Episode 16 The Mary Morris Murders
On October 12, 2000, Mary Henderson Morris, a 48 year old bank loan officer didn't show up for work.
The Baytown, Houston area woman was very professional, and very reliable, so her co-workers were alarmed. When her husband Jay Morris became aware that she didn't show up for work, police were called in to look for Mary. According to Jay Morris, his wife had left that morning for work after 6am as usual, and nothing was amiss. Hours later, Mary Morris was found dead in her burning car in a secluded area 3 miles from her home. The fire was so intense, that it took days to identify the body inside as that of Mary Morris, and her cause of death could not be determined. Because a powerful accelerant had been used to start the fire, police suspected that Mary was the victim of a homicide from the beginning, but they were stumped and could not find anyone who had a motive to kill the friendly and professional mother and grandmother. Days later, when Mary's daughter Marilyn went to pick up her mother's effects following the funeral, the mystery took a bizarre turn.
Marilyn was told that they were not done processing her mom's remains. She was confused after just burying her mom. After some checking, the authorities confirmed that the remains still in their custody were that of a different Mary Morris; 39 year old Mary McGinnis Morris.
Like Mary Henderson Morris, Mary McGinnis Morris was found dead less than 72 hours later in her vehicle in the Houston area. Mary McGinnis Morris, a nurse, had been shot to death. The gun used to kill her was found in her car, and it turned out that it belonged to her husband, Mike Morris. Mike Morris told police that he had given the gun to his wife for protection. Mary had had run-ins with a co worker and apparently was on edge. Police disclosed that a 911 call came in during the Mary McGinnis Morris's murder, and that the murder itself, or parts of it may have been recorded. Although police did not release the 911 call, they said it was chilling. As for Mike Morris, he had an alibi for the time of the murder; he was at a movie with his daughter Katy at the time of the murder.
Suspicion fell on the husbands in both cases as is typical in these kinds of murders, but both men lawyered up. Things that they said and did after the murders along with holes in their stories were scrutinized. Other potential suspects were looked at, but to date, no arrests have been made in either case. After being featured in a popular episode of the hit show Unsolved Mysteries, the 'Mary Morris Murders' became a popular case to discuss on online forums like Reddit and Websleuths, and several podcasts have done episodes about the murders. All kinds of theories and rumors have popped up over the years, the most popular being that both women were killed by some sort of inept hitman, but at the end of the day, there is nothing that conclusively proves that.
There are similarities in the two cases. Both women were well-liked professional women in the Houston area. They were of similar age and appearance. They had both been found dead in their cars less than 72 hours apart. It was reported that rings were missing from both women, but later that claim would be challenged when one of the rings turned up.
The murders of both Mary Henderson Morris and Mary McGinnis Morris remain unsolved and are as popular as ever on discussion forums. Unfortuately, this has led to a lof of misconceptions, inaccuracies, and gossip. In this episode of Citizen Detective, listeners will hear directly from Mary Henderson Morris's daughter Marilyn, and Mary McGinnis Morris's daughter Katy, in an effort to once and for all separate fact from fiction, and help the panel sift through all the puzzling clues and details in the Mary Morris Murders.
if you have information about the October, 2000 Houston area murders of Mary Henderson Morris or Mary McGinnis Morris, please call Houston Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS
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The Citizen Detective team includes:
Co-Hosts- Mike Morford, Alex Ralph, and Dr. Lee Mellor
Writing and Research- Alex Ralph
Technical Producer- Andrew Gray
Production Assistant- Ashley Monroe
Suzanna Ryan- DNA Expert
Cloyd Steiger- Retired Seattle PD Homicide Detective
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