Found Deceased CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, Chaffee Co, 10 May 2020 #80 *arrest*

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I had a chance to observe several murder trials in person and I recall several impressive opening and closing statements (not verbatim). Trying to imagine how the prosecutors will present this case, I have been looking online for closing arguments dealing with the question of circumstantial evidence and reasonable doubt. Here's an excerpt from prosecutor Larry Mackey's masterful closing in the case of United States v. McVeigh.

"Let me take a moment and talk a little bit about the deliberative process. We'll talk a little bit about one rule you may not find in the Judge's instructions to you. The first rule, of course, as he will tell you, is that the critical question is whether we have convinced you beyond a reasonable doubt of the charges that face this defendant. It does not mean that all of you have to agree about the evidence. You have to agree about what that evidence means. And so each of you will take, perhaps, in different degrees of sufficiency the evidence of one witness or another, a document; and what it means may strike one of you very differently than somebody else. You don't have to agree on how you reason. You don't have to agree on the weight you want to give a particular document or particular witness. All that you have to agree on collectively is that the Government has met its burden and proved beyond a reasonable doubt the charges against this defendant.

And in this case, there is some likelihood that you may react differently, each of you, to the evidence in this case, partly because there is so much different evidence. There's eyewitness accounts, there's documentary proof, fingerprints, chemical analysis, physical evidence from the Nichols house, physical evidence from McVeigh's car, physical evidence from his arrest, from the Murrah Building, testimony from family members who received immunity, testimony from friends who received immunity, testimony from experts, lay handwriting opinions, summary testimony on phone records, testimony from a person with a plea agreement, stipulations, models, diagrams, photographs, all to illustrate that testimony.

In this case, the Government has presented both direct and circumstantial evidence; and I expect his Honor will tell you the law draws no distinction between the two. And so you can be as persuaded by circumstantial evidence as the next juror might be by direct evidence. It's entirely up to you to give whatever weight you think the evidence is entitled to.

The evidence in this case draws a parallel, to my mind. I think it can be compared to meals that are served across this country on family get-togethers, large meals, often prepared by very proud mothers who intend to serve up something for everybody, who know that not everybody's going to like the sweet potatoes in the same way. They know that everybody's not going to like every one of the desserts served. But their objective is when that meal is done, each and every person can push away from that table entirely satisfied and maybe even stuffed.

Well, the evidence in this case that the Government's presented is a smorgasbord of evidence, and you are entitled to pick and choose; and our prediction is once you do that, you can push away from that evidence entirely satisfied that we have proven beyond a reasonable doubt the charges against this defendant."
That was brilliant.
 
@NoSI Thank you for those Day 3 afternoon notes!!

I see you also noted they were going to leave at 530pm to leave for Broomfield. This makes 100% the most sense when you are leaving on Mother's Day.. spend time with SM and then head up in time to get to bed and begin working the next day. What doesn't make sense is his last minute decision to leave at 5am and not take his worker with him, then call that afternoon to say she needed another employee and to drive up herself because he needed to get up there to work for 11 minutes while his wife spends Mother's Day alone.
 
@NoSI Thank you for those Day 3 afternoon notes!!

I see you also noted they were going to leave at 530pm to leave for Broomfield. This makes 100% the most sense when you are leaving on Mother's Day.. spend time with SM and then head up in time to get to bed and begin working the next day. What doesn't make sense is his last minute decision to leave at 5am and not take his worker with him, then call that afternoon to say she needed another employee and to drive up herself because he needed to get up there to work for 11 minutes while his wife spends Mother's Day alone.

IMO, these are the common sense variables that will cumulatively prove BM's guilt. The early morning departure to Broomfield served only as an alibi for BM to be miles away when his wife allegedly vanished from the bike trail.

I doubt that SM had any knowledge BM intended to work on Sunday (i.e., he didn't). I think she would have communicated this bit to JL that BM would be gone all day Sunday! From the hearing, we know that JL was shopping for supplies and building a deck/dock on Sunday.
 
I know we don't know of any evidence linked to Suzanne from the beach site, but we do know he worked there Friday, right?

Maybe his insistence that MG focus on raking the beach area flat HAD NOTHING TO DO with the beach area. Maybe BARRY had worked in a different area of that construction site the night before, preparing a hidey hole of some kind (perhaps using an attachment that would soon need repair), and keeping MG busy over there was a ploy to keep her from seeing what he had done over here.

It sounds like Barry's Beloved Bobcat might not have been used in conjunction with the crimes of which he's charged.... but to me, that doesn't cancel the possibility he may have used it in PREPARATION FOR those crimes.

An auger comes to mind.

I hope it's only a matter of time until every thing that Barry buried comes to light.

Including Suzanne.

JMO
 
I don’t post on this tread much but I have followed along since the beginning. I have a question rattling around my brain. Could those several trash dumps been red herrings? He had to know he was going to get caught on camera at at least a few of those places? Why not take advantage of the vast wilderness and dump or bury the things he wanted disappeared? Or did he pitch the important stuff over the rail off a cliff? Maybe the stuff he disposed of about town was meaningless stuff intended to confuse LE? He was reported to be a true crime follower so he would have to know some of the tricks! I don’t know. MOO and all that. I am I interested in your thoughts. Sorry if this was discussed at length earlier.
I doubt it. The optics are horrible, especially if if he expected it to be captured on camera.

We’ll likely never know what he dumped, but I think it’s a safe bet it will factor into the picture the jury ends up forming here.

Had he made one big trash dump in camera shot, it would look a hell of a lot better than 5 separate ones, spread out at multiple locations that he didn’t even utilize for another purpose (food at McDonald’s for instance).

He clearly didn’t follow the Dulos case.
 
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Re: BM phone calls to CC on Sunday afternoon.

Around 54:00
LS says that CC was out of town . He came to Broomfield on Monday.


I kept playing for a couple minutes more, and it’s incredibly damning.

Mother’s Day evening, he calls Morgan and says there’s a family emergency, but doesn’t mention Suzanne.

By the next morning though, it’s clear that something absolutely awful has happened to Suzanne. He calls Morgan again, telling her Suzanne has been taken by a mountain lion, which means she’s almost certainly dead.

Then the shocking part, he pivots to talking about the job!
 
It is my understanding that in lieu of shooting a dart from tranquilizer gun, a person could simply "stab" the dart into a muscular area; the contents under pressure would immediately inject just as if it were shot from the gun. The gun would only be necessary for use on a wild or non-domesticated animal.

Yes, exactly, and not only that, IIRC (please correct me if not), the sheath found in the dryer was not to a dart. It was the sheath of a syringe used for loading the dart with drugs. So, why even use the dart for the jab/stab when he could use the syringe? MOO
 
As per interview of MG on May 14, 2020 that lasted 90 minutes, ..... The plan was for them to leave together the evening of May 10, 2020 at 5:30 PM. MG informed that she heard BMs truck at 4 AM outside her residence. She indicated “this is not out of the norm, just BM”.......

Why is this 'not out of the norm'? He frequently sat outside MG's residence with the truck running at 4am?

Did the vehicle movements (according to its computer) indicate this was likely BM's truck?

There is something about this 4am action that bothers me. And I can't put my finger on what it is.

BM has likely murdered his wife 12 hours prior, and here he is at 4am sitting outside MG's apartment.
 
I wonder if the syringe cap had been in the [dryer? lint trap? dryer vent?] for a long time, ever since the last time BM used it on deer or chipmunks or whatever bizarre stuff he does with it, and he strangled or suffocated SM, no tranquilizer even involved? MOO
 
Yes, exactly, and not only that, IIRC (please correct me if not), the sheath found in the dryer was not to a dart. It was the sheath of a syringe used for loading the dart with drugs. So, why even use the dart for the jab/stab when he could use the syringe? MOO
The man loves his gun. SM became prey. She wanted to leave him -- it's her fault.
"Nobody leaves Barry." MOO
 
I wonder if the syringe cap had been in the [dryer? lint trap? dryer vent?] for a long time, ever since the last time BM used it on deer or chipmunks or whatever bizarre stuff he does with it, and he strangled or suffocated SM, no tranquilizer even involved? MOO
We know the "cap" wasn't recovered by LE until 5/19 but how long it had been in the lint trap is unknown. MOO
 
Why is this 'not out of the norm'? He frequently sat outside MG's residence with the truck running at 4am?

Did the vehicle movements (according to its computer) indicate this was likely BM's truck?

There is something about this 4am action that bothers me. And I can't put my finger on what it is.

BM has likely murdered his wife 12 hours prior, and here he is at 4am sitting outside MG's apartment.

From MG's interviews, it was the norm for BM to collect MG for work. BM's Ford 350 is diesel-powered and if it's he's at the 4 way stop, everybody is going to hear it. And if the motorist is delayed by an outgoing firetruck, even more so. MOO
 
A possibility is that the hunting scenario, if it happened, could have been an especially nasty, cruel mind game where he acted as though he was going to shoot her but really was "teaching her a lesson" by "only sedating" her. Possibly with unintended death occurring?
That is a brilliant thought! I can really see that happening, given what we have learned about Barry.
 
The unnamed friend told The Sun on Monday that Barry Morphew, 53, 'knows the woods and Colorado better than anybody out there,' and 'there's no way in the world' police would find his wife, Suzanne's, body.

'If he is guilty, I doubt anybody would ever find the body,' said the friend, whom The Sun did not name. 'He knows those woods and Colorado better than anybody out there — he hunted and fished every day of his life.'

I don't get this - I thought Barry and Suzanne had only moved to Colorado 18 months previously? I wouldn't have thought that made Barry the expert on all things Colorado.
 
This is my interpretation of what I heard. This information has been
provided for use and discussion at Websleuths only.

Day 3 - Part 1 of afternoon

IE starts cross examining Undersheriff Andy Rohrich

Sleeping bag that was found near SMs bike” - Undersheriff Rohrich had to confirm that the weathered sleeping bag found near SMs bike was never swapped as it was deemed unrelated.

SMs bike” - Undersheriff Rohrich had to confirm that no DNA on bike grips. However, there was DNA present on the bike. Deputy/Deputies DNA on bike handle bars. Reminder that the bike was leaning up against a LE vehicle and that BM/GD had to be told to not touch the bike with their hands.

BMs injuries” – PEOPLES EXHIBIT 87 shows “2 nicks" on Mr. Morphew’s left arm. Defense denies that there are “3 parallel markings” based on photos. They then talked about how long the “nicks/markings” may be and I wrote down "1-2 cm long".

F-350” – Described as dirty front passenger seat, layer of dirt on hand rest and console, entire car covered in layer of dirt.

DEFENSE EXHIBIT QQ: Picture of inside of truck showing how dirty the F350 was. Picture not shown in court room.

SMs Range Rover” – ID was in purse in vehicle, Defense reminds that SM was “unhappy in her marriage” and that she “wanted to leave the marriage”.

Unspent shell” – “Many” unspent shells in garage and safe. Undersheriff Rohrich had to confirm that no blood was found in the Master Bedroom.

SMs phone” – Never located. Charger to SMs phone that was known to be at the bedside also missing and never located. A charger similar to SMs charger was found in another drawer in the bedroom. I wrote “not connected”.

Puma Path” – House “very clean and orderly”. SM “tidy and organized” in comparison to Mr. Morphew. Bed was made in Master Bedroom. Life shell on floor next to SMs side of the bed.

Kitchen in Puma Path” – White coffee cup with coffee in it on kitchen counter on kitchen island. SM reportedly “avid coffee drinker”. BM reportedly does not drink coffee.

To Do List in fridge in kitchen” – Included "feeding and watering cat Lulu in Macy’s bedroom" and "Mal’s sheets".

May 10, 2020 – 5:00 AM BM left PP. Was seen on surveillance of Poncha Springs Gas Station at 5:14 AM. Garfield is 6.2 miles roundtrip as Garfield turnaround is 3.1 miles one way. F350 not seen on Monarch Pass surveillance camera.

Tranquilizer dart gun” – Need specific dart capable gun to shoot darts. Vaseline on tips of darts and have to be kept upright. Dart rifle was reportedly used on deer farm in Indiana to shoot deer.

DEFENSE EXHIBIT PP: Picture of dart rifle in gun safe. Picture not shown in court room.

Body cam video” - Undersheriff Rohrich had to confirm that he has not watched all of the body cam videos.

IE finished at 2:05 PM.

Prosecution back at it at 2:07 PM.

BMs demeanor post SM going missing” – Described as “crocodile tears, fake”.

May 9, 2020 – SMs White Range Rover, not same car as Range Rover on surveillance, white roof vs black roof and different vent.

Antlers” – Deer have no antlers in Spring.

Last photo of SM alive” – She was laying on brown towel wearing a bikini. The brown towel was never located.

BMs injuries” – BM explained that he sustained them from a tree when searching for his wife.

Gone girl theory“ (they did not call it that, I just used it) - Prosecution reminded that SM left without cash, her license, her insurance card, and clothes.

Monarch pass” – Undersheriff Rohrich confirms that there are roads that go off US50 that can be used to go around the Monarch surveillance camera.

Undersheriff Rohrich confirms that “no blood would be expected if a syringe was used”.

Prosecution finished at 2:12 PM.

Prosecution calls CBI agent Kevin Kovack. Field Agent with Pueblo Major Crimes. With CBI for 7 years.

Morgan Gentile“ – MG started working for BM in January 2020. He would pay her via check or cash. They liked to talk to each other about “politics” and “family”. MG was supposed to work on the wall on May 11, 2020 and also worked on the 105 job site building a “beach” on May 9, 2020. On May 10, 2020, BM was supposed to pick up MG for the Broomfield job at around 5 PM. At 11:18 AM, MG found out that BM was already in Denver and that another worker was needed for the job because of the size of the job. At 6:09 PM, MG was made aware that BM was returning to Salida for family emergency. On May 11, 2020, BM called MG at 7:30 AM informing that a “mountain lion” may have been involved in SMs disappearance. They then talked about the job in Broomfield.

Broomfield job” – CC, MG, BM, and JP were to be involved in wall job.

Holiday Inn” – BM was staying in room 225. This room was given to JP after BM left. There was an "overwhelming odor of chlorine" with wet towels on the floor in the bathroom. The bed was reportedly made.

May 11, 2020 – The workers went to the job site, but did not have the appropriate tools. They also did not have gravel or bricks. BM had told them that the bricks would be there on Monday and that the tools were already there.

Prosecution finished.

IE starts cross exam of Agent Kovack at 2:22 PM.

BM and MG met at DSI.

As per interview of MG on May 14, 2020 that lasted 90 minutes, MG had never observed a bad temper, freak-outs, or anger in BM. MG said BM loved SM. Broomfield job was reportedly in the works “for months” and was supposed to start on May 11, 2020. The plan was for them to leave together the evening of May 10, 2020 at 5:30 PM. MG informed that she heard BMs truck at 4 AM outside her residence. She indicated “this is not out of the norm, just BM”. MG was questioned about affair.

I think this was on May 10, 2020 (but didn’t write down date) – 11:18 am BM called MG. I also wrote down “Jeff Puckett” and “Cassidy Cordova” here. The so-called retaining wall in Broomfield is 3 cinder blocks high.

Interview dated May 15, 2020 – Cahill interviewed MG. MG getting frustrated about her social media exposure. She was upset because she was charged with theft and questioned the coincidence of the charges. Stated “It’s strange how I was just charged”. No evidence of affair between BM and MG was found.

BM reportedly “crying” and “upset” on way from Broomfield to Salida. “My wife is missing. We found the bike. It has to be a mountain lion or cougar”. Couple days later informed MG “Still searching. Having hard time”.

Broomfield job” – Hand tools were left in the lobby of the Holiday Inn.

Jeff Puckett” – He confirmed that the room he took over from BM smelled like chlorine. MG reportedly also smelled it. ROOM 225 WAS NOT SWAPPED FOR DNA AND BLOOD BY LE.

September 1, 2020 – CBI went back to the Holiday Inn. Photographs were taken. The manager of the hotel, Ms. Alameda, informed that the Daily Mail (??) wanted to do their own investigation. This may have triggered the CBI returning to the hotel.

September 3, 2020 – Ms. Alameda informed that room 225 is above the pool area and still has a strong chlorine smell.

IE finished.

Prosecution resumes at 2:46 PM.

Materials for wall” – No gravel delivered. No tamping tool.

DA finished at 2:48 PM.

Your notes are highly appreciated, NoSI.

"“F-350” – Described as dirty front passenger seat, layer of dirt on hand rest and console, entire car covered in layer of dirt.

DEFENSE EXHIBIT QQ: Picture of inside of truck showing how dirty the F350 was. Picture not shown in court room."

When it comes to relationships, seven in 10 believe having a dirty car is a turn-off, according to new research.
A poll of 2,000 American drivers discovered that over half (51%) would go so far as to end a first date early if their date showed up in a dirty car.
In fact, having a messy car is such a massive turn-off that 23% have even ended a relationship with someone because of their filthy vehicle. Results revealed there is actually a connection between your car’s tidiness and how productive people are (or can be). In fact, two in three said they are more productive when they have a clean car.
“Just like a clean house or a tidy office space, a clean car often comes with a variety of benefits,” added the spokesperson for Meguiar’s. “By taking the time to maintain a clean car, people reveal their life has positively benefited as a result of their commitment to car tidiness.”

Majority of Americans agree that having a filthy car is a total turn-off
 
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