Found Deceased CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, did not return from bike ride, Chaffee County, 10 May 2020 #12

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Even if obtaining guardianship is a standard practice when a person has been missing or assumed deceased, why on Earth is that where BM’s mind is, after less than a month?

I would expect things like sale of property or obtaining guardianship could certainly wait. One month isn’t much time at all, and obviously this process was started before today, so well before Suzanne has even been missing for 4 weeks. These don’t feel like actions of someone who is holding on to hope. All JMO.
 
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Seattle1 said:
@Chomsky -- BM petitioned for Guardianship of SM in their former State of Indiana. Why IN and is there a provision for this in USA? (Assuming they are residents of CO).


New law to help manage affairs of people who are missing:
England and Wales


The Guardianship (Missing Persons) Act of 2017 created a new legal status of guardian of the affairs of a missing person, allowing someone to act in their best interests after they have been gone for 90 days or more.

The act is informally known as Claudia’s Law, as former solicitor Peter Lawrence campaigned for a change after his daughter’s disappearance in 2009.

Prior to the Act, allowing a third party to oversee the financial and property affairs of a missing person in UK essentially took 7 years (i.e., petition to declare a person dead).

Under the law, ‘missing people’ will include:
  • people who have gone missing in the UK and abroad
  • victims of kidnap and hostage
  • people in prison abroad who cannot communicate decisions about their property and financial affairs
New law to help manage affairs of people who are missing

ETA: My understanding is that Guardianship for missing persons is mostly unprecedented and worthy of a look at US Laws. It took the special 2017 law above to allow a UK Guardianship provision for missing persons.
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I’d be very interested in case law that supports a determination of incapacity on a missing person who cannot be examined by a court which is generally a strict requirement when taking away their rights
IMO
 
Can anyone answer this quickly, was personal item other than bike, referred to as her item or an item? could this item have been someone else’s personal item? Ie could this have something of a nature used to subdue a victim. fingerprints even?!
Wouldn’t this have caused LE to divert in this direction?
Or her phone, and this did show effort for 911? Tossed because her attacker knew tracking potential?

Could there have been suspicious things going on before her attack?

Could there be another suspect identified from the beginning. I would expect bolo but if SM was believed to be alive, risk greater if
perp was cornered?

ooooops ! This is my guilty day, never mind!
 
oviedo said:
I don't recall that but the original point of the fundraising was for them to do their own searches IIRC. I've wanted to know if LE established some kind of perimeter that Sunday night and watched over it until the searching resumed Monday morning?
IMO
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@Rosiebones I think you are right ... the nephew made a big deal about the bike ... which leads me to believe he is the source that conveyed bike information to BM... the way BM acted irritated by the mishandling of the bike ... is reminiscent of nephews attitude... but, I still think BM was picturing/recalling the bike position or he wouldn’t have hesitated after describing the wheel position. It was IF he was checking himself. JMO.
Wasn’t there a rumor/report that the neighbor found the bike? Maybe she is the one who told both BM and the nephew? I would have been drilling her for every detail she could remember IF I knew she found it.
 
Feistyomi said:
Can anyone answer this quickly, was personal item other than bike, referred to as her item or an item? could this item have been someone else’s personal item? Ie could this have something of a nature used to subdue a victim. fingerprints even?!
Wouldn’t this have caused LE to divert in this direction?
Or her phone, and this did show effort for 911? Tossed because her attacker knew tracking potential?

Could there have been suspicious things going on before her attack?

Could there be another suspect identified from the beginning. I would expect bolo but if SM was believed to be alive, risk greater if
perp was cornered?

ooooops ! This is my guilty day, never mind!
Click to expand...
I’m assuming BM doesn’t think she’s alive since he’s trying to file for incapacity, so maybe no need for a BOLO. MOO
 
oviedo said:
Yes that is my understanding but his guardianship is to determine her incapacity - why wouldn’t he just use a durable power of attorney which is routine in married couples ? IMO it’s because he no longer had it and this is the only way he can convey title to the buyer because that property is owned jointly - we do real estate too
JMO
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Right--and most people put important documents like POA in a safe place/their house or a safety deposit box at the bank. Why BM would need to file a guardianship document on SM now seems mystifying to me when she is currently not present!
 
Knox said:
POA would also contain her name, just as this filing does, no?

@sillybilly can you chime in on this one?
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Yes, if information is found as a result of sleuthing on the victim (which is allowed), it can be discussed. Just make sure to use initials in the discussion for all parties other than the victim.
 
KLM6 said:
A PoA would require her signature, and whatever he is signing would need to be defined or fall into the realm of the PoA. I would assume that is why he is requesting guardianship, under the means that she is "incapacitated".
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In my state when you give power of attorney to someone you sign the document yourself granting them this authority and now we even have split out the powers so you choose - financial, property, cars, retirement etc. when you have this POA you don’t need a guardianship - you can take it to the bank and take all the money they have in their own personal account not even joint with the spouse - it’s so powerful you can do a deed taking joint property or any property they own individually and convey it to anyone including yourself - I’ve seen this in FL so i can only reason he does not have this power and must bring a public court proceeding to get the power he needs to convey title to this property as we see in the court docket which is public information - why? He wants to sell the property but he cannot without court approval - he has to get Letters of Guardianship that determine this missing woman to be incapacitated and unable to make decisions for herself and get the courts permission to sell her interest In the jointly held property - it must be killing him
JMO
 
Knox said:
Can you search for Power Of Attorney filings in Indiana?

If Barry had a POA for the house in Indiana, how would that relate to the guardianship filing?
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99.9% Transactions for property or financial affairs under absentee spouse are handled by POA.

As a recent 2x cancer survivor, very unlikely SM did not have POA and Healthcare Directive.

And a petition for Guardianship for Missing Person is unprecedented!

It actually required a new law in UK for this to even be an option (i.e., The Guardianship (Missing Persons) Act of 2017).

MOO
 
perception≠reality said:
Even if obtaining guardianship is a standard practice when a person has been missing or assumed deceased, why on Earth is that where BM’s mind is, after less than a month?

I would expect things like sale of property or obtaining guardianship could certainly wait. One month isn’t much time at all, and obviously this process was started before today, so we’ll before Suzanne has even been missing for 4 weeks. These don’t feel like actions of someone who is holding on to hope. All JMO.
Click to expand...

Yes, it reflects someone's mindset as making new plans right away...and the big question for me--is why the urgency??
 
oviedo said:
In my state when you give power of attorney to someone you sign the document yourself granting them this authority and now we even have split out the powers so you choose - financial, property, cars, retirement etc. when you have this POA you don’t need a guardianship - you can take it to the bank and take all the money they have in their own personal account not even joint with the spouse - it’s so powerful you can do a deed taking joint property or any property they own individually and convey it to anyone including yourself - I’ve seen this in FL so i can only reason he does not have this power and must bring a public court proceeding to get the power he needs to convey title to this property as we see in the court docket which is public information - why? He wants to sell the property but he cannot without court approval - he has to get Letters of Guardianship that determine this missing woman to be incapacitated and unable to make decisions for herself and get the courts permission to sell her interest In the jointly held property - it must be killing him
JMO
Click to expand...
Yes, in our State we have used our POA for all legal matters including real estate. However, it seems strange to me that BM wouldn't currently have legal control over SM affairs should she become incapacitated--hasn't he been in control of things for a long time??
 
INAL
PoA is tricky.
The different types.
Durable, medical, financial. These all have to be signed when the other person is of sound mind and witnessed.

Guardianship can be granted through the state if the other party is someway not of sound mind, etc.

But without a previous PoA specifically with her husband. Guardianship is the only emergent way to gain power over a persons affairs.

all can be contested by another family member if they can prove mishandling of power but that’s a wholeeeeeee process in itself.

this is just in my experience of the last years power struggle in my family. and I’m in NJ so there’s also that
 
oviedo said:
In my state when you give power of attorney to someone you sign the document yourself granting them this authority and now we even have split out the powers so you choose - financial, property, cars, retirement etc. when you have this POA you don’t need a guardianship - you can take it to the bank and take all the money they have in their own personal account not even joint with the spouse - it’s so powerful you can do a deed taking joint property or any property they own individually and convey it to anyone including yourself - I’ve seen this in FL so i can only reason he does not have this power and must bring a public court proceeding to get the power he needs to convey title to this property as we see in the court docket which is public information - why? He wants to sell the property but he cannot without court approval - he has to get Letters of Guardianship that determine this missing woman to be incapacitated and unable to make decisions for herself and get the courts permission to sell her interest In the jointly held property - it must be killing him
JMO
Click to expand...

I think we're staring a potential motive right in the face here.

I really do.

JMO.
 
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Seattle1 said:
99.9% Transactions for property or financial affairs under absentee spouse are handled by POA.

As a recent 2x cancer survivor, very unlikely SM did not have POA and Healthcare Directive.

And a petition for Guardianship for Missing Person is unprecedented!

It actually required a new law in UK for this to even be an option (i.e., The Guardianship (Missing Persons) Act of 2017).

MOO
Click to expand...
This seems to be lost on our US sleuthers
Imo
 
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