Hi and thank you for visiting VTC’s blog!

This is a quick summary that I’m typing off the top of my head because I’ve gotta get moving this morning.  I’ll clean up any typos and mistakes later today.

Here is the scoop.

Suzanne Simpson disappeared on 10/6/2024. Her husband, Brad Simpson, became the primary suspect due to a history of alleged abuse and controlling behavior.

The Simpsons had been to a party at The Argyle Club in San Antonio. Suzanne and her daughter left around 8:40 p.m. and went to H.E.B. to pick up a few items.
While she was out, her husband used the AT&T app to disconnect her phone. Even at age 53, Simpson was an extremely jealous man, and he often did things like this to control his wife.

Brad was obsessed with taking Suzanne’s phone from her and had done so several times before the night she disappeared. After he had taken it from her, he would tell the children her mother lost another phone. Obviously, this is a pattern that demonstrates his controlling personality.

That evening, around 10:00 p.m., a neighbor heard them fighting in the yard. Brad had her phone and she tried to retrieve it from him. He grabbed her, she screamed, and got loose from his grasp. Suzanne ran into the woods, and, of course, Brad went after her.

Sadly, the neighbor heard Suzanne screaming in the woods; then she stopped. Unfortunately, the neighbor didn’t call police that night. Brad left in his truck and came back an hour later.

The probable cause affidavit provides of blow-by-blow account of Suzanne’s last couple of hours and Brad Simpson’s movements in the next 36 hours before his arrest.

One of the saddest revelations is when the five-year-old daughter tells the people at her daycare that her daddy hit her mommy and hurt her elbow. She also said her father took her mother’s phone away from her.

Another twist in this story is that Brad involved a long-time friend, James Valle Cotter, by texting him and asking Cotter to meet Simpson at Cotter’s house in Bandera on October 7, 2024. Cotter spent about a month in jail on charges of tampering with evidence. It’s all detailed in the probable cause affidavit.

Suzanne’s disappearance has drawn a ton of media attention, as she was well-regarded in her community, and friends and family attested to her suffering in an abusive marriage which began in 2002 after the couple met while attending the University of Texas in Austin.

Evidence collected and itemized in the probable cause affidavit (linked in this post) led to Brad Simpson’s arrest. The trial revealed disturbing details about the couple’s relationship, where Suzanne endured physical and emotional abuse for years. Brad Simpson consistently maintains his innocence. However, he was arrested and jailed on 10/9/2024 for charges relating to domestic abuse. On 11/7/2024, he was charged with murder.

Brad Simpson remains behind bars on bonds totaling $5 million and a federal detainer.

There is nothing funny about this case, but every person who runs into Barton Simpson’s name pauses and usually mentions it.

The couple had a 20-year-old and 15-year-old daughter, as well as the little one, who is five.  Bradley’s brother, Barton Simpson, spoke for the family in a press conference and says they are disappointed in Brad. They offer no support to him.

There is nothing funny about this case. However, almost every video which discusses Brad’s brother’s says something about Bart Simpson. I know that’s been difficult for Barton Simpson. God bless him for sending a clear message about his sister-in-law’s disappearance. For this post, I would rather see Bart Simpson’s photo over Brad’s face. 

 

The focus on Vintage Texas Crimes are criminal cases that found their way into the pages of Texas history. I don’t claim to cover them all, just the ones that make my brain itch…right in the center. After reading the probable cause affidavit released on 11/12/24, I think Suzanne Simpson’s story is going to be one of those.  Stay safe, everyone! bk smith