Kriti Mehrotra
When 8-year-old Elizabeth Collins and her 10-year-old cousin Lyric Cook-Morrissey went missing from near the former’s home in 2012, the entire community of Evansdale in Iowa was left baffled. That’s because these girls had not only disappeared from a relatively safe small town but were also found dead merely six months later, as profiled in HBO Max’s ‘Taken Together: Who Killed Lyric and Elizabeth?’ However, one of the most painful parts for the Cook-Morrissey family was that they were treated as suspects while trying to deal with the loss of their young, kind, and beautiful daughter’s life.
Lyric’s Parents Were Not Entirely Around When She Was Young
Although born on October 2, 2001, to high school sweethearts Misty Cook and Dan Morrissey as one of their two children, Lyric was essentially raised by one of her aunts until she was 4-years-old. The truth is her parents had actually found themselves in legal trouble owing to their alleged substance abuse and methamphetamine addiction, resulting in them being in and out of jail in the early 2000s. In fact, her mother was actually federally convicted of possession with intent to distribute when she was eight months pregnant, so she was in a West Virginia facility from the time Lyric was 18 months old to 4 years.
However, according to Dan himself, it was in the early 2010s when his alleged addiction really caught up with him, resulting in him being in jail for six months before bonding out in May 2012. Then, a day before his daughter and niece were abducted, he refused a plea deal on lesser charges in exchange for three decades because it required him to be taken into custody immediately, but he hadn’t said goodbye to his kids. Thus, he returned home in worry over the impending trial. Yet, he still vividly remembers his then-10-year-old running up to him, giving him a hug, and telling him everything would be okay.
Misty and Dan Had Trouble Opening Up to Officials
Despite the fact both Misty and Dan were desperate to find their daughter and niece after they suddenly vanished in June 2012, it has been reported that they weren’t comfortable or cooperative with officials owing to their past experiences. This, unfortunately, led them to be treated as suspects, with some going as far as to publicly state they believe it’s possible the girls were taken as revenge owing to them having upset somebody in the drug business. Allegations of the involvement of the Mexican Cartel also came to light, but Dan has always insisted these are just rumors. He asserted that he only used to cook meth at home for self-consumption or enough sales to make ends meet.
Misty and Dan were subsequently required to undergo polygraph examinations, with the initial results coming out as unclear despite the latter having sworn he was high on substance. Nevertheless, as time passed and they began to feel officials weren’t focusing on the right people by focusing on them, they opened up and agreed to a second polygraph while clean to prove they had nothing to hide and had no hand in this case. But alas, despite both of them passing this time, their reputation had already been sullied with rumors, with some of them sadly continuing to persist since the real perpetrator has never been found.
Misty and Dan Prefer to Lead Quiet Lives Today
Considering the speculations against Misty and Dan while they were separated yet amicable for the sake of their kids back in 2012, they have both chosen to stay away from the spotlight. In fact, there was once a period of over five years when neither of them gave any public statements regarding their daughter and niece’s case. Although they are now doing their best to bring attention to it again, it’s daunting for them. The fact neither of them has ever directly received an update message or call from detectives in quite a while also bothers them, but they are resolved to keep the memories of Lyric and Elizabeth alive.
Coming to Misty and Dan’s individual lives at the moment, we do know they are both based in Iowa to this day and are now doing their best to lead an honest, clean life for the sake of their children. From what we can tell, the latter, in particular, resides in Cedar Falls, Iowa, these days, where he dedicates most of his time to his job at Bradley P. Kramer DBA Out On A Limb Tree Services. As for his relationship status and personal life, he labels himself as “single” and appears to simply be focusing on his small and lovely family at the moment.
On the other hand, Misty admitted she went back to drugs after the events of 2012 owing to how severely she had been vilified. “It was just really more than the mind or the emotions can handle,” she once said. “I just wanted to numb my thoughts and my feelings and I know from my past a very good way to do that. And so I just went right back to it. And it worked. It did what I wanted it to do for quite a while. Until I went to prison.” She actually ended up back in jail in 2014 with a sentence of 10 years but was released early. Since then, she has seemingly done her best to turn over a new leaf, maintain her faith, reconnect with her loving family, and build a new life for herself, while keeping Lyric alive in her heart.
Read More: Heather and Drew Collins: Where Are Elizabeth Collins’ Parents Now?
