Tag Archives: Truth for morgan

The Predator Within…assess & stop the stalker before it’s too late!

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A Predatory Stalker is more focused, and is considered to stalk in such a way that is far more preparatory to a sexual assault than love notes on the window, flowers or unwanted messages.  Both are equally unnerving to the victim, and it is always paramount to identify what kind of stalker you are dealing with as soon as possible.

Morgan’s stalker was extremely cautious at the beginning, first leaving only scuffs and very faint footprints in the ground up against the house in front of her windows, employing his voyeurism.  After many weeks of stalking, and increased brazenness, cast-able footprints were possible after painstaking preparation of the soils around the house by Steve.  Steve’s exits from the house to give chase were also carefully planned to send the stalker retreating through the best areas to get a good print.  At times our tactics paid off with great impressions.  If only they had been treated like real evidence by the Garfield Sheriff’s Department, but they were not, they were never casted or photographed, so that evidence was forever destroyed.

The Predatory Stalker stalks his victim as part of a plan to attack her, usually sexually.  The initial contact is aimed at gathering information about the potential victim.

Completely true, Steve always felt, and commented that Morgan’s stalker felt and acted as if he was sizing us up, testing the defenses.  This feeling put Steve into what he thought was a counter course of action that involved trying to constantly change the locations of cameras, motion alarms, motion lights, as well as add to, or even take away something to always present a different array in an attempt to trip the stalker up.  To give an idea of how closely we really were watched one time Steve re-painted two motion detectors a camouflage color then carefully went out after dark to place them in entirely new, and very concealed locations.  Hours later they were both lying face down on the ground.  The stalker had obviously been watching the entire time and managed to neutralize them before they were turned back on.

The Predatory Stalker will often extend the stalking far beyond what is needed to complete the acquisition of information, and is sustained by the gratification derived from the voyeuristic elements, from the rehearsal, from fantasies of the planned attack, and from the sense of power over the victim.

Once again, this is spot on, in Morgan’s Stalking the prints and scuffs right from the beginning were obviously indicative of a person with their face right up against her bathroom glass.  And as the stalking continued he seemed to fall into a pattern of repetition, which I would completely see as the post acquisition of information stage, and right in line with what is described in the fantasy stage.

The Predatory Stalker is surreptitious so as not to alarm the victim, although some predatory stalkers take pleasure in raising the victim’s anxiety by actions that let the target know he or she is being watched without revealing the identify or whereabouts of the stalker.  Examples of such actions are entering the victim’s home, and moving articles around, tapping on windows at night (which Morgan’s stalker constantly did at night), and calling out while hidden.

Morgan’s Stalker was completely surreptitious, as to not alarm his victim, unless he was tapping on her windows at night to raise her anxiety, and let her know she is being watched.  He never called out while hidden.  And we absolutely can’t help but think he was in the house on many occasions.  Broken locks, jammed doors, missing jump drives, missing PJ’s and jewelry – far too many things to explain away as coincidence.

Predatory stalkers should almost always be managed within a sex-offender protocol, with the main focus being on the management of the paraphilia that is the driving force behind the stalking behavior.

Morgan’s Stalker was undoubtedly a sexual pervert, fulfilling the requirements of the law for Invasion of Privacy for Sexual Gratification with his actions.  The previous incidents dating back years in the neighborhood filled this definition of sexual perversion.

Morgan was not given a rape kit, and her autopsy was over in less than two hours, with her body sent back to the funeral home far short of the time required for strangulation bruising to develop, so the true assessment of possible strangulation, or rape will most likely never be known.

Predatory stalkers often have poor self-esteem and are sexually deviant.  They may display poor social skills, especially in romantic relationships.  Many have lower than normal intelligence, and when picking a victim it could be someone he knows or a complete stranger.

They will generally stalk for a shorter period of time than other types of stalkers as they want information to commit the crime, sufficient fantasy to lead up to the crime, and then the crime itself, a predator, one of the most dangerous stalkers, they are more likely to have prior criminal convictions, most often sexual, than other types of stalkers.  And they have a high potential to commit sexual assault or worse.  Escape after the crime is part of the planning.

Morgan’s stalking went on for four months before her murder, a relatively short time frame for stalkers.  Her stalker had a long criminal history, hitting on all of the hot button warning signs of a violent repeat stalker.  He has most likely stalked before Morgan, and he most likely will, or has already again.

Predatory Stalkers and sex offenders as a group share an impressive capacity to rationalize, minimize and excuse their behavior, no matter how outrageous it may be.  Leading double lives, leaving their family and friends stunned, and disbelieving when they are finally caught.  As we have heard many rumors of Keenan bragging about killing Morgan, we have not completely confirmed those rumors as of yet, but Keenan has never been shy about talking about what happened to Morgan, it is just never him that actually did it according to him, he says he wasn’t one of the “ones” that did that to her, and this we have confirmed that he has said to some people.  Richard Ramirez, dubbed the night stalker, a serial killer, rapist, and burglar, is considered a classic example of a predatory stalker.  While the man named Midwestern, “Mall Rapist,” James Perry was actually married with two children while at the same time a brutally efficient predatory stalker.  For a predatory stalker to lead a double life is more common than an impossibility.

All the above is the critical reason law enforcement needs to assess the stalking situation right in the beginning, so they know what they are up against, and act swiftly in order to protect, and save the victim.  If additional training is required then make sure all officers get it – do not let stalking victims be left to fear for their lives with no protection from law enforcement.

Raise your awareness level – for more Information I suggest you read these:

Psychology Today
The Human Equation  Serial Killers, self-reliance and everything in between                       by Jon E. Johnson, Psy D. The Predatory Stalker  A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing                   published on December 11, 2012 b Jon E. Johnson Psy D. in The Human Equation 
 
Advances in Psychiatric Treatment   The management of stalkers

 

Morgan’s Search for Justice – what I wish we had known, and why law enforcement needs to attain, and utilize that knowledge

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Morgan’s stalking began two years ago yesterday.  Back then it would be five days and four clear incidents of stalking before I would finally call the Sheriff’s and our family would receive the Garfield County Sheriff’s answer to the crime of stalking in progress – this was ignorance on my part as I had no real experience or information about stalking at that time, and really didn’t know what to do.  We were all worried, Morgan was nervous, and frightened, but we kept telling ourselves that this really couldn’t be happening – I now know this is one of the first reactions most stalking victims have.  The true seriousness of the crimes being committed we did not know two years ago.  The operator for the Sheriff’s department, my first contact, would wonder angrily why I had waited so long to call.

While in her mind, that may have been a fair way to treat me and Morgan’s stalking at that moment, it was far less than professional.  Two years later I believe we all would have been better off if I had never even made that call – that is only in our situation with our Sheriff’s department…stalking victims should always document every incident, and involve their local law enforcement agency, unfortunately many of the stalking victims that have contacted me have not had adequate help from law enforcement, and they are frantic to know where to turn.  There are so many wonderful, and heroic law enforcement agents in our country that know what to do, and do an excellent job – now I constantly wonder how to get that same education, and passion passed on to the ones that don’t.   If Steve and I had counted only on ourselves to protect our daughter – to discover the true nature of the threat we faced, and the best way to combat it instead of completely trusting the Sheriff’s department – Morgan might still be alive today.

While that is a sad, sad truth and a personal indictment of the Sheriff’s Department, and their protocol for stalkers, that is for many reasons, what I believe.  It can be fixed, and for the sake of the safety of young women across this county, it must be.  A model for the rest of the country for effective law enforcement could exist here, free of sexual discrimination, upholding not only the laws of the state, but the Constitutional guarantees of the State of Colorado.  And as long as I’m fervently wishing I’ll add in upholding the laws of this Country, along with the U.S. Constitutional guarantees as well.

I appreciate the current Sheriff has very strong beliefs about the Second Amendment, but there is not one Amendment to the U. S. Constitution, there are seven articles and twenty-seven amendments.  I know that many are not his concern, but between the U.S. Constitution, and the Colorado Constitution there are certainly some Amendments that go straight to the heart of Morgan’s stalking and murder and they were completely ignored.

I call this little piece – Morgan’s search for justice, because she is the one who most deserves justice.  Morgan was ignored, treated as if she were a second class citizen.  She did not deserve to have her Constitutional rights completely whipped away.  When Morgan risked her life to get out of her car and positively Identify Keenan as the driver who was following, harassing, and stalking her, there was no response from the Sheriffs.  When Morgan saw Keenan at Thunder River, perfectly timing his arrival to pass right in the middle of the intersection, one time, then two times, the third time, or maybe it was the fourth time, Morgan lost it and out of sheer frustration wanted to take the law into her own hands.  She did not, but the inaction and cascade of excuses flowing from the Sheriff’s Department made her feel only more discriminated against.

Why was she so ignored?  Why did they not care?  I just made a list of 48 individual occasions when Detective Glassmire promised some action that would end her stalking, a piece of evidence, an interview, an action that would bring her one step closer to safety.  All 48 were things that he never, “got around to doing,” or else had some reason it was no longer necessary.  Forty-eight times, makes me wonder what he really did do, I know he told James Harris that Morgan was going to have a formal interview in a few days (just 4 nights before Morgan was killed), did James Harris tell his daughter, or did she overhear? Did Brooke tell Keenan?  I believe that could have happened.

The Gnome that was taken from the porch of the house we moved to, after leaving the house our daughter was murdered in, became a Sheriff’s report, I never saw them move so fast – I was shocked – it was just a little gnome, what was the point of a report, but they insisted.  But the burglary that happened the night Morgan was killed – how is it that never became a report or a case?  Is that really the way to catch the criminals?  If all Keenan got for felony possession with intent to distribute, and theft by receiving was a hand slap – and it’s not the first time – what’s he going to get for gnome stealing?  Really?

But on to something I really want to share, two years, and one day after Morgan first heard those taps on her windows.  I want to raise awareness of a certain typology of stalker, and I want to show how a little knowledge could have gone a long way.

This typology is called a predatory stalker, they have unique characteristics, just like the name, they behave more as predators than stalkers.  And they do so many things that mirror what happened to Morgan that I cried when I read about this particular typology, and wished deeply I had known even a fraction of what I read, before it was too late for Morgan, but I did not know about this two years ago, and the next post will be about this typology, and what I have learned since.  There are many different types of stalkers and that is why education, and training are so important – the different topologies are not to be treated the same way if you are to save the victim, and catch the stalker. This is a critical step for law enforcement to know, and follow when dealing with a stalking case.

 

Wylah is Spending Happy Time with Special Friends

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Wylah is helping Morgan’s friends get ready for the Carbondale Mountain Fair

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How Come I Did Not See this Sooner?

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Morgan always like rocks - not one was alike...kind of like Morgan...no one was like her.

Morgan always like rocks – not one was alike…kind of like Morgan…no one was like her.

Since none of you have ever seen my timeline, I want to just share a few things.  First it has many personal thoughts in it, open questions to myself, long-held beliefs, even private thoughts about my Nana, and what she would do.  It always made it a challenge to send an update to the Detectives, it was hours of reading every word to take out the very personal stuff, and give them the facts I felt they needed.

Another big thing is question marks, lots and lots of question marks.  That was a far easier search and replace operation to remove question marks to myself.  Every question mark was information I had to fill in, like a phone number, or a time, or a full name, an address, sometimes even behind the scenes connections.  I wanted the Detectives to always be able to reach anyone important in Morgan’s Felony Stalking case.  As I remove the last of the remaining question marks now I am constantly reminded of one fact – the Felony Stalking Detectives never knew where Keenan lived.  Detective Glassmire admitted that to me long after Morgan’s death.  At one point in the case Detective Glassmire told me that he knew where Keenan’s father used to live, his father was not even a suspect, and it was a “used to live” answer.

But how in the world can that be?  How can they ask me for every address and phone number and never even know where their prime suspect lived?  What if an exigent situation presented itself?  Like Morgan missing, or signs pointing to an escalation that would possibly be quelled by a face to face at his home,  or what if she turned up dead? After they became certain Keenan was the stalker, and put Brooke behind him one notch on the probable guilt scale it would seem to me that to not even know where he lived at that point is inexcusable.  Was it because he was a man?  Really, because as I relive for the umpteenth time, with fresh eyes, I see instance after instance that with a man – instantly credible, even if criminal, and Morgan, woman – second class citizen, or worse.

I’m afraid I am still being way too generous as I reread my last sentence.  If Morgan was found dead of suspicious circumstances – three days after her stalking was, “if anything it’s going to escalate,” according to the lead Detective, and her body discovered on the morning after deputies patrolled the neighborhood numerous times, shining their searchlight up on our roof top, in a radical departure from previous patrols.  When a shocking array of facts would come to light long after the Sheriff’s investigating her death would complete their, “investigation,” of her death scene in a few hours, hop in their cars and ride away, after collecting nothing except her personal electronics, and an old journal.

Was she even treated as a second class citizen, or wasn’t the obvious, “elephant standing in the room,” called possible murder, being ignored completely?  Why would that happen?  There are really few reasons to ignore what is a possible murder, and because she was a woman has to top that very short list.

And as I remove those question marks, and replace the spot with facts I am revisiting there was another, all too obvious maneuver, that took place twice during Morgan’s stalking investigation:

First there was a Deputy that really investigated, showed Morgan, and Steve and I, a photo line up of suspects, this happened exactly once in the investigation.  It was as if he came from a different Law Enforcement Department.  It was before the case became a Felony Stalking case and he was not a Detective.  He easily came the closest to nabbing the stalker in the act, had flushed him out for all intents, and right after he almost nabbed the criminal, next time it was going to be for all the marbles, and suddenly, he was, “reassigned,” and we never saw him again.

Second, another officer, also above and beyond all others, her eyes spoke of her commitment in volumes – and in what I now can see as the darkest hours, before she was killed, Morgan told me that this officer was the only one she trusted or had any faith in anymore.  She was, “reassigned,” too.

Coincidence that the two officers most committed to Morgan’s case were both sent elsewhere, or was it part and parcel of the GarCo, “no foul play here,” two-step?

So now as I work on removing every last question mark, I relive the little details and feel like I have such a different perception.  My focus is getting much sharper.  I was told many times in many ways by so many great people who the first year or two certain things would be very hard to do, to be careful not to push so hard.  Steve and I had an almost tag team mentality of pushing until we crashed, then picking each other up to push some more.  At times their was not much really happening, but I can’t imagine any other way to deal with what happened to Morgan.

There is a Constitution for this country and a Constitution for this state.  Steve is researching those documents now, and keeps me updated on the transgressions he finds.  Which launches another round of research to really answer the question he has just raised, the bottom line is that Morgan’s Constitutional Rights were lost in her stalking and death.  They are there for a reason and the next victim will need her full complement of Constitutional Rights enforced diligently to have a different outcome.  I am certain of that.

The Morgan Ingram Foundation is very close to the beginning of that daunting task.  If it is within the capability of Steve and I, and with invaluable help from Morgan’s brother and sister, and the large dedicated band that stands with us in this cause, we will succeed in changing outcomes.  There is the cliché that if we only save one young woman we are a success, but I aim higher than that.  There is a gap that needs closing.  A gap between what so desperately needs to be available to victims of stalking, and what is currently available to victims.  That will be the focus and we will measure our collective success in the closing of that gap.

We obviously really wish we could have realized things sooner, but in Morgan’s honor to take our mistakes and turn them into something positive is what is left for us to do now.  That is the single best thing that can come from this, closing the gap.  And because I mentioned her, I’m going to thank my Nana, for always being there, and thank all of you, and I mean all of you for your kind thoughts, and sincere wishes.  To express how much that has meant to Steve and I is not possible…not even close.

To think now how the world can be a better place is so exciting for me, when there was a time not too long ago that excitement was a foreign thought, it is such a good feeling…

Is it Too Much to Ask to Err on the Safe Side?

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Morgan deserves answers, not denial – Is that too much for her to ask???

Counting the days,

We have hopes, Steve and I, and realistic expectations.  The Blog is quiet, but we are working hard, and the United States Postal Service, and FedEx deliver letters, with plenty of documents for us.  We want Morgan’s case opened, we want the truth to come out, and we want justice for Morgan.

Morgan is, and will always be on our mind, along with the next young woman whom we so fervently work to prevent a repeat of what happened to Morgan, and as it turns out this week – another young woman who disappeared, under suspicious circumstances, in Garfield County, only to have her family receive a quick, “no foul play here,” from our Garfield County Sheriffs department.

Sound Familiar?

Her remains were discovered close to where she initially went missing and, thanks to the CBI, oh what I would not give for their presence at Morgan’s death scene, the remains were identified, and our most heartfelt condolences goes out to her family.  It is a day even I can only imagine what it is like as they were wishing it were not true.

Her story of the moment is here, Young woman’s remains found near where she went missing have been identified.  And with two young children left at the wayside, and wondering, I can only pray that the long overdue justice for a missing young woman, that was both a mother, and a daughter, comes swiftly and atoning for the callous undeserved treatment of the past.

Garfield County again displays its indifference to Crimes Against Women and what a total lack of regard for Constitutional rights goes on, unless it involves a gun, portending nothing encouraging for all the women, young and old, who live here.

On the morning Morgan was found, dead, to err on the side of too much, instead of too little, should have come with no question.  Instead it did not come at all for Morgan, and how long it takes for grieving parents to fully realize that is just amazing.  I have recently taken delivery of the “FBI handbook of crime scene forensics,” and once again get to read about all of the essential actions that did not take place at Morgan’s crime scene, so far they are innumerable.

They, being the Garfield County Sheriffs Department, could have made one phone call,  to the CBI, the agency that Pitkin County, a Garfield neighbor that takes crime seriously, would call without question, in fact it is not only without question, it is protocol, the rules.  For a microscopic evaluation of a suspicious death scene that Morgan deserved after four months of stalking, and a worry on the mind of her felony stalking Detective who warned us, “if anything her stalking will escalate,” and three days later, Morgan is found dead.

Months later I deal with the threats of the contracted forensic pathologist to change her cause of death to suicide, but he couldn’t find any pills or residue of pills in her stomach, threats which are ignored when I report this to the Coroner who hired this man, and the Sheriffs who, actually I don’t really know what they do, except to stand up for your right to bear arms.  Even write essays about it.

But you know what?  When your daughter is murdered and the Sheriffs and Coroner ignore the threats you are reporting; but detectives run, two at a time, to record the report of your gnome gone from your porch, but still refuse, yes blatantly refuse, to report the burglary of Morgan’s jewelry on the night she was killed – something is not right.  When that is your reality – the right to bear arms becomes but soft whisper in the far distance.

It did not take a gun to protect Morgan, as her stalking was expected to escalate.  It took something that Garfield County did not have, and does not have today, it took simply the knowledge of how to effectively deal with stalkers, especially the kind that was stalking Morgan, one of the most dangerous typologies.

I have recently read protocols that explain what to do if the first attempt to catch the stalker failed, how attempts could be completely changed for the next stalking incident.  Morgan’s protocol was based on the lie that some unwritten law in the State of Colorado required seven weeks, 49 days, before it could be considered a stalking case.

As if that lie was not bad enough, in the non-attempt to protect Morgan, it was actually 68 days before I received a phone call from the Detective that was finally assigned to the case.  Even with their total misconception of the laws they are sworn to uphold, they thought somehow 49 days being the requirement, it became over 70+ days before we even had a case number, and so then the fact that Morgan was a stalking victim was not a complete shock to the new Deputy arriving to answer a call of yet another stalking incident.  A call not to 911, as this was not necessary, they answered a call from the Sheriff’s dispatch number.

If my math is correct that was three weeks longer than their incorrect knowledge of Colorado Law, the ones they were sworn to uphold. Ten weeks of stalking, ten weeks of oh, we are not allowed to collect evidence until a Detective is assigned to the case.  Ten weeks of complete terror for Morgan.  Then at the end, three days before she was killed it was, “if anything it was going to escalate.”  And Morgan was dead, of natural causes, until her doctors told me it was all wrong, and I told the contracted forensic pathologist, “Excuse me, due to this fact, and that fact, a few very prominent doctors in the country think you might have made a mistake here?”

A Mesa County Investigator shook his head and told me, “Oh Dr. Kurtzman does not like to be wrong.”  And I say, what about Morgan?  What about my 20-year-old daughter that was killed – according to what every other single person reviewing her autopsy is telling me.  I say that is not denial!!!  Not a mother who can’t accept!  It is simply the truth, and it never changes.  Her Amitriptyline blood level of 7,909 will not change.  It will always be very, very astronomical.  Morgan weighed 115 pounds.  So in another report a woman who weighed 171 pounds was the highest yet recorded, would Morgan’s blood level (if you took into account her weight and the fact that her blood was drawn approximately 12 hours after her death) not be the equivalent of 11,863+?  Absolutely one of the highest levels ever recorded at a top lab in the country.  But it was being called insignificant according to the contracted forensic pathologist who did her autopsy.  A fact that the officials in Garfield County chose to ignore. Then let’s add in the five date rape drugs found in her gastric fluid, seven months later, and those numbers or detectability of the drugs present will not change.  The astounding malpractice of the contacted forensic pathologist to jump into this evidentiary quagmire that exhausted her sample, when the truth is supposed to be somewhere within his scope, or sphere of influence, just has everyone asking why?

And, why oh why, does a contracted forensic pathologist suddenly take it upon himself to run more tests on a, “closed case.”  After threats to me that he could do just that, and another prominent forensic pathologist assured me that he can not.  But out of fear, and worry I reported to the Sheriffs department, and the Coroner his threats, then he carries through on his threats.  Is there justice for Morgan somewhere in all that?  Because if there is I must have missed it…completely.

And last week another set of bones was discovered (see the link above), a young woman labeled as, “no sign of foul play.”  And NOW there is an investigation, eight years after her death.  Why don’t they just amend the Garfield County sign on the highway to include the warning that if you are a woman, you might want to keep driving, because you are not very safe here?

If you are missing you will be called a runaway (even if you have never run away before, even if you are a straight A student – doesn’t matter they won’t look in to it), unless you are 22 with 2 children, then it will simply be called no sign of foul play, so no investigation, basically the same thing.  If that is not blatant discrimination against women, then what would it take?  Really, what would it take to correctly label what is going on here?