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Barry Morphew, the man charged with his wife Suzanne’s murder, personally authorized her cremation in February, just before prosecutors stepped in to stop it, they claim in new court filings.
In June 2025, Barry Morphew was re-indicted by a Colorado grand jury following a failed prosecution in 2021 that resulted in charges being dismissed at the time. He allegedly killed his wife, who vanished on Mother’s Day in 2020 before her remains were later found.
At the time, the Morphews lived near Salida, Colorado, where Suzanne Morphew, 49, was last seen alive. Barry Morphew pleaded not guilty in January, and is expected to stand trial in October.
In February, attorneys for Macy and Mallory Morphew, who are Suzanne Morphew’s daughters, filed a motion to force the state to release her remains. The motion was withdrawn on Thursday.
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Attorneys for both Macy and Mallory Morphew said in their initial filing that their mother’s remains were at Swan Lake Funeral Home in Colorado Springs, and had a funeral service planned for their mother when law enforcement took possession of the body.
The lawyers argued that law enforcement in Colorado had “stopped them from exercising their constitutional rights” to hold a funeral for their mother and bury her remains.
“This government conduct is outrageous, cruel, and shocking to the conscience,” attorneys for Macy and Mallory Morphew argued.
Responding to attorneys for Suzanne Morphew’s daughters, prosecutors said that Barry Morphew signed off on the cremation of Suzanne Morphew. In a court filing, Barry Morphew did not take a position on the release of her body.
Prosecutors said that Suzanne Morphew’s remains are “material evidence” to their murder case against Barry Morphew, asking the court to deny the motion to release her body.
“The Defendant in a murder case authorized the release of the murder victim’s remains, prior to pending motions litigation and jury trial, and paid to have them cremated prior to disclosures of his experts’ opinions or court rulings on admissibility of scientific testing regarding said remains,” prosecutors wrote.
Fox News Digital reached out to Barry Morphew’s attorney.
Timeline, according to prosecutors:
– Jan. 29, 2026: Barry Morphew signs off on the release of Suzanne Morphew’s remains from the El Paso Coroner’s Office to the Swan-Law Funeral Directors funeral home.
– Feb. 17, 2026: Law enforcement was notified that Suzanne Morphew’s remains were released to a funeral home and began the process to apply for a search warrant to take custody of the remains as “material evidence.”
– Feb. 18, 2026: A court authorized the search warrant for law enforcement to take possession of Suzanne Morphew’s body.
– Feb. 19, 2026: While collecting Suzanne Morphew’s remains, Undersheriff Alex Walker was informed that the remains were set to be cremated the next day.
– Feb. 24, 2026: A court authorized another search warrant for documents related to Suzanne Morphew’s remains, which include “two signed forms with Defendant Barry Morphew’s signature on them.” One of the forms authorized the cremation of Suzanne Morphew.
– March 19, 2026: Suzanne Morphew’s daughters withdrew their attempt to force the state to release their mother’s body.
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Notably, Suzanne Morphew’s sister Melinda Balzar and brother David Moorman both “strongly object” to the release of her body, according to prosecutors.
“They both noted concerns with the integrity of the evidence and separately indicated their desire to discuss bringing Suzanne back to Indiana. It was their position that others in their family would agree,” prosecutors wrote.
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Colin McCallin, a Colorado-based lawyer and former deputy district attorney for the 18th Judicial District Attorney’s Office in Colorado, told Fox News Digital he would be concerned as a prosecutor if the remains were released.
“If I were a prosecutor on this case, I would be very concerned if the remains were turned over to the family. [If] Ms. Morphew’s remains were cremated, and then somehow the defense wanted to allege later that they wanted access to the body for their own testing, for their own forensic examination, for example. And then they claim, ‘oh, we can’t do that because we don’t have access to body.'”
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A hearing regarding Suzanne Morphew’s remains is scheduled for March 30. A trial in the case is currently scheduled to begin Oct. 13.
She disappeared from the couple’s home in Chaffee County on May 10, 2020, prompting a massive search that initially turned up few answers.
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Barry Morphew was first charged with her murder in 2021, but those charges were dropped the following year after prosecutors cited issues with the case and said they were close to discovering new evidence that could change its direction. His defense team argued at the time the case was dismissed because prosecutors were unlikely to win at trial.
After the charges were dropped, he left Colorado and relocated to Cave Creek, Arizona — more than 600 miles from where his wife disappeared. While living there, he kept a low profile and used aliases, including “Bruce” and “Lee Moore.” Acquaintances later told Fox News Digital they were unaware of his connection to the high-profile Colorado case until his re-arrest.
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Suzanne Morphew’s remains were discovered in September 2023 in a shallow grave in the San Luis Valley, roughly an hour south of the family’s home. An autopsy later ruled her death a homicide.
According to court records, a powerful animal tranquilizer known as BAM — a combination of butorphanol, azaperone and medetomidine — was found in her bone marrow. Prosecutors said the presence of a metabolized form of the drug indicates she was alive long enough to process it, ruling out accidental or environmental contamination.
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The indictment alleges Barry Morphew had access to BAM through his work with deer and was the only private citizen in the area known to possess the drug at the time of his wife’s disappearance. Investigators have also pointed to evidence involving a tranquilizer dart rifle found in the home, along with phone and vehicle data they say contradict his account of events.
After Barry Morphew was re-indicted, he was arrested in Goodyear, Arizona, extradited to Colorado and later released on bond in September after supporters helped post part of his $3 million bond. He remains under house arrest with an ankle monitor.
