The Disappearance Of Susan Cox Powell (Oxygen)

[hoosiermom]

This is a 2 parter on Oxygen. I thought I had been saturated with this story but no! I learned so much more. That Powell family was even creepier than I could have imagined. No doubt in my mind several people in that family either killed her, help cover it up or at the very least new what happened. And, I haven’t even seen part 2 yet!

[Annber03]

2 hours ago, hoosiermom said:

I thought I had been saturated with this story but no! I learned so much more. That Powell family was even creepier than I could have imagined. 

Same. Seeing those secret videos Steven recorded of and about Susan made me physically ill. Between that and him outright calling his daughter a bitch when she dared to confront him and Josh over the suspicions (and he has the absolute gall to tell her that she doesn't understand reality? Okay), you really get a strong glimpse into just how cruel and disgusting he truly was. It was eerie to see so many people flat out saying, "Yeah, the entire family was weird and creepy." The signs were clearly there for quite some time. 

I really felt for Jennifer. I'm glad, for her sake, that she managed to distance herself from the creepiness that was her entire family, but seeing her struggle to deal with just how much psychological and emotional damage Steven, and later Josh, inflicted on everyone, and discussing the completely loveless, disturbed home she grew up in...my heart just went out to her. From the brief interviews we saw with her husband, he seems like a good, supportive guy, so hopefully he can continue to be a much needed stable force in her life. 

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No doubt in my mind several people in that family either killed her, help cover it up or at the very least new what happened. 

Oh, definitely. I've always believed that Steven had a big hand in what happened to Susan. He may not have been the one to kill her, but I absolutely agree that he helped Josh figure out where to hide her body and may have had a hand in the cleanup. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if he perhaps talked with Josh about various possible ways to kill her. Same with Josh's other siblings. The frustration of the law enforcement officials is palpable here-they know these guys are guilty as sin, but the concrete evidence to prove it feels so far out of reach. So many moments where, if things had gone just a little differently, the final horror of it all could've been avoided altogether. 

It's heartbreaking seeing that footage of Susan, both when she's all happy on her wedding day and whatnot and then later when she's making that video "just in case". You can clearly see the change in her over time, and you know what's coming for her and the kids, and it makes you want to jump through the screen and pull all three of them out of this nightmare. It really pisses me off that she couldn't even turn to her church for help, because of their backwards, sexist views about women and divorce and whatnot. 

Yeah. This is one of those cases that haunts me. I can't imagine what it's got to be like for the people who knew everyone involved, or investigated this case. I just hope they've all found some kind of peace and comfort over the years. 

[For Cereals]

The Powell family was so screwed up.  The sister who still stands by her father and brother?!  Also her belief that the other brother didn’t commit suicide?  They had him on video going to the roof and a witness see him fall.  Plus the father and the voyeurism and child porn?  She ignores all that?!  Just sick.

[Annber03]

Appreciate the domestic violence PSA at the end there. 

Man, on the one hand, I hate that whatever answers and secrets Steven knew died with him, but on the other hand, thank god he's gone. It's frightening how much devastation and pain his behavior caused. I love that sheriff not wanting to call the deaths of the boys a "tragedy" but rather a flat out murder. Damn straight. "I know his heart"-shut up. This wasn't out of love. Not at all. 

That poor social worker, too. The amount of times she had to tell that 911 operator Josh's name, and him not seeming to grasp the seriousness of the situation. For the love of God, dude, get with the damn program. Mind, even if he had moved faster, it doesn't seem it would've saved the boys in the end, but still...

1 hour ago, For Cereals said:

The Powell family was so screwed up.  The sister who still stands by her father and brother?!  Also her belief that the other brother didn’t commit suicide?  They had him on video going to the roof and a witness see him fall.  Plus the father and the voyeurism and child porn?  She ignores all that?!  Just sick.

THIS. She's seriously trying to tell us that Steven was being "played" and "manipulated" by Susan and that investigators going after her dad for his super creepy behavior is "harassment" and "bullying"? Give. Me. A. Fucking. Break. None of Susan's behavior in those videos seems like flirting to me, but let's say, for the sake of this BS argument, that she was. It doesn't occur to Alina that Susan would've been trying to placate Steven, in a "If I do/say this, maybe he'll be satisfied and leave me alone" sort of way? 

To say nothing of the fact that this family clearly had such a rigid, judgmental view of women and their sexuality, to where anything Susan did that didn't fit into that mindset would be seen as "overtly sexual" or her being "obsessed" with sex. Basically, everything, from Steven's arrest to Josh's murder suicide to Michael's death, is somebody else's fault in her eyes. Never theirs. I just have to remind myself, though, that she's part of the decades of brainwashing and manipulation and abuse that Steven and Josh inflicted on their family. Hopefully, one day, she'll be like Jennifer and wise up and break away, too. 

The controversy over the police not going ahead with a circumstantial case is interesting, too. I totally get and sympathize with Susan's family's frustration. We've seen cases with circumstantial evidence that were successful, after all, and I agree there was more than enough questionable activity to where the prosecutors could make a decent case. 

But I also understand the investigators getting spooked after stuff like Casey Anthony and Elizabeth Smart. I mean, Josh was still somehow allowed to have contact and visitation with his kids despite the fact he was under investigation, and despite all the disturbing things found in his and Steven's computers (and Steven was eventually released from jail to boot), so... You just wonder what the hell it has to take sometimes for something to be done before this stuff happens. I hope people continue to fight to change the laws and loopholes that lead to these sorts of horrible endings, and I hope we do get to see more positive change with time. 

[doodlebug]

7 hours ago, For Cereals said:

The Powell family was so screwed up.  The sister who still stands by her father and brother?!  Also her belief that the other brother didn’t commit suicide?  They had him on video going to the roof and a witness see him fall.  Plus the father and the voyeurism and child porn?  She ignores all that?!  Just sick.

I think the interview with the youngest sister was just more evidence at how longlasting the effects of a dysfunctional, probably abusive, childhood are.  Her father well and truly screwed her up and her inability to see that is just a small part of it.  That she still thinks it was the authorities who were responsible for the outcome and not her brothers and her father is really mind boggling.

However, when we heard the replay of the 911 call from the child welfare advocate when Josh took the kids into the house and locked her out, I wanted to reach through the TV and strangle the operator.  I hope someone investigated the length of time it took for him to send someone and all the bs on the phone with having her repeat the address and spell out their names and telling her the police were busy with real emergencies and she'd have to wait was just to keep her on the phone and talking and the police were dispatched immediately.

[Dr.OO7]

I cried when I heard what Josh had done.

And I cried even more when Susan's parents declared that their only condolence was that the boys were with their mother again.

[hoosier80]

And even when you think that the Powell family couldn't be more gross, the mother and Alina (delusional sister) fought the Cox family over Susan's estate.  They were after the life insurance policies taken out in her name.

From reading online (didn't see it in the documentary), Josh had a girlfriend before Susan.  They moved into an apartment together, and he became super controlling.  She couldn't even visit her family without him going with her.  She somehow visited a friend in Utah, and from there broke up with him via phone.  Smart girl.   

The delusional daughter, just no words.  She thought it was ok for her dad to take pictures/record women and children because they were out in public?  Did they ask her about filming juveniles within their own home?  She needs psych help ASAP.  Why did she appear?  It's not like she's going to convince anyone how they were framed or that they were innocent.  If she wasn't a social pariah beforehand, wow, she's in for a rude awakening now.

[MissAlmond]

On 5/5/2019 at 7:59 PM, Annber03 said:

Same. Seeing those secret videos Steven recorded of and about Susan made me physically ill.

Knowing about the videos/photos was bad enough.  But to actually see them?  You had to take a shower to cleanse yourself after watching that.  

[bosawks]

I feel like Josh knew the only way he was going to be able to get married is to get a 19 year old girl to say yes.  And when she was no longer a 19 year old girl it all fell apart.

I hate this family.

[doodlebug]

3 hours ago, MissAlmond said:

Knowing about the videos/photos was bad enough.  But to actually see them?  You had to take a shower to cleanse yourself after watching that.  

Not to mention the collection of panties, nail clippings, and used tampons he kept for years.  Steve Powell was the definition of evil

10 hours ago, hoosier80 said:

And even when you think that the Powell family couldn't be more gross, the mother and Alina (delusional sister) fought the Cox family over Susan's estate.  They were after the life insurance policies taken out in her name.

From reading online (didn't see it in the documentary), Josh had a girlfriend before Susan.  They moved into an apartment together, and he became super controlling.  She couldn't even visit her family without him going with her.  She somehow visited a friend in Utah, and from there broke up with him via phone.  Smart girl.   

The delusional daughter, just no words.  She thought it was ok for her dad to take pictures/record women and children because they were out in public?  Did they ask her about filming juveniles within their own home?  She needs psych help ASAP.  Why did she appear?  It's not like she's going to convince anyone how they were framed or that they were innocent.  If she wasn't a social pariah beforehand, wow, she's in for a rude awakening now.

Alina's insistence that there is nothing wrong with photographing and filming people without their consent and then using it to masturbate as long as they didn't know about the tapes/photos and they weren't released publicly was just more evidence of how terribly warped her upbringing was.  Not to mention her assertion that filming people through the windows of their home was ok as long as there was a way to see inside since that was 'public'.  Wow!  She really needs massive psychiatric help that she cannot even admit that her father ever did anything wrong, let alone broke the law and deserved punishment.

Edited May 7, 2019 by doodlebug

[Dr.OO7]

4 hours ago, doodlebug said:

Alina's insistence that there is nothing wrong with photographing and filming people without their consent and then using it to masturbate as long as they didn't know about the tapes/photos and they weren't released publicly was just more evidence of how terribly warped her upbringing was.  Not to mention her assertion that filming people through the windows of their home was ok as long as there was a way to see inside since that was 'public'.  Wow!  She really needs massive psychiatric help that she cannot even admit that her father ever did anything wrong, let alone broke the law and deserved punishment.

I've watched true crime shows for years. The level of denial and self-inflicted gaslighting that some of the loved ones of these criminals engage in is beyond disturbing. I've seen shows where people have outright confessed to murder and their parent/sibling/child/friend will still insist that he/she is innocent, or that someone else made them do it.

[Annber03]

8 hours ago, MissAlmond said:

Knowing about the videos/photos was bad enough.  But to actually see them?  You had to take a shower to cleanse yourself after watching that.  

I liked how one of the investigators said at one point how they saw far more of Steven than they ever wanted to see while watching those tapes. You could hear the haunted tone in their voices as they talked about those videos, and it was clear how uncomfortable they were just discussing them. That says a lot right there, because it usually takes a lot to rattle investigators. 

[Dr.OO7]

5 hours ago, doodlebug said:

Steve Powell was the definition of evil

What really cinched it for me was his reaction to the deaths of his SON and GRANDSONS. No grief, just annoyance that he was even told about it 

It infuriates me that all three of the people undoubtedly responsible for that poor woman's death are dead themselves and beyond any kind of justice.

[CrazyInAlabama]

The only good thing about this case is that the father, Steve Powell died in 2018, and is burning in hell with his son right now.   

[Tabbygirl521]

Those sweaty videos of Steven all aroused about Susan. Utterly nauseating. I wish so much she had let her family rescue her but she believed things could be made right in her marriage. If only she had realized. Although who could have dreamt how truly sick those people were?

As I recall, the Coxes also has to go through some legal action to prevent the Powells from planting Josh next to Susan’s and the boys’ grave. Just so disgusting. 

I live near Seattle, so fairly close to Puyallup. I will never forget being at a Super Bowl party and having the news about Josh and the boys break in. The utter shock as we all gaped at the TV. We had some kids there and they understood what had happened. To this day that’s another level of hatred to me - that children have to know about these horrible people and have yet another layer of their innocence stripped away. 

The snotty 911 operator was vilified in the media and I believe there was disciplinary action. ANYONE within 100 miles of Puyallup had to know who Josh Powell was at that time. 

[Annber03]

10 minutes ago, Tabbygirl521 said:

As I recall, the Coxes also has to go through some legal action to prevent the Powells from planting Josh next to Susan’s and the boys’ grave. Just so disgusting. 

It's insane how much fighting the Coxes had to do even after their daughter and grandsons' deaths. As if they hadn't already suffered enough.

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I live near Seattle, so fairly close to Puyallup. I will never forget being at a Super Bowl party and having the news about Josh and the boys break in. The utter shock as we all gaped at the TV. We had some kids there and they understood what had happened. To this day that’s another level of hatred to me - that children have to know about these horrible people and have yet another layer of their innocence stripped away. 

Oh, how awful :(. I remember somebody I talk to elsewhere online saying that there was news footage of random townspeople being interviewed about it or something like that, and they were openly crying. 

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The snotty 911 operator was vilified in the media and I believe there was disciplinary action. 

Good. Obviously being a 911 operator would be a very tough job, for sure, and I can understand sometimes the operators might get a little frustrated, especially if it's hard to understand a caller and they're having trouble getting the necessary information from them.

But that clearly wasn't the case here. 

[Dr.OO7]

12 hours ago, Tabbygirl521 said:

The snotty 911 operator was vilified in the media and I believe there was disciplinary action. ANYONE within 100 miles of Puyallup had to know who Josh Powell was at that time. 

Even if not, that was clearly a situation that required an immediate response, not bullshit hem hawing.

[Pachengala]

In the [excellent] podcast Cold, about this case, they mention that the 911 operator acknowledged his culpability afterward and became some kind of sensitivity training consultant for other operators. So, good, I guess?

[Mrs. Hanson]

On 5/15/2019 at 10:16 PM, Tabbygirl521 said:

As I recall, the Coxes also has to go through some legal action to prevent the Powells from planting Josh next to Susan’s and the boys’ grave. Just so disgusting. 

I read that the Sheriff's department bought the two plots on either side of the boys just so the Powell's could not try to put Josh there.   I hope it is true.

On 5/20/2019 at 1:48 PM, Pachengala said:

In the [excellent] podcast Cold, about this case, they mention that the 911 operator acknowledged his culpability afterward and became some kind of sensitivity training consultant for other operators. So, good, I guess?

I wanted to reach through the tv and slap the operator silly, too, but really:  Josh was probably so motivated to get his "mission" done that no police presence was going to stop him from accomplishing his goals.  The Powell family later said that they were grateful the social worker was not harmed - he easily could have taken her out, too.

On 5/7/2019 at 10:23 AM, doodlebug said:

Alina's insistence that there is nothing wrong with photographing and filming people without their consent and then using it to masturbate as long as they didn't know about the tapes/photos and they weren't released publicly was just more evidence of how terribly warped her upbringing was. 

Alina......wow just wow.  Total denial of everything.  I felt sorry for her, really.  Still defending her father, still defending Josh, still thinking her brother was pushed.  

On 5/5/2019 at 7:59 PM, Annber03 said:

Seeing those secret videos Steven recorded of and about Susan made me physically ill.

Me too.

Josh's whole story was just so stupid:  "We went camping on a Sunday night, in December, with two little kids."  Yep, everyone does that, dumbass.

[Dr.OO7]

47 minutes ago, Mrs. Hanson said:

Josh's whole story was just so stupid:  "We went camping on a Sunday night, in December, with two little kids."  Yep, everyone does that, dumbass

In the middle of a snowstorm too. Because he forgot that the next day was Monday.

Jeez. The jerk couldn't even be bothered to try and act concerned about her, saying that he wanted to WAIT A FEW DAYS before coming back to talk to the cops.

I'm not sorry that prick is dead, just that he took those poor boys with him.

[Mrs. Hanson]

21 minutes ago, Camille said:

In the middle of a snowstorm too. Because he forgot that the next day was Monday.

Jeez. The jerk couldn't even be bothered to try and act concerned about her, saying that he wanted to WAIT A FEW DAYS before coming back to talk to the cops.

I'm not sorry that prick is dead, just that he took those poor boys with him.

Thank you for this!  I saw the footage of "I forgot the next day was Monday" but did not realize it was tied to that portion of the story.   I mean, who forgets what day of the week it is?  

I just feel for Susan - being so young and never dating anyone else (or so it seems) and thinking Josh was the end all be all for a mate.  This may sound very shallow with all that went on but that slack jawed look on his face, even when he seemed to be in a good mood, was just......icky.