The family of Suzanne Morphew sat down with ABC’s Good Morning America for an interview for the first time since the murder charges against Barry Morphew were dropped.
“We’ve been silent for a long time and we’ve decided that we finally want to break the silence,” said daughter Mallory Morphew. “…It’s been an emotional roller coaster, but we feel like we can finally take our first steps in healing, which is a blessing. And we just know our dad better than anyone else and we know he was not involved in our mom’s disappearance.”
Mallory and Macy Morphew walked out of court arm-in-arm with their father just moments after the charges against him in the disappearance of their mother two years ago were dropped last month.
“We want to heal,” Mallory Morphew said. “We feel like we haven’t been able to heal these past two years.”
The family says Suzanne left her Chaffee County home for a bike ride but never returned.
“I just love my girls and I love my wife, and I just want her to be found,” Barry Morphew said.
Investigators had arrested him on charges including first-degree murder and tampering with physical evidence. Prosecutors had argued that Morphew discovered his wife was having an affair, then killed her, disposed of her body and staged a bike crash in a rural area.
They released body camera footage from the hours after she was reported missing showing Barry Morphew touching evidence.
Morphew’s daughters say he isn’t a killer and are celebrating the dismissal of the case. They are also demanding District Attorney Linda Stanley do more to find their mother.
“I just hope that Linda will step up to the plate and do everything she can to find our mom because what they’ve done is not fair and we’re never going to stop looking for our mom,” Macy Morphew said.
Court filings say while authorities are “close to discovering” Suzanne’s body, weather and snow has complicated the efforts. The location where her body is believed to be, according to prosecutors, had five feet of snow under it as of last month.
Barry Morphew’s attorney says authorities have mishandled the case and are planning to file a complaint against the district attorney.
“If you want to honor Suzanne and you want to honor the daughter, go find Suzanne,” said attorney Iris Eytan.
The district attorney’s office told ABC News they and law enforcement “have been diligently searching for Suzanne Morphew since she was reported missing” and that they “are continuing to do so.”
“Prosecutors need to be held responsible and they need to pay for the damage they’ve caused to Barry, which is, frankly, nearly irreparable at this point, because it’s hard for anybody to believe that Barry is not who they claim he was,” said Eytan.