Naman Shrestha
CBS’ ’48 Hours: Murder at Mount Hood’ chronicles the vanishing and death of a 61-year-old wife and mother of two named Susan “Phoenix” Lane in Welches, Oregon, in the winter of 2024. The tragedy sent shockwaves through the tight-knit community, where she was well-known as an experienced hiker. As the detectives suspected foul play, they dug deeper into the case and uncovered familial matters that ultimately led them straight to the perpetrator. All the intricate details of the case and the investigation that ensued are explored in the documentary, which features in-depth interviews with Susan’s loved ones and the officials who helped solve the case.
Susan Lane Was Found Dead Yards Away From Her Home Days After Her Disappearance
Born in 1963, Susan “Phoenix” Lane was raised in a seemingly loving and supportive household in Vallejo, California, alongside her brother, Mike Lane. The University of the Pacific graduate became a mother to two sons, Jesse and Dakota “Kota” Lane, at a young age. Soon, she crossed paths with her Fred, and the two tied the knot. Sadly, he passed away in a fatal car accident in Kansas. In 2010, Susan met Michel Fournier (also spelled Michael), and the two relocated to Oregon, where they married in 2012, making their relationship official in the eyes of the law. By the 2020s, she had been working at the Hoodland Bazaar in Welches, Oregon. In her free time, she loved going on treks and hikes in the nearby mountains.
On November 22, 2024, 61-year-old Susan failed to show up at work. Since it was unlike her, her employer reported her missing to the authorities. During the welfare check, the Clackamas County Sheriff’s deputies found her front door unlocked, but there were no signs of her or her two dogs, Elrond and Elros. The following day, her pickup truck was found abandoned near East Salmon River Road and the Green Canyon Way Trail in the Mount Hood National Forest, south of her workplace.
For several days, the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office conducted an extensive search-and-rescue operation for Susan and her two missing dogs. A week after she was reported missing, on the morning of November 29, 2024, a community search volunteer and Susan’s friend found her remains wrapped in a tarp near East Highway 26 and East Miller Road, about 350 yards away from her home in Brightwood. The following day, the remains of her dogs were discovered in Multnomah County. The medical examiner’s office conducted an autopsy and determined that Susan had died of multiple gunshot wounds to her head, neck, and chest.
Security Footage and Contradictory Alibi Unmasked Susan Lane’s Killer
During the homicide investigation of Susan Lane-Fournier, the authorities spoke with her family and friends and dug deeper into her marriage with Michel Fournier. It turned out that she had filed for divorce just a couple of weeks before she went missing, due to their deteriorating marriage. The detectives reviewed surveillance footage showing Michel driving Susan’s truck from Welches to Portland, with her dogs. After noticing that her truck was parked on Northeast Marine Drive next to the Columbia River, the detectives searched the area and recovered her destroyed cell phone from the river. When questioned by the officers, Michel claimed that he had last seen her on November 22, 2024, with her dogs.
For his alibi, Michel alleged that he had hitchhiked to Portland to fetch a part to repair his vehicle. He told the detectives that Susan, her truck, and dogs were nowhere to be found when he returned. He was subsequently arrested on November 29, 2024, on a second-degree murder and booked into Clackamas County Jail without bond. On December 3, 2024, Michel pleaded not guilty to the charge against him and decided to take the matter to court. On February 24, 2026, his murder trial commenced. The prosecution presented images of the surveillance footage and clips from his videotaped jailhouse police interviews to the jury.
The video evidence included his admission to killing the dogs and remarks about his crumbling marriage. Per court records, on the video, he stated, “I choked them. The tie-wraps slowed them down a bit, but these animals trusted me wholeheartedly… the tie-wraps, you couldn’t get enough tension on them, so I used one of the leashes and took Elrond first, and then I took Elros.” Arguing that detectives used leading questions to push a predetermined theory of guilt, the defense argued, “The state has an incredibly high burden. And that burden is beyond a reasonable doubt. Because at the end of the day, my client’s liberty is (on the) line.”
The prosecution also said that the defendant was afraid of losing their shared home after the divorce, allegeging it served as one of the motives for the killing. On March 5, 2026, the jury deliberated for five hours and found Michel guilty on charges of second-degree murder and unlawful use of a weapon. He was then sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after serving 25 years. He also faces two separate, pending felony charges of first-degree aggravated animal abuse in relation to the deaths of the two dogs — Elrond and Elros.
You must be logged in to post a comment.