’s fundamentally helpful to discover entry point. Gumshoe also produced the document Midlothian produced and reported that suggested a gun was /was also used in the murder.

 

[hexicon]

I don't want to get in trouble for perpetuating a rumor, but since bullet extraction was already mentioned above: Why is bullet extraction persistently mentioned in this case? Was there every any MSM or public info to substantiate this?

Or is it just speculation that is a byproduct of:
1. LE's odd unwillingness to acknowledge she was shot with a handgun (Thanks @SteveS for posting the screenshot of the FBI database.)
2. LE's odd characterization of the injuries as "puncture wounds" that "are consistent with tools the suspect was carrying throughout the building."

If the murder was planned and targeted, I would think that the killer went into the event with reasonable confidence the gun couldn't be traced to them and/or a plan for disposing of the weapon. Plus, they would be aware that the fitness class members would be arriving before 5:00. For those reasons I would think a killer who premeditated the murder would have less incentive to remove the bullets.

If the murder were not planned, then the killer might perceive a reason to remove the bullets, and they would not be aware that the class members were about to arrive. In this scenario the killer is simply lucky that they got out before the class arrivals.

Either way, "extracting" (what a euphemism here, ugh) the bullets would take a special kind of sang-froid, or desperation, or both. It would have been a horrific task and it's hard to imagine a casual burglar or trespassing LARPer doing it.

 

[Cedars]

I don't want to get in trouble for perpetuating a rumor, but since bullet extraction was already mentioned above: Why is bullet extraction persistently mentioned in this case? Was there every any MSM or public info to substantiate this?

Or is it just speculation that is a byproduct of:
1. LE's odd unwillingness to acknowledge she was shot with a handgun (Thanks @SteveS for posting the screenshot of the FBI database.)
2. LE's odd characterization of the injuries as "puncture wounds" that "are consistent with tools the suspect was carrying throughout the building."

If the murder was planned and targeted, I would think that the killer went into the event with reasonable confidence the gun couldn't be traced to them and/or a plan for disposing of the weapon. Plus, they would be aware that the fitness class members would be arriving before 5:00. For those reasons I would think a killer who premeditated the murder would have less incentive to remove the bullets.

If the murder were not planned, then the killer might perceive a reason to remove the bullets, and they would not be aware that the class members were about to arrive. In this scenario the killer is simply lucky that they got out before the class arrivals.

Either way, "extracting" (what a euphemism here, ugh) the bullets would take a special kind of sang-froid, or desperation, or both. It would have been a horrific task and it's hard to imagine a casual burglar or trespassing LARPer doing it.

I agree it is very odd, I'm not familiar with any other cases where a misleading cause of death was released. Sure, there's always holdback, but if it was gunshot, why would that be concealed? Wouldn't it be helpful, when releasing the video for someone to identify SP, to indicate they'd had a gun?

Also, there's probably regulations that require medical examiners to, for example, track the annual number of deaths related to guns.

And, gunshots don't just puncture the skin and come to rest slightly below the surface, they go in very deep, depending on where. IMO, a person would need the right kind of knife and basically do major dissection, potentially of organs, to retrieve one...

I just feel this is a loose end to me.

JMO

 

[lonewanderer]

I rather thought the entry was/has been fairly, though evidently, perhaps not definitively, resolved. I submit YouTube The Interview Room Missy Bevers video with Gumshoe stories as a model presentation. Gumshoe has presented what he suspects are the released taped recordings in temporal order. It differs from the order released and it appears, if he’s correct, the tapes were released, streamed in order of camera number, but not in temporal, real time order. If correct, it’s fundamentally helpful to discover entry point. Gumshoe also produced the document Midlothian produced and reported that suggested a gun was /was also used in the murder.

The entry point is really interesting to me.

What is because the perp didn't have the right tools for the NE corner and quickly moved to the next? I (and I imagine many of us) have thought I could easily do a job/quick fix with the tools I had before, only to get to the place of the job/quick fix and realize I was missing something, something didn't fit, something was too long/short etc and had to improvise from there.

Did the perp intentionally choose doors on the other side of the building to avoid being seen from the road? Or was it to gain forced entry to the building in a way that wouldn't be obvious to someone entering it (IE to set up an ambush?). Both? Neither and I am just overthinking it? To me, this seems like they put some level of thought into it.

 

[lonewanderer]

I don't want to get in trouble for perpetuating a rumor, but since bullet extraction was already mentioned above: Why is bullet extraction persistently mentioned in this case? Was there every any MSM or public info to substantiate this?

Or is it just speculation that is a byproduct of:
1. LE's odd unwillingness to acknowledge she was shot with a handgun (Thanks @SteveS for posting the screenshot of the FBI database.)
2. LE's odd characterization of the injuries as "puncture wounds" that "are consistent with tools the suspect was carrying throughout the building."

If the murder was planned and targeted, I would think that the killer went into the event with reasonable confidence the gun couldn't be traced to them and/or a plan for disposing of the weapon. Plus, they would be aware that the fitness class members would be arriving before 5:00. For those reasons I would think a killer who premeditated the murder would have less incentive to remove the bullets.

If the murder were not planned, then the killer might perceive a reason to remove the bullets, and they would not be aware that the class members were about to arrive. In this scenario the killer is simply lucky that they got out before the class arrivals.

Either way, "extracting" (what a euphemism here, ugh) the bullets would take a special kind of sang-froid, or desperation, or both. It would have been a horrific task and it's hard to imagine a casual burglar or trespassing LARPer doing it.

I think the extraction talk picked up steam due to confusion over the description of "puncture wounds" and as SteveS has proven, Missy's death has been categorized as via gun. (Major props to @SteveS again, I had no idea how much of a pain that was to get to that entry).

Agreed, extracting would take time, is not easy, and would need special tools/skills.

Some of us think this was random, some of us think this was targeted. Either way, I think we can probably all agree that whoever was in the SWAT gear watches WAYYYYY to many movies and/or plays WAY to many video games. Seeing the bizarre footage could lead you to think this person may try something like that.

 

[NoSpoonFeeding]

I don't want to get in trouble for perpetuating a rumor, but since bullet extraction was already mentioned above: Why is bullet extraction persistently mentioned in this case? Was there every any MSM or public info to substantiate this?

Or is it just speculation that is a byproduct of:
1. LE's odd unwillingness to acknowledge she was shot with a handgun (Thanks @SteveS for posting the screenshot of the FBI database.)
2. LE's odd characterization of the injuries as "puncture wounds" that "are consistent with tools the suspect was carrying throughout the building."

If the murder was planned and targeted, I would think that the killer went into the event with reasonable confidence the gun couldn't be traced to them and/or a plan for disposing of the weapon. Plus, they would be aware that the fitness class members would be arriving before 5:00. For those reasons I would think a killer who premeditated the murder would have less incentive to remove the bullets.

If the murder were not planned, then the killer might perceive a reason to remove the bullets, and they would not be aware that the class members were about to arrive. In this scenario the killer is simply lucky that they got out before the class arrivals.

Either way, "extracting" (what a euphemism here, ugh) the bullets would take a special kind of sang-froid, or desperation, or both. It would have been a horrific task and it's hard to imagine a casual burglar or trespassing LARPer doing it.

I don't think it's ever been a rumor or suggested as a possible "plan" by the murderer. Anyone that concerned about bullets would have used some other method or shot someone in a place where they could retrieve the bullet, but also ridiculous to consider in this case.

 

[lonewanderer]

I don't think it's ever been a rumor or suggested as a possible "plan" by the murderer. Anyone that concerned about bullets would have used some other method or shot someone in a place where they could retrieve the bullet, but also ridiculous to consider in this case.

It is over the top. In fairness, lots about this case is over the top.

What would be a good reason to have conflicting information about a gun being used? Just a mix-up? Could the gun have been very specific and unique, and that detail kept under tight wraps (this leads me to think the killer would have DEFINETLY not left it there, right?) I am just unsure.

 

[NoSpoonFeeding]

It is over the top. In fairness, lots about this case is over the top.

What would be a good reason to have conflicting information about a gun being used? Just a mix-up? Could the gun have been very specific and unique, and that detail kept under tight wraps (this leads me to think the killer would have DEFINETLY not left it there, right?) I am just unsure.

There is no conflicting information about a gun being used unless one insists on interpreting the released information as excluding it. I don't, it is in the FBI stats. LE has simply never addressed this and are obviously holding back this information. The FBI has never publicly addressed it either. There is nothing to discuss about the gun and/or ammo because we are completely in the dark. MOO

 

[Cedars]

LE has simply never addressed this and are obviously holding back this information.

A death certificate is prepared by the medical examiner/coroner, and is a legal document under the control of the state government Coroner's office or equivalent. Obviously, every death requires a death certificate, not just murders. In the case of murder, it is created in conjunction with police, but it stands independent of any investigation.

IMO, police are unlikely to have the legal right to suppress or alter a medical examiner's determination of cause of death.

"The CDC publishes a physician's handbook to help navigate the form.

In Part I, the certifier must describe the immediate cause of death -- the conditions and sequence of events that led up to the death. In Part II, they must also list the underlying causes of death over time. This can be something that happened in the hours before a person died, or be a condition revealed in the medical history"

Post Mortem - Things to Know: Documenting Death -- The Certificate

www.pbs.org

JMO

 

[ONF21772]

I’m 100% on board with the person in the SWAT gear being a female. A slightly overweight, out of shape female.

I don’t know if this theory has been suggested yet, but I’ve always felt it might be the wife or girlfriend from one of MB’s affairs. Or simply another female who was jealous of MB. Being a fitness trainer, she was in great shape and had many male admirers…it’s known she acted on some of those attractions.

Have the police checked out all of the women connected to any of the guys in her class?

There’s another theory about her Mother-In-Law. ALLEGEDLY. No facts here. Just theorizing. It’s just suspicious that both Brandon and his Dad had solid alibis, placing them out of state, on the day it happened…but where was the MIL?

I never believed the “Botched Burglary” angle.

 

[NoSpoonFeeding]

IMO, police are unlikely to have the legal right to suppress or alter a medical examiner's determination of cause of death.

I haven't seen anyone suggesting that LE did/could/would have etc, done such a thing. Not releasing/and or withholding information and/or the autopsy report due to ongoing investigation, and describing the cause of death without mentioning gunshot(s), does not equal LE or the ME doing anything unethical (suppressing or altering).

 

[lonewanderer]

I’m 100% on board with the person in the SWAT gear being a female. A slightly overweight, out of shape female.

I don’t know if this theory has been suggested yet, but I’ve always felt it might be the wife or girlfriend from one of MB’s affairs. Or simply another female who was jealous of MB. Being a fitness trainer, she was in great shape and had many male admirers…it’s known she acted on some of those attractions.

Have the police checked out all of the women connected to any of the guys in her class?

There’s another theory about her Mother-In-Law. ALLEGEDLY. No facts here. Just theorizing. It’s just suspicious that both Brandon and his Dad had solid alibis, placing them out of state, on the day it happened…but where was the MIL?

I never believed the “Botched Burglary” angle.

To be perfectly honest, I have found most of the other posters to be extremely reasonable and often agreeable on most aspects of this case, except for when discussing if Missy was targeted or if the attack was random.

I have my own strong opinions about that, but it really just distracts and makes everyone argue.

I’ve learned a lot and opened my eyes much more then I stopped trying to argue my points on this.

We are all here to try and bring justice to Missy and her family.

 

[Cedars]

I haven't seen anyone suggesting that LE did/could/would have etc, done such a thing. Not releasing/and or withholding information and/or the autopsy report due to ongoing investigation, and describing the cause of death without mentioning gunshot(s), does not equal LE or the ME doing anything unethical (suppressing or altering).

I may not be clear on what you're saying. To my mind:

"Not releasing/and or withholding information and/or the autopsy report" = suppressing

and

"describing the cause of death without mentioning gunshot(s)" = altering.

Especially after 8 years, when it is clearly a cold case.

IMO, they just don't want SM to have any information, and somehow they are getting away with it.

JMO