Tag Archives: Stalked

2 years ago a college student writes to raise awareness

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AspentreesfallToday I was organizing my notes and I came across the following submission. I received it 2 years ago on September 9, 2012.  It was from a college student that had read the blog and wanted to submit a paper about Morgan’s stalking and blog to her Speech Communications class, but wanted to run it by me first.

I was very touched back when I first read it, and this time around I was just as touched…my heart swelled with happiness when I thought of all the young people over the last few years that have contacted me to let me know how they feel about what happened to Morgan.  These submissions have made me believe that awareness has been raised, and will continue to be raised by all those that have come in contact with this case.  To date this website has now had over 5 million visitors from over 115 countries.

Morgan will receive justice one of these days, and my hope is when that justice comes, and light overcomes the darkness, the illumination from Morgan’s story will have a far-reaching effect on this world.

To this young writer I say thank you again for sharing Morgan’s story!

Morgan Ingram

You’ve probably never heard of the name above.  I recently just came to know of the 20 year old woman, Morgan Ingram from Colorado.  I don’t know Morgan or her family personally, but I’ve just started reading about her.  I know of her dog named Wylah, I know she always had a camera in her hand, I know she was an amazing painter, I know she loved hanging out with her friends, I know she had a wonderful relationship with her family, I know she was enrolled in classes at a Colorado college. I also know she was stalked and terrorized for four months, and I also know she is no longer with us on this Earth.

Morgan’s stalking and terrorizing started on August 2, 2011.  At first, just hearing noises. Noises that sounded like a tree branch rubbing against a window, a bird flying into a window, or even just the sounds of a house settling at the end of the night.  However, for the Ingram family, this was simply not the case.  From August 2, 2011 until December 2, 2011 Morgan was a victim of stalking.  It started out slow and then slowly began to escalate.  From throwing pebbles at the window to banging on their frosted bathroom window when she was showering.  Morgan started sleeping in her parents walk-in closet in the master bedroom.  When she wasn’t at home, she was with friends.  Because of this stalker, Morgans life, her families life, and everyone else around her life was affected.

Yes, I know what you’re thinking.  ”Didn’t the Ingram’s call the police?”  Of course they did.  Many times.  Unfortunately, it took many months for this case to move from only a misdemeanor trespassing case to a felony stalking case.  There was plenty of evidence that proved they in fact had a stalker targeting Morgan; footprints outside of her window, someone trying to enter their home by pushing the buttons to their keyless entry door and even a distinct trail visible on Google maps of a trail from the woods into their backyard.  The signs were all there, unfortunately, due to their interpretation of Colorado law, the police would only treat this as a trespassing case as mentioned above.

On December 2, 2011, Morgan Ingram left this world.  She was found by her parents in her room unresponsive.  The official cause of death was ruled “natural causes” (of a 20 year old, really?!) and then 9 months later was changed to “suicide.”  Now, as stated before, I don’t know Morgan or her family, but I do know, just by the accounts her mom, Toni, has told the world in her blog, that Morgan would not commit suicide.  She loved life and everything good life had to offer.  Yes, she was stalked and terrorized almost every day for four months, but this girl was strong.  Stronger than anything life could hand her, and in my heart I believe, as do many others ( Morgan’s Blog averages 250,000 views a week) that she was in fact killed, and did not take her own life.

Morgan’s mom, Toni, and dad Steve, have started a blog.  A blog dedicated to finding justice for Morgan and raising awareness about stalking.  Everyday during the four months Morgan was terrorized, Toni kept a journal.   Toni detailed every incident that happened, every text message sent, every photo taken, and every phone call made.  They now type those journal entries into their blog on the day they happened exactly one year ago.   They are showing the world what they went through, what Morgan went through and what millions of others are going through.  They are raising awareness of the murder of her daughter, and more importantly, using every resource they can, to find the person responsible for Morgan’s death and bring that person to justice.

Please visit Morgan’s blog.  The more people aware of what happened to Morgan, the closer the Ingram’s are to bringing her killer to justice.  https://morgansstalking.com/

The Ingram’s also have a Facebook page that you can visit and are encouraged to “like.” https://www.facebook.com/morgansstalking

Should victims of stalking in Colorado be in fear for their lives?

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I will continue to post on this blog about things Morgan like to cook, things she loved to do, and activities that she enjoyed…all in an effort to continue to keep her alive in the minds and hearts of everyone she touched before a stalker took everything from Morgan.  I will not allow her memory to be stolen from us like her physical body was.

The last days of Morgan's bedroom windows with the blinds open...she loved light but didn't want someone peeking in at her.

The last days of Morgan’s bedroom windows with the blinds open…she loved light but didn’t want someone peeking in at her.

That being said, on this blog I would like to say something again about her stalking/murder, and subsequent misrepresentation of the facts of her case by not only law enforcement, but people out on the Internet, people that have no idea about the truth in this case.  What I would like them all to know is:

If the truth doesn’t come out in Morgan’s case then a predatory stalker/murderer (who in my opinion is a sexual sadist) will still be out there on the loose, and will most likely do this again.  We have pictures of the suspect at our house, Morgan identified him many times during the stalking, and the sheriffs knew exactly who the suspect was, and no the suspect was never “cleared”, in fact the following week after Morgan’s murder the “suspect’s” work hours were being collected to be compared to my timeline of the stalking events, Morgan was going to be giving her “official on tape” interview, and the felony stalking detective assured me that he was getting close to making an arrest.  Morgan was frightened, stressed, and exhausted from the stalking, and ultimately lost her life due to her stalker. I know the state of Colorado does not want this to happen to it’s citizens, but if they can not stop a law enforcement agency from lying about, and destroying evidence in a case so there can never be a case, then how can there ever be justice?  What does this say to other victims of stalking in Colorado – that they should be in fear for their lives?  Because so many who have reached out to me for help tell exactly that story – they fear for their lives.  A Garfield County Sheriffs Detective said, “There is no more Morgan, there is no more stalker,”, on the day she died.  Isn’t this sending a message to stalkers that if they kill their victim they won’t get arrested?  In the past Steve and I trusted law enforcement, but now we are far more skeptical.  And as for Garfield County, I have seen them at their worst, and it is not a pretty picture.  Many others have shared their personal experiences as well, and believe me it is not anything any “law abiding” department would be proud of.  And we truly hope when we are finally done with achieving the justice our daughter Morgan deserves, that all those involved in covering up this case will be held accountable.

 

Remembering Morgan in the kitchen… ♥︎

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Throughout this blog I have tried to show others that never had the opportunity to meet Morgan just who Morgan was, how she chose to live her life, how she made a difference in the lives of others, and how her bright light is still shining to this day.  I don’t think I could ever explain Morgan with just words…but I have tried.  Morgan wasn’t just a victim of stalking…she wasn’t just a victim of foul play, her life meant so much more than how it ended.  Morgan was a real person, she lived life to it’s fullest, and lifted everyone up with her smile.  Morgan had hopes and dreams, she loved life.  So now I have decided to start to show everyone another part of Morgan – the Morgan that loved different types of food, and loved to share them with others.

Morgan enjoyed making special treats, and desserts for her family in friends.  Everyone was so happy to receive these wonderful gifts from the kitchen.  She would even go on Martha Stewart’s website and follow the directions to learn how to make special little gift boxes to enclose her home made food gifts – that was Morgan for you 🙂

In the last two years of Morgan’s life she also began to learn how to make some of her favorite entrees.  While flipping through some of the recipe books in my bakers rack the other day I came across some of the recipes she had marked in the book.  I started to cry, like I usually do when I miss her, but then I remembered how excited she was to go shopping for all the ingredients, and then cook the recipe for Steve and I, and then I started to smile.  At that very moment I decided I would share with all of you another passion of Morgan’s…cooking.

Morgan always chose organic, and locally grown over anything else, even for her puppies’ food she bought Crystal River Ranch free range beef to incorporate into her own home made dog food https://www.crystalrivermeats.com.  She always loved home made food over store bought food, and after doing some research she had also decided her puppy should eat healthy too.  I will try to find the recipe she used to cook for her puppy, but in the meantime I will start to share the recipes she used to cook for her grateful family.

Here is the first recipe I would like to share with you and in the future I will keep sharing as I come across all the different recipes that she used to make.

Shaping-Gluten-Free-Gnocchi-1Gnocchi with basil sauce.

♥︎ Ingredients to make the gnocchi

1 pound freshly boiled potatoes

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 egg, beaten

sea salt & ground black pepper

ground nutmeg

 

♥︎ Ingredients to make the pesto sauce

1 ounces of fresh basil leaves

1/4 cup of pine nuts

2 cloves of garlic

sea salt & ground black pepper

4 tablespoons of olive oil

the juice of 1/2 lemon

1/3 cup of grated parmesan cheese

☞ Preparation time is about 25 minutes and cooking time is 15 minutes.  This recipe serves 4.

Serve with 2 tablespoons of butter and some grated parmesan cheese…enjoy!

First make the pesto: chop the basil and pine nuts roughly and put into a mortar with the garlic, salt and pepper.  Pound together until reduced to a think paste.  Transfer to a bow, add the oil, a little bit at a time, stirring constantly until thick.  Stir in the lemon juice and parmesan cheese, cover and set aside.

Then make the gnocchi: drain the potatoes well and shake over the heat to dry them thoroughly.  Mash the potatoes very finely, so that there are no lumps.  Beat in the flour, egg, salt, pepper and nutmeg.  Mix till it forms a dough and turn out on to a floured board.  With floured hands, roll small pieces of the dough into small croquettes, about the thickness of your thumb and cut them into bite size pieces.  Press lightly with the prongs of a fork creating four indentations, this will help them to hold the pesto sauce so you will have both the gnocchi and basil sauce in every bite.  Bring some salted water to a boil in a large pan.  Drop the gnocchi, a few at a time, into the boiling water and cook for 3 – 5 minutes.  The gnocchi will rise to the surface and float when they are cooked.  Remove and drain.  Arrange the gnocchi in a buttered serving dish and dot with butter.  Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and pour the basil pesto sauce over the top.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Getting Away With #Murder in Colorado – maybe not for long

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FOHVAMPCREST  I would like everyone to know that there is hope out there. For example FOHVAMP, a non profit out of Denver, CO has made a huge difference in the fight for justice for many families over the years http://unresolvedhomicides.org/

Getting Away With Murder in Colorado

Colorado has a backlog of 1,600 unsolved murders dating back to 1970. The killers of these victims have never been prosecuted for these murders. They walk among us. They live in our neighborhoods. These murderers, who have escaped justice, pose a serious threat to the safety of every Colorado citizen.

Murder is a crime against the state. FOHVAMP maintains that when a case cannot be solved by local law enforcement in a reasonable period of time, the state has an obligation to step in.

For the past five years FOHVAMP has advocated a state-level cold case team to help investigate these unsolved homicides. The state bureaucracy has been unresponsive. In 2007, the legislature created a cold case team at Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) with only enough funding for a single analyst to collect data from law enforcement agencies.

FOHVAMP and the CBI make periodic comparisons to insure the accuracy of that data.

Families of Homicide Victims and Missing Persons Executive Director Rob Wells, President Mark Reichert, Vice President Tina Terry, and board member Diane Riechert recently spoke at The National Press Club in Washington D.C. to express the need for a National Cold Case Database. To their knowledge, FOHVAMP’s Colorado Cold Case Database is the first cold case database in the nation to have been compiled. Since 1970, in Colorado, there have been approximately 1,600 unsolved murders, which is 38% of all of Colorado’s murders during this time period. The number is lower than the national average, which the FBI estimates to be 42%.  And still 1,600 unsolved murders in Colorado is 1,600 too many.

The FOHVAMP members visiting Washington met with Florida Victim’s Advocate Ryan Backmann, of Compassionate Families, Inc. Ryan’s father was murdered in a robbery. His father’s murder is unsolved. Ryan is in the process of putting together a Florida Cold Case Database. With only one-third of the Florida jurisdictions reporting, there are 4,400 unsolved murders. Jacksonville alone has 1,400, nearly the amount for the entire state of Colorado.

FOHVAMP will keep you posted on the progress of The National Cold Case Database through their website and on their Facebook page www.facebook.com/FOHVAMP.

Families of Homicide Victims and Missing Persons, Inc. (FOHVAMP) is a nonprofit organization working in Colorado to find, support and empower families suffering from a loved one’s unresolved murder or long-time suspicious disappearance. They provide peer support, assistance with victim compensation, referrals and coordination with other organizations for services and assistance. They serve as a liaison with law enforcement agencies, provide criminal justice support and advocacy. They work with Universities on special studies, many of which have been published. They seek out victim’s families (co-victims) to assist. Every October, they host an Annual Meeting with guest speakers to bring together victim’s families and law enforcement.

This year‘s Annual Meeting is going to be held at the Brittany Hill Event Center in Thornton, Colorado on October 4th, 2014. Please go to their website to register for this event.  The price to attend is only $45 per person.  I would suggest getting your tickets now before they sell out.  The purpose of this meeting is to bring co-victims into a neutral area where they will be able to brush up on their knowledge of the current techniques being used in the investigation process as well as meeting with their detectives on a neutral platform. Their hope is that the Annual Meeting will be able to educate their co-victims and promote the proper tools and coping mechanisms to assist them in their daily lives, as well as with the progress in their cases. Often, it is only at this meeting that the co-victims have the opportunity to touch base with their Detectives annually. Through the Colorado Cold Case Task Force, FOHVAMP is trying to assist in making it a mandate that all coroners in the state need to attend a base line training and certification on how to successfully deal with a cold case as well as the basics of their role in that position. The hope is that this would need to be completed within one year of the coroner taking office.

CONFERENCE REGISTRATION TIME! 
Here’s FOHVAMP’s registration form for the Saturday October 4 annual conference at the Brittany Hill events center, Thornton, CO.
More info to follow, but speakers will include Silvia Pettem, Jerry Brown, Paul Meshanko, Kathy Sasak, and Ron Sloan — at Brittany Hill.
FOHVAMPANNUALMTG8.29.2014

If you know anyone that has had an unresolved homicide in their family or have a missing loved one please refer them to FOHVAMP – they will listen, and they do help…please take my word on this, I know because they have helped us with Morgan’s homicide.

If you can help connect them with a family of a victim of an unresolved homicide or long-time missing person that has a Colorado connection, please call Rob Wells at 202-497-4580, Kelly Fernandez-Kroyer at 720-937-8905, or send an email to[email protected].

These families need to know about FOHVAMP. They can help them.  They need and want your help. Their priority is to encourage law enforcement to effectively address old, unsolved murders.

Thanks so much!

 

The Morgan Ingram Memorial Theatre Scholarship – 2 more students have been selected…congratulations!

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On January 6th I received a manila envelope in the mail and opened it. It was from the  Colorado Mountain College Foundation…I started to read the first letter, and I cried, and cried like a little baby. They were tears of happiness and gratitude. It was a letter to inform me about the 2 students that have been selected as the recipients of the Morgan Ingram Memorial Theatre Scholarship for CMC Theatre Degree students for this current academic year.

They were thanking Steve and I for being instrumental in providing financial assistance to these students as they pursue their academic and career goals. All I could think of was how happy and grateful I was that the Memorial Theatre Scholarship that we set up in Morgan’s name is still helping students to achieve their goals.  Morgan would be so very happy. Her heart was bigger than life, she was an amazing person who touched everyone she came in contact with. She truly enjoyed her involvement at Colorado Mountain College and constantly emphasized her appreciation of education by encouraging others to continue their education, and pursue their own passions.So I want to congratulate Bella Barnum and Shelby Lathrop for being the selected recipients of the scholarship for the current academic year. I know Morgan is so very proud of you both – you will both go far I know.Bella thank you for letting me know that the beauty of Morgan’s smile greets you every morning (Morgan’s picture is in the case) in the New Theatre space and inspires you to do your best. That is so beautiful, and it fills my heart to hear.

And Shelby you have many dreams, but I can tell that you will work hard to achieve them…working hard you will realize those dreams, and I am so happy for you!

I hope that the Morgan Ingram Memorial Theatre Scholarship for CMC Theatre Degree Students keeps receiving support from around the world in Morgan’s name and many others can be assisted as they pursue their dreams.

If you are interesting in donating to this scholarship (and thank you so much to those who have already donated to the scholarship fund) please contact Carol J. Efting she is the Scholarship and Records Coordinator, Colorado Mountain College Foundation, P.O. Box 1763, Glenwood Springs, CO 81602, Phone 970-947-8378, Fax 970-047-8385 www.cmcfoundation.org and please let her know you would like your tax-deductible contribution to be directed towards the Morgan Ingram Memorial Theatre Scholarship for CMC Theatre Degree students. Thank you all so much – I know Morgan blesses you for it.

Colorado Mountain College Foundation | Glenwood Springs, CO 81601
www.cmcfoundation.org
Creating Better Futures