Part 2:
*I didn't want you to miss these updates! :wink:
Susan Powell's family alleges physical abuse
News conference » Missing WVC woman's family shares more details about alleged marital struggles.
Updated: 02/15/2010 09:46:25 PM MST
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The 28-year-old West Valley City woman had endured an increasingly adversarial relationship with her husband, Joshua Powell, which included "egregious acts of control," said Shelby Gifford, a family friend and the spokeswoman for Susan Powell's parents, Chuck and Judy Cox.
At a news conference held in her hometown Monday -- more than two months after her Dec. 7 disappearance -- the family said Susan Powell confided in a close friend that her husband was physically abusive at least once, but she did not seek medical assistance or file a police report. They would not provide any other details about the alleged incident.
Jennifer Powell Graves, sister of Joshua Powell, said that Susan Powell told her she had a physical altercation with her husband about 18 months ago. She declined to provide further details. Police and court records show Joshua Powell has never been arrested for or charged with abuse against his wife. His attorney, Scott C. Williams, was not available to comment on the allegation Monday.
Susan Powell enjoyed gardening, they said what they didn't know was that, for her, it was a survival tactic: Her husband refused to give her money she needed to feed her family. "She was told she needed to grow the food that her children ate," said Gifford.
Joshua Powell isolated his wife by preventing her from using the family car and constantly changed the access codes to their bank account, despite the fact that she earned most of the family's money, Gifford said. She said Joshua Powell also worked to alienate Susan Powell from her children. He often tried to "undo" his wife's parenting efforts, such as taking the children out of bed and telling them their "Mommy is so mean" after she put them down for the night, Gifford said.
Powell had suggested to family and friends she would end the relationship by their April 6 anniversary if the relationship didn't improve. Her family says they are not sure whether Joshua Powell knew about that deadline.
*Much more at link!
Article:
http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_14405679
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Family accuses missing woman's husband of abuse
February 15th, 2010 @ 9:52pm
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The family of missing West Valley City woman Susan Powell held a press conference Monday in Washington state. They made some strong allegations against Susan's husband, Josh Powell, who has avoided media and police questioning.
Much of the family's frustration is directed at Josh.
"All of his actions are inconsistent with someone who cares about his wife, and so it has given me great pause," Susan's father, Charles Cox, said. "I'm not buying this story that he gave the police, and I'm waiting for the rest of the story and for him to cooperate and help us find our daughter."
Cox family family spokeswoman Shelby Gifford said since Susan's disappearance, the family has learned much more about Josh and Susan's relationship. The family now believes Josh was emotionally and physically abusive toward Susan.
Gifford said Josh was also very controlling.
"Including controlling her use of the car, denying her access to the family finances -- even though she brought in most of the money -- repeatedly sabotaging her parenting efforts, and even governing which groceries she could buy," Gifford said.
*Much more at link!
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=voliq4Hfygw[/ame]
Audio: Cleon Wall reporting on newly-established foundation
http://real.ksl.com/video/slc/3/312/31240.mp3
Audio: Marc Giauque reporting on alleged abuse
http://real.ksl.com/video/slc/3/312/31244.mp3
Related:
•Legislation on DNA collection upon felony arrest
http://www.dnasaves.org/
Article:
http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=9689542&autostart=y
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Susan Powell's family: Josh abused her
Last Update: 5:41 pm
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Through family friend and spokesperson Shelby Gifford, Susan's family members revealed that Josh Powell had been abusing her for years.
Gifford said the abuse was mostly emotional in nature, and family members say there was at least one instance of physical abuse, although they offered no details.
Gifford also said Josh would not allocate enough money for Susan to buy groceries, which caused her to become a gardener to provide enough food for the children and herself.
Gifford said the couple had been getting counseling, and that Susan made an April 6, 2010 deadline of leaving Josh if he did not mend his abusive ways. April 6th is Josh and Susan's wedding anniversary.
Susan's parents Charles and Judy Cox said they want Josh to come clean and cooperate with investigators, because they believe he knows something about her disappearance.
Article:
http://www.abc4.com/content/about_4...y-Josh-abused-her/Sx5zeHgtuEOB0EzmY-gchw.cspx
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Missing Woman's Family Says Husband 'Knows Something'
Posted: 4:16 pm PST February 15, 2010
Updated: 6:00 pm PST February 15, 2010
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Nearly a month and a half after Susan Cox Powell vanished, her parents on Monday said they believe her husband is not telling the truth about their daughter's disappearance.
The family told reporters that they are more convinced than ever that Joshua Powell knows what happened to the 28-year-old mother of two.
Powell's parents, Chuck and Judy Cox, said there is no way their daughter would have deliberately left her two young boys.
"I feel that she could have been taken against her will. I don't know. It's not like my daughter to leave," Judy Cox said.
During a news conference in Puyallup, the Cox family announced the establishment of a foundation to help women in their daughter's situation.
Video: Parents Of Missing Puyallup Mom Believe Her Husband Is Not Telling The Truth 2:01
http://www.kirotv.com/video/22574542/index.html
Article:
http://www.kirotv.com/news/22573835/detail.html
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Family: Missing woman's husband controlled her
Story Published: Feb 15, 2010 at 5:00 PM PST
Story Updated: Feb 15, 2010 at 6:25 PM PST
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On Monday the woman's family, wearing purple ribbons in her honor, addressed the media. Family spokesperson Shelby Gifford said the missing woman's husband, Josh Powell, was extremely controlling of his wife.
"Those who spent the most time with Susan on a day-to-day basis report witnessing egregious acts of control on Josh's part," she said.
"I think he knows something that he's not telling us," said the missing woman's mother, Judy Cox.
"I'm not buying the story that he gave police," added the woman's father, Chuck Cox.
The missing woman's sister, Denise Gordon, said she recently had a dream about Susan Powell. "She was sweeping yellow paper and I asked her in the dream, I said, 'Well, didn't anybody recognize you? And she said, 'Well, I was in a closet,'" she said. "That gives me hope that she's still around."
"It's a difficult thing. It's very frustrating, because we want to know the grandchildren are OK. We want pt be able to talk with them and play with them," said Chuck Cox. "They're having a hard time. They're really missing her," said Gordon of the Powells' boys.
The missing woman's family members have established The Susan Cox Powell Foundation, which aims to fuel the search by reminding people of Susan Powell's disappearance. The foundation's mission also includes educating others, including kids in school to recognize early signs of domestic violence and how to report it, as well as a national database of information to help potential victims recognize signs of an abusive relationship.
Article:
http://www.komonews.com/news/local/84418127.html
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Experts say Susan Powell didn't do anything wrong
Last Update: 8:58 pm
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"She just didn't know what resources were out there for her," said Carla Arroyo, the executive director of the South Valley Sanctuary.
Powell's parents claimed that she was both mentally and physically abused. Friends recalled of the controlling nature of her husband Josh Powell. "They've had problems for a very long time," said Tim Petersen who befriended Susan. "You can tell they're roommates."
Petersen said Josh Powell controlled the finances even though Susan was the main bread winner. According to Peterson, Susan was forced to ride her bicycle to work while Josh kept the family van. And it wasn't easy. From their West Valley home near 6000 West and 3800 South she rode her bike seven miles one way to her banking job near the airport. That controlling trait has been seen often by domestic violence experts.
"Control is a weapon that they use," said Arroyo. "This is what they use to keep a victim on the side." Victims of domestic violence understand why Susan Powell didn't reach out for help. It's called fear.
"I was only allowed to go to grocery store and then I had to take one of my children with me," said a woman who was a victim of domestic violence but didn't want her name revealed. "Basically my whole family was cut off from me. He had threatened to harm my family, threatened to kill them."
*More at link!
For more information about shelters call the South Valley Sanctuary at (801) 255-1095. Or visit: http://www.udvac.org/linkline_shelters.pdf to learn about shelters throughout Utah.
Article:
http://www.abc4.com/content/news/to...do-anything-wrong/lwy3ysDGXkmpxZv5FKAJdA.cspx
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Reports of abuse confirmed by Susan Powell's friends
Last Update: 2/15 9:42 pm
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ABC 4 spoke Monday with Josh Powell’s sister, Jenny Graves.
“She talked to me about the lack of funds for groceries, the fact she couldn’t get him to allow her to buy groceries.” Jenny says, “He would give her ten dollars and tell her you can buy this, this and this… and there were many occasions when I would have her over to dinner with her boys because they wouldn’t have enough food to eat.”
Money wasn’t the only thing that Josh controlled. He also dictated who could drive the car, leaving Susan to ride her bike seven miles to work everyday.
Jenny also says that Susan told her about increasing emotional abuse. She went on to say her brother is a lot like her controlling father.
Article:
http://www.abc4.com/content/news/to...-by-Susan-Powells/vhhQI69ZLkaP43nMeteP-w.cspx
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Missing woman's family demands answers from son-in-law
Updated Feb 16, 2010 - 8:39 am
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Relatives of a former Puyallup woman are losing patience with the missing woman's husband and they're demanding their son-in-law explain his wife's disappearance.
"I do believe he knows something he's not telling us," said Susan Powell's father, Chuck Cox.
"I'm not buying this story that he gave the police and I'm waiting for the rest of the story and for him to cooperate and help us find our daughter," said Cox.
"I find it very disturbing that he won't speak up or say anything...and that he doesn't seem to show concern, love, or care," said Susan's mother, Judy Cox.
Article:
http://www.mynorthwest.com/?nid=11&sid=284896
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Family of Susan Cox Powell allege abuse, launch foundation
Published: Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2010 12:20 a.m. MST
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In the time since Susan Cox Powell went missing more than two months ago, her family and friends have had time to "compare notes," and, in so doing, they found stories of Susan's struggles in an "adversarial relationship" with her husband, Joshua, said Cox family spokeswoman Shelby Gifford.
"Right now we just don't know. We don't have all the facts. We can say, however, without reservation that Susan was a victim of domestic abuse in her own home," she said.
"Many of us marveled at Susan's green thumb and her garden," Gifford said. "I know that you've heard us talk about that before. It was something she was great at but she didn't do it, we found out, because she loved to garden. She did it because she didn't have a budget for groceries and she was told she needed to grow the food that her children ate."
Gifford said Joshua Powell controlled Susan Cox Powell's use of the family car, sabotaged her parenting efforts by telling the boys that "Mommy was mean" for putting them to bed, dictated which groceries she could and could not buy, and denied her access to the family finances, "even though she brought in most of the money."
"Each of us had a small sliver of the whole picture, and when we began to put those pieces together, it became apparent to us Susan endured a difficult marriage and an adversarial relationship with her husband, Joshua," Gifford said.
Susan Cox Powell also reported one physical confrontation to a friend, Gifford said, but never went to police. Gifford said Susan Cox Powell alone attended marriage counseling sessions she had set up for her and her husband and had told close friends that, if the marriage didn't improve, she would leave her husband on the couple's anniversary in April of this year.
Joshua Powell relocated to Puyallup with the couple's two young boys, Charlie and Braden, at the end of December. During that time, Gifford said Susan Cox Powell's parents, Charles "Chuck" Cox and Judy Cox, have seen the boys for a total of three hours.
*More at link!
Article:
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700009814/Family-of-Susan-Powell-allege-abuse.html
:angel:
