Court proceedings are pending in Colorado in the apparent homicides of two Emporia women, but they have started in Lyon County against the man considered as the only announced suspect in the case.
Phillip Scott Lieurance, 35, had his first appearance Monday in a fugitive from justice case filed locally Friday. The count accuses Lieurance of unlawfully leaving Kiowa County and says he is accused of Class 2 murder and tampering with a deceased human body.
Neither the Kiowa County Combined Court nor Colorado Bureau of Investigation have confirmed criminal charges yet against Lieurance, although CBI spokesperson Lisa Kohlbrenner says charges will remain pending until Lieurance goes before a Colorado judge and there is currently no timetable for when that will happen. Meanwhile, the law enforcement investigation continues into the deaths of Linda Estrada and Amy Ford, both found near Eads, Colorado, on Sept. 20 — nine days after Estrada was listed as missing by Emporia Police, seven days after Ford was listed as missing, 12 days after both were last seen alive in Denver and 10 days after Lieurance was arrested after allegedly using his SUV to ram at least one other vehicle on the Kansas Turnpike before crashing near the Emporia service area.
Lieurance is currently being held on a $1 million bond in the fugitive case, according to Lyon County Attorney Marc Goodman, and has his next hearing in the fugitive case at 1:30 pm on Halloween. The preliminary hearing connected to the Kansas Turnpike situation has been delayed to Nov. 29.
