Found Deceased CO - Suzanne Morphew, 49, did not return from bike ride, Chaffee County, 10 May 2020 #20

[FelicityLemon]

RSBM
Not unique to "western States" IMO, I live on the heavily populated East Coast, and share the same (keys etc.) with my trusted neighbors. The comment made she could have been possibly recently "threatened" (?) by someone but that was kept under wraps and that is why the case suddenly necessitated urgency by involving LE (?) Just too hard for me to buy MMO.

Why are some people excusing Barry, like he was an idiot, and incapable of calling or dealing with 911, is my question?

..................................................................
Nobody is excusing anyone or anything. There is a difference in trying to see something from all angles because of the knowledge and understanding that not everyone behaves in the same way. Human nature and behavior may have generally accepted norms, but there can be variations.
..................................................................
.
.

 

[al66pine]

Spouse, as Guardian. After Arrest?

....*Interesting sidebar: IF Suzanne's family members somehow believed that Barry was responsible -- and that Colorado investigators actually had evidence thereof -- they could have sought to intervene in the guardianship if they learned of the petition's existence. No such intervention has been sought as of today, though the hearing on the petition is schedule for Sept-1.

@lamlawindy sbm For sake of discussion, let me momentarily ignore SM's family. If a person who has been appt'ed as Gdn (say, in IN for missing spouse, to handle/manage prop, etc.) is then arrested for an disappearance-related-offense (<-- hypo only), could CO. arrest affidavit (and/or any relevant doc's filed in CO. crim case) w necessary statutory authentications be submitted to IN. ct, and be made part of gdn'ship case record? That way SM's relatives could avoid being lassoed into the maelstrom and could be seen as not taking sides against BM or blaming him at this relatively early stage of LE investigation.
IN statute* basically allows any person to apply to participate in proceeding, and allows ct to grant request and impose conditions. I may be overlooking something(s), but seems a LE/sheriff in CO could provide that info/those records directly to ct, without intervening in the legal sense. Seems the judge presiding in IN Gdnship case could review as evd., as part of the laundry list of factors to consider in appting Gdn.
I wonder if arrest info would prompt judge to appt a successor guardian, perhaps a relative of SM. jm2 cts.

As always, I welcome comment, clarification, correction, esp'ly from our legal professionals.
@lamlawindy Yes, interesting sidebar. Has judge turned on the white noise generator?
................................................................................................................................................
* IC 29-3-5-1 Indiana Code 2019 - Indiana General Assembly, 2020 Session
"Petitions for appointment of a guardian or to have a protective order issued; requirements; notice and hearing; conduct of hearing;"
"(f) Any person may apply for permission to participate in the proceeding, and the court may grant the request with or without hearing upon determining that the best interest of the alleged incapacitated person or minor will be served by permitting the applicant's participation. The court may attach appropriate conditions to the permission to participate."

 

[BeckyF]

I'm oriented toward problem solving- some of us are just wired that way. When something confounds me I think out loud. Maybe X happened to cause Y. Maybe B happened because of A. Maybe if I didn't do *advertiser censored* that would not have happened.

It's just the way my mind goes and the closer I am to the situation, the more I speculate on possibilities. I agree that since his wife seemingly vanished into thin air, and if he truly does not know what happened, he is feeling like he didn't protect her they way he should have. And his brain could be trying to figure out what happened so he can rescue her.

I'm surprised others don't understand that. I don't know if this is classified as denial or bargaining, but it's definitely a natural stage moving toward acceptance of circumstances.

I don’t think there is a person on this forum that doesn’t want this mystery solved. Do you think LE is in denial and in bargaining mode also? I don’t. The FBI and CBI have decades of combined experience investigating crimes. That is what they do. I’m following their lead in this investigation even though I know how to think for myself. And if I thought they were not investigating thoroughly, I would say it. They could be barking up the wrong tree but for now, I place my trust in them and I believe that they 100 percent want to know what happened to Suzanne. JMO

 

[lamlawindy]

Spouse, as Guardian. After Arrest?
@lamlawindy sbm For sake of discussion, let me momentarily ignore SM's family. If a person who has been appt'ed as Gdn (say, in IN for missing spouse, to handle/manage prop, etc.) is then arrested for an disappearance-related-offense (<-- hypo only), could CO. arrest affidavit (and/or any relevant doc's filed in CO. crim case) w necessary statutory authentications be submitted to IN. ct, and be made part of gdn'ship case record? That way SM's relatives could avoid being lassoed into the maelstrom and could be seen as not taking sides against BM or blaming him at this relatively early stage of LE investigation.
IN statute* basically allows any person to apply to participate in proceeding, and allows ct to grant request and impose conditions. I may be overlooking something(s), but seems a LE/sheriff in CO could provide that info/those records directly to ct, without intervening in the legal sense. Seems the judge presiding in IN Gdnship case could review as evd., as part of the laundry list of factors to consider in appting Gdn.
I wonder if arrest info would prompt judge to appt a successor guardian, perhaps a relative of SM. jm2 cts.

As always, I welcome comment, clarification, correction, esp'ly from our legal professionals.
@lamlawindy Yes, interesting sidebar. Has judge turned on the white noise generator?
................................................................................................................................................
* IC 29-3-5-1 Indiana Code 2019 - Indiana General Assembly, 2020 Session
"Petitions for appointment of a guardian or to have a protective order issued; requirements; notice and hearing; conduct of hearing;"
"(f) Any person may apply for permission to participate in the proceeding, and the court may grant the request with or without hearing upon determining that the best interest of the alleged incapacitated person or minor will be served by permitting the applicant's participation. The court may attach appropriate conditions to the permission to participate."

I don't see why not. If the search warrant and the probable cause affidavit (PCA) were certified by the proper Colorado office -- here in Indiana it would be the county clerk -- and introduced by a party that was allowed to participate.

P.S. No "white noise generator" at all. Judge Casati is a straight shooter. He'll base any decisions strictly on the record in front of him.

 

[lamlawindy]

A lot of those cameras (especially at intersections) are motion-activated and take pictures when a car runs through a red light.

Yes, if one's city or county has "red light cameras." Trying to convince clients that not all streets/intersections in every locality have such cameras has proven to be daunting, in my personal experience.

 

[Fireflize]

Agreed. It is my understanding he had the girls call the neighbor, then he had the neighbor call 911. Imo, BM wanted no part of this.

Yea, no part of it. I think he was hoping that the girls would get home and find her missing and call 911, without him in the mix. But they were running late. Moo

 

[DellaC]

I'm Ok with getting into his head, but what you just wrote says it all. We are talking about a man who had the ability to call contacts/friends who were available to serve as skilled emergency responders. Skilled...How many of us have those resources at our disposal? Why was 911 ever called at all if Barry was unsure. With a few calls he had the contacts to avoid that scenario and have an idea of what was going on at home just using his friends (who thank GOD, happened to be trained.) to keep him updated.

On another note, almost uncanny his luck as to how he managed to distance himself...I pity his poor neighbor who made the call, who needs that stress in their life?

Barry needed a stage IMO.

Do we know the timeline? When did the girls first call their mom on MD? When did they start to get worried? When was the neighbor asked to check on SM? Then how much time elapsed before 911 was called? At what point was BM looped into the calls?

Also, we know BM arrived around 9 pm. Do we know when the girls arrived home? If they had been planning to spend MD with their mom, surely even with a late start, you'd think they would have arrived before their dad.

 

[oviedo]

<modsnip: Quoted post was removed as not an approved source>

I use the sheriff press releases as my guidance for facts - I think there was one article where the stepmom of a friend of the Ds says the called and couldn’t get a hold of SM and the called the neighbor to go check on her
Snipped
“The neighbors up there are spread pretty far apart but the only reason they found out [she was missing] is because the girls called the neighbors and said, ‘we never heard from Mom – can you go check on her?'” the friend’s stepmother said
‘Nobody actually saw her on her bicycle’: Questions persist amid changing reports on the investigation into Suzanne Morphew’s Mother’s Day disappearance
—-
The bike ? Sigh - IMO it’s all BM ...
JMO

 

[Tate123]

Possibly she had prior medical issues, or had been recently threatened by someone.......bringing an urgency to checking, and then urgency to the 911 call. Many people in the western states make sure their trusted neighbor has a key, and is familiar with the house, garage, propane tank, and fresh water cistern........and such a plan would have greatly increased importance had there been a risk that we know nothing about. IMO

So if your wife was "threatened" by some creeper and you are worried enough to call the police....is your first instinct to send a defenseless woman in her 70s into that scenario to test the waters? If Suzanne had been threatened, I'd think that would be all the more reason to connect with LE yourself and explain first hand what is going on.

 

[oviedo]

So if your wife was "threatened" by some creeper and you are worried enough to call the police....is your first instinct to send a defenseless woman in her 70s into that scenario to test the waters? If Suzanne had been threatened, I'd think that would be all the more reason to connect with LE yourself and explain first hand what is going on.

Exactly !!!!

 

[DizzyB]

So if your wife was "threatened" by some creeper and you are worried enough to call the police....is your first instinct to send a defenseless woman in her 70s into that scenario to test the waters? If Suzanne had been threatened, I'd think that would be all the more reason to connect with LE yourself and explain first hand what is going on.

This is exactly why I enjoy WS. When my brain starts going in one direction, someone posts an opposing viewpoint and I see the other side. Theories can get shot full of holes. The dialogue helps us reason out the possibilities. Thanks all!

 

[FelicityLemon]

I wonder if the scent dogs were used to see if BM had been recently been down the trail to where the bike was found.

 

[IronOreBetty]

I don’t think there is a person on this forum that doesn’t want this mystery solved. Do you think LE is in denial and in bargaining mode also? I don’t. The FBI and CBI have decades of combined experience investigating crimes. That is what they do. I’m following their lead in this investigation even though I know how to think for myself. And if I thought they were not investigating thoroughly, I would say it. They could be barking up the wrong tree but for now, I place my trust in them and I believe that they 100 percent want to know what happened to Suzanne. JMO

I think we just don't know enough to assume anyone is or is not a suspect. All they have said is nobody is excluded.

Possibilities that don't involve BM as perp but fit into what we do know include:

• Known or unknown perp attacked SM on property or in house. Evidence may have been found during first search and additional evidence sought.
  
• <modsnip: There is no know fact to substantiate this speculation about a victim>
  
• Dissension within the family is another possibility. People say they believe LE knows exactly who did it and are focusing in appropriately. But we know little about the nuclear family and almost nothing about the extended family or how everyone got along.

If we knew more it would be easy to say they are focused on a specific person or place. We don't even know if they ever opened their home for a cousin, inlaw, niece, nephew or sibling to move in.

But SW of the husbands nearby worksite and of the place where the victim lived seem standard. They can attain DNA, electronic trails, and even exculpatory evidence as needed.

 

[Area52]

If he was in Denver he could not call 911 and talk to the 911 for his home. He would have gotten Denver's 911 center.

As @Murphy1950 stated, he could call 911 from his phone and connect to Salida. Regardless, he could have contacted the police on a non-emergency number. I really believe that any firefighter would easily remember the phone number of their local police department. In my opinion, he was trying to distance himself. Moo

 

[Gigi3]

So if your wife was "threatened" by some creeper and you are worried enough to call the police....is your first instinct to send a defenseless woman in her 70s into that scenario to test the waters? If Suzanne had been threatened, I'd think that would be all the more reason to connect with LE yourself and explain first hand what is going on.

ITA! Also, IF there were a threat, you can bet your bottom dollar, I would make sure those security cameras were in tip top working order.

IF there were threats, I would probably insist that my wife come with me or take the necessary precautions to ensure her safety.

SM, I would assume, would also take proper precautions IF she felt threatened by someone else. I’m just not on board with the threat theory as of now.
MOO

 

[Goldenseal]

ITA! Also, IF there were a threat, you can bet your bottom dollar, I would make sure those security cameras were in tip top working order.

IF there were threats, I would probably insist that my wife come with me or take the necessary precautions to ensure her safety.

SM, I would assume, would also take proper precautions IF she felt threatened by someone else. I’m just not on board with the threat theory as of now.
MOO

Yeah, I'd make sure that my wife wasn't ALONE on Mother's Day! And if I were SM, I wouldn't go out on a bike ride without a buddy. So, like you, I think the stalker theory doesn't seem to hold water.

 

[Gigi3]

Yeah, I'd make sure that my wife wasn't ALONE on Mother's Day! And if I were SM, I wouldn't go out on a bike ride without a buddy. So, like you, I think the stalker theory doesn't seem to hold water.

Agreed. Also, in the TD video, BM says something to the effect of he “normally” wouldn’t go to a job site on the weekend, but he asked SM and she told him it was fine (something to that effect)

So, what was different about going to the job site early this time as opposed to other times, especially IF there had been threats towards SM?
JMO

 

[BuySellTrade]

Breach of Contract? Specific Performance Suit? Legal defense?
@lamlawindy sbm bbm Yes, this is what I posted about earlier today. Some here may see 'no pressing need' for either buyers or sellers to close the contract (azz-uming there had been a contract pending prior to SM's disappearance). But ppl 'tangentially' involved in contract may be paid only if and/or when the transaction closes, for ex, surveyor, appraiser, mortgage broker, and lender title ins. co at corporate or local branch level, et al. Technically may not be true for real esate agents under typical MLS or equivalent contracts, as agent's commission may be due under contract, even if sale does not close. May not be urgent need on parts of ^ ppl, but collectively they all want the contract to close. And buyers may have wanted to lock in low long term mortgage rates now available or to make improvements on prop, after closing. Some ppl seem to think the only person to want to close was BM as seller, but he is not the only who wants to seal the deal.
Any legal defence BM could try to present to a breach of contract suit seeking specific performance? I don't see any. If Buyers were gung-ho to close their purchase (and I'm not saying they were or were not), I don't see a seller in BM's shoes had much choice other than the route he took, seeking gdn'ship & apptmt as gdn. I could be overlooking something or multiple issues. jm2cts.

I welcome comment, clarification, correction, esp'ly from our legal & real est professionals.

There could be a tax reason for the timing of the sale of the Indiana property and purchase of the property in Colorado; specifically the tax determent strategy known as a Starker or 1031 exchange.

>>Under Section 1031 of the United States Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. § 1031), a taxpayer may defer recognition of capital gains and related federal income tax liability on the exchange of certain types of property, a process known as a 1031 exchange. In 1979, this treatment was expanded by the courts to include non-simultaneous sale and purchase of real estate, a process sometimes called a Starker exchange.<<

Internal Revenue Code section 1031 - Wikipedia

 

[Charlot123]

I really like the way you've worded this! Good, honest thoughts well expressed in a non-confrontational manner. I don't mean to sound condescending, just very appreciative.

This is what I teach my children, and other people, too, lol. “Confrontation is useless - you are daily fighting for power and control by replaying the same chess game, so, you are getting the same results. Try negotiating, it might work”. (As to children - can’t recommend anything more than books by Haim Ginott).

About BM - I think what is not on his side is mere statistic, in 53% of such cases, the partner is involved. However, in 17% it might be a “stranger on the bike”, so we should not discount this, almost 1/5 of cases. And the rest? The rest are people known to the victim. And there were many, as the Ms moved from one state to another.

I hope this case will be solved, simply because I have seen very good work of Colorado LE in other cases.

I understand we can not sleuth anyone close to SM, and it is the right approach. But the collateral is, we don’t know much about her life, so the discussion veers back to known facts.

BTW, I personally was not comparing BM to PF. That case is an outlier of outliers, and goes down in history as the life lesson from KL’s story (just don’t get involved! If this is the guy you hope to marry one day - he won’t get any better after the marriage! Look at him now, this is exactly what you are getting. A partner’s murderer). My belief is, we can’t prevent single murders of such a type, but potential dyads are breakable before they form. MOO.

 

[Murphy1950]

..................................................................
Nobody is excusing anyone or anything. There is a difference in trying to see something from all angles because of the knowledge and understanding that not everyone behaves in the same way. Human nature and behavior may have generally accepted norms, but there can be variations.
..................................................................
.
.

Agree with variations 100%, good point, and that happens all the time, but where I vary I guess, is what's considered generally accepted norms? Here we are talking a TRAINED first responder, whose own beloved is missing, not heard from all day, and he’s 3 hours away.

I don’t expect a teacher to constantly misspell words in a note. I don’t expect a pilot to take the train because he feels it’s safer. I don’t expect a husband (volunteer first responder no less) to lay making that emergency call regarding his missing wife, on a 70-year-old neighbor.

I’d love to help with CPR sir, but I’m new… (that’s another variation I couldn’t deal with)

I couldn’t imagine being on the other side of that call. Would you prefer to talk to a spouse who knew her, her habits, the house, the door combo if one existed, the color of the bike, when she was last heard from, her usual morning habits, her recent medical issues, meds she may be on, Or an older neighbor of about two years who knew little if any of that info? Who could only share the family “thinks" she may have gone on a bike ride and yeah, she recently had some sort of cancer.

Going full circle here, in every thread including this one, someone writes words to the effect “If he was in Denver, he could not call 911 and talk to the 911 for his home. He would have gotten Denver's 911 center.” THAT’S AN EXCUSE. IMO Barry is a trained first responder, he knows how to make the call. He didn't want to.