harold henthorn dateline

To Toni Bertolet Henthorns family, her friends, and the people for whom she cared, Tonis life was about the moments that took our breath away., Beyond even that, Sandras brother, Kevin Richell, went so far as to apologize to Tonis family for not seeing through the curious circumstances surrounding Sandras death. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. After a few years sharpening his golf game Weaver got bored and applied for a job in Douglas, the county just to the south. He was a wealthy fundraiser for hospitals and churches. In a horrible turn of events, Lynn crawled under the car to retrieve a lug nut when the vehicle came down on her crushing her fatally. He took away one jack and ran through the whole scenario again. Tonis family, though, did not have a high opinion of Harold and suspected foul play after her death. He had seen a lot. Harold was later sentenced to life in federal prison. What they wanted was to see Toni happy. For both wives of Harold Henthorn, the locations where they died were deserted and Henthorn was the only other person present. On May 6 of that year, Henthorn and his first wife, Sandra Lynn, were driving through the dark. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. We can forgive a child for being afraid of the dark, but we cannot forgive the darkness of selfish desolation that lies within the Defendants heart.The Defendant would have us erroneously believe that he is an unlucky man, a hard luck husband, and a person in which lightning has tragically struck twice. The show even traced the subsequent investigation, focusing on the authorities as they cast their net around the murderer. Harold and Toni Henthorn (credit CBS) A federal jury convicted Henthorn of pushing his second wife, Toni, off a cliff in Rocky Mountain National Park in 2012. Related: Man Accused in Wife's Deadly Fall Also Killed First Wife: Prosecutor, They seized on Henthorn's inconsistent accounts of the fatal fall and said the evidence did not match his shifting stories. Toni sat next to her mother saying nothing. Tonis brother Barry Bertolet spoke at the sentencing. Over a year before Lynns death, he had been arrested outside of a J.C. Penney for shoplifting $40 worth of underwear, odd behavior for a man who claimed to be so well off. "Certainly those weren't my sister's wishes," said Bertolet of Harold Henthorn spending his wife's money to fight charges that he killed her. He probably could have continued to live that lie, but if he did this, then greed got the best of him. To some people he said the Jeep fell when he threw the flat tire into the open hatch in the back. In each case, the Defendant made arrangements to be a lucky recipient of significant benefits from those deathshis own version a post mortem lottery. He slammed the tailgate. The sentence to be handed down by this court is the only result that the Defendant has actually earned in his adult life. To another he said it was merely spongy. Since Harold was treated from the start as a victim, not a suspect, and since his wifes death was treated as an accident, not a deliberate murder, clues that wouldve appeared to others as red flags had no discernible hue at all. A 59-year-old Colorado man was found guilty Monday of killing his wife by pushing her off a cliff in Rocky Mountain National Park in order to collect millions in life insurance money. My name is Bob Bertolet, father of the victim, Toni Bertolet Henthorn. At one point, Sandra ended up underneath the car looking for a lug nut and the car crushed her when it fell off the jack. The innocence of a child should not be violated by evil within and, more importantly, evil within a trusted family unit. The Defendants entire adult life was a lie and scam to live his life and lifestyle while others paid the price. Harold owned a little house in the mountains west of Denver and took Toni and Haley there often. The lead investigator made mention of a partial print on the wheel well, above the missing tire, the same one that Lynn had supposedly been trying to help change when she was killed. Montoya and her family had been driving home that night from a day of fishing and picnicking when Harold appeared in the glow of their cars headlights and waved them down. The Bertolets said goodbye to their only daughter a few days later. Harold Henthorn, and his wife Toni. But, as the lead investigator would later testify to in court, theyd never checked the print against the shoes to see if they were a match. Douglas County wasnt prepared to investigate Lynns death not only because theyd never seen one like it, but because they werent prepared anything of this magnitude. It would have been, except that Toni plunged down a 50-foot cliff to her death. Before becoming a detective hed spent decades moving his wife from base to base. He found a Jeep Cherokee similar to the one that fell on Lynn and went about trying to recreate the scenario that killed her. He refused to allow Toni to help put Haley to bed at night, insisting that the hour or so before Haley fell asleep was his daddy-daughter time. She wanted her to say that she would listen to her mothers warning. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". DENVER - A Colorado man accused of killing his wife by pushing her off a cliff has been found guilty, CBS Denver reports. Toni Henthorn was a skilled ophthalmologist and loving mother. "statcounter.com/counter/counter.js'>"); We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. Toni always carried the pain of a loss, but she also knew what those tragic moments taught her as a person. Lynn Henthorns death was a tragedy, not a crime. He's 38 years old, a married, religious person and he's shoplifting underwear in JCPenney." Instead, it appears he risked it all for some insurance compensation. But I would be very careful. Had they checked, they would have found that Harold actually received twice that much. A chance to speak frankly with her daughter was something she hadnt had for a long time and Yvonne didnt waste it. Do not expect it from cheap people. The defendant is morally cheap and is bankrupt of all honesty.In the Defendants sociopathic world, no person, place, or thing had any power over him, as his thoughts and his mind were the only authority. Toni was a medical doctor that had this unique perspective on life, and those moments affirmed her compassionate care and concern for others. Sandra's death is now being re-investigated more thoroughly by the Douglas County Sheriff's Office. Of all the titles that the Defendant has bestowed upon himself without merit, the title of Murderer, bequeathed by the jury, is the only title that the Defendant has earned. Full disclaimer: I have not evaluated Harold Henthorn, but if he is guilty of murder, then he would fall into the range of what I call a borderline sociopath. The Defendant deserves the sentence of this Court as he has worked his entire adult life earning the same. He said he believed Henthorn's brother, who lives in Massachusetts, was served Monday in Denver federal court because "'obviously they knew he was there.". Yet every time Toni managed to sneak a look at the couples finances, she found that their bank accounts werent nearly as flush as he made them out to be. Toni had fallen off a cliff? According to the testimony later given at a trial, instead of learning for themselves how much money Harold was due to receive from his wifes life insurance, Douglas Countys detectives took his word for it that the payout was $300,000 still a large amount considering his wifes modest social workers salary of $14,000 a year. Old Medication, New Use: Can Prazosin Curb Drinking? The Bertolets could sense that Toni was unhappy but felt there was little they could do about it. Then he tried to get the car to fall. The Defendant claimed to be a family man, when, in fact he was a selfish man. After all, Harold was a respected member of the community. To one cop, Harold said he and Lynn left their house to go on the drive around 1 p.m. To another he said 7. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. September 23, 2015 / 11:02 PM He had no real mentor to help him, Weaver said recently, in his first public comments since his retirement in August. After years of trying, the two managed to have a daughter, Haley. Did You Know Anxiety Can Enhance Our Relationships? Douglas County had changed tremendously in the intervening years. His job, for instance. Additionally, detectives also discovered that shortly before Lynns death, Harold had doubled her life insurance in case of death by accident and subsequently had collected a lumpsum amount. January 10th was one day short of her mothers birthday on January 11th. To another he said it wasnt him Lynn was actually rescued by a random group of helpful strangers. And, though hes already serving a life sentence for killing his second wife, the total lack of charges stemming from the strange, mysterious death of his first continues to fuel general outrage and disbelief. Harold Henthorn talked to many different members of Douglas County law enforcement on May 6th, 1995, the night his wife Lynn died after being crushed underneath their Jeep Cherokee. We feel guilt that we failed to act on our suspicions concerning Tonis welfare in her marriage. Harold Henthorn with Sandra Lynn, his first wife. In the document, he implied that. They couldnt talk about Harold on the phone, since every call with her was also a call with him. Psychology Today 2023 Sussex Publishers, LLC. Plot summary Add synopsis Genres Documentary News Certificate TV-PG Parents guide Add content advisory We want to hear it. Toni was not a life form on this Earth with wings and halo; she was a grounded person living an everyday life while doing remarkable deeds that touched peoples lives.Remarkable deeds didnt always shield Toni from the heartaches and losses seen in the practice of medicine, but those heartaches and losses defined and elevated her compassion and care. Yet Toni remained silent. She was in immense pain and had numbness in her fingers when she was taken by ambulance to the ER. Earnings for Henthorn were in 1993, 1999, and 2000, but nothing after that. Toni and Harold Henthorn were celebrating their 12th wedding anniversary the weekend when she died. And, strangest of all from Montoyas perspective, Harold refused to hand over the coat he was wearing. To one cop, Harold said the tire they pulled over to change was completely flat. Afterwards she would discover what it was that had hurt her so badly: a large piece of lumber that Harold said fell off the porch. However, Harold kept insisting on his innocence and in 2017 appealed for a retrial which was subsequently shot down. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Harold Henthorn, and his wife Toni.. To the young medical physician in need of an accomplished mentor to guide a promising medical career, Tonis life mattered and was indispensable. (This was also brought up in court.) It had been a full day, and the sun had set. In September of 2015, three years after the incident, a jury found Harold Henthorn guilty of first-degree murder in the case of Toni Henthorns death. How does she know that a person of perceived trust will not cause her harm? Tom Sizemore, Heat and Saving Private Ryan Actor, Dead at 61 Harold and Toni Henthorn Toni and Harold met online in 1999 and married just nine months later. I would not go anywhere alone with this man.. A federal jury on Monday convicted a man of murder for pushing his wife off a cliff as they hiked in Colorado to celebrate their wedding anniversary. Stranger still was Harolds behavior on phone calls. But in Detective Weavers mind, none of that mattered to the men investigating the case because every piece of information they gathered was viewed through the same distorting prism. Only a few years later he was surprised to find that the people who ran the county wanted him to work cases. The only witness to the accident was her husband. Little did Harold Henthorns friends and neighbors know of the terrible secret he had been hiding for most of his married life. Toni and Harold Henthorn were celebrating their 12th wedding anniversary the weekend when she died. When she died, her daughter was only 7 years old. But all was not as it seemed. This despite the fact that the Bertolets had been extra generous to Harold and Toni, gifting them some half-million dollars for a down payment on their house in Colorado, for cars and new appliances and for anything else the couple needed in the 10 years since theyd married. Harold Henthorn had taken out three life insurance policies totaling $4.5 million before the death of his wife, Toni, on Sept. 29, 2012. She was killed while trying to change a flat tire when the car she was underneath fell on top of her, thousands of pounds of metal pinning her to the ground. The Danger of Manipulative Love-Bombing in a Relationship, 7 Ticking Time Bombs That Destroy Loving Relationships, An Addiction Myth That Needs to Be Revisited, 5 Spiritual Practices That Increase Well-Being. The Defendant now denounces and rejects a judicial system that convicted him of his crime beyond a reasonable doubt.The public needs to be able to forget Harold Henthorn, because he does not belong in anyones future. Toni Henthorn's brother, Todd Bertolet, told CBS4, "They're going to go after assets that should be in Toni's estate." As was the case with the crime scene photos, we can close our eyes to things that we dont want to see, but we cant close our hearts to the hurt that we dont want to feel.Tonis life was ruined by the lies and deceitfulness of the Defendant, but, in the end, the Defendant was exposed and convicted by the truth. Montoya wanted to cover his wife with something warm. (Photo credits: Harold Henthorn case update via Dateline, Tyler Cipriani) In 2000, Harold Henthorn married eye doctor Toni Bertolet after they met on a Christian dating website. Its a mandatory sentence for first-degree murder in Colorado; Henthorn was 59. Even though he said he could work from anywhere, he didnt see a future in Mississippi, where Tonis family, friends and nearly everyone else who was dear to her already lived. Every great doctor had seen loss, had seen suffering, had seen lifes struggles, but all had discovered a purpose in their own lives to rebound from the lows of tragedy. Perhaps the most difficult part to understand is that Henthorn had it made. But was it an accident? To the young man facing total blindness from an injury requiring the skilled hands of a surgeon, Tonis life mattered and was indispensable. The preparation of the Victim Statements by Barry, Todd and myself have helped us move ahead in the journey to recovery.Prepared by Bob Bertolet, October 19, 2015Amended December 5, 2015, My name is Todd Bertolet, and I am the younger brother of Toni Bertolet Henthorn.Toni Bertolet Henthorn was blessed with the gift of intellectual brilliance, impeccable character, extraordinary talents, and a big heart. As Warren Buffet stated, Honesty is a very expensive gift. "She contributed a lot to society, and to be wiped out for no good reason, it's more devastating." The Douglas County Sheriffs employees registered Harolds conflicting statements and made note of the strange fact that the spare tire he said he was going to use was barely more inflated than the one he was removing. The Defendant slandered the victims family for not publicly supporting his lies and deception and taught his daughter to hate as punishment of the same. Technically he was retired. The 100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time She chose ophthalmology, because to look into ones eyes draws a dedication and commitment to the person observed. He had her body cremated, scattered the ashes on Colorados Red Mountain, and collected the $4.7 million life insurance payout from the plan she had recently signed up for. If Henthorn is found guilty, I would not think either killing was premeditated but rather an opportunity arose and impulsively he used it to his advantage. First he convinced her to move to Colorado. Case closed. Bob and Yvonne watched as Harold slowly took control of Tonis life. Even though Harold had money, he refused to travel with Toni back to the South. var sc_security="9a0f0d6e"; So Yvonne continued with a final warning. If the Bertolets wanted to see their daughter they had to get on a plane, a burden for two elderly parents even before both suffered mild strokes. To another he said west. The Denver Channel, 7News, brings you the latest trusted news and information for Denver, Colorado, Mile High and. Family, friends and co-workers were convinced Harold Henthorn was responsible for his wife's death. The control Harold seemed to demand over Toni extended to their daughter as well. "We are overjoyed with the verdict and relieved this won't happen to any other lady," said Barry Bertolet, Toni Henthorn's brother. Create and promote branded videos, host live events and webinars, and more. In 1995, long before Weaver ever stepped foot in Douglas County, a woman died on the side of a dark road on a cold night. Firstly, we wanted to be a strong voice for Toni and to seek justice in her behalf. Prosecutors and police. The couple seemed quite happy initially and even gave birth to their only child, Haley, in 2005. And there was one huge, almost shockingly damning piece of evidence the prosecution used against Harold. ". Get the help you need from a therapist near youa FREE service from Psychology Today. Bertolet said he and his family believe Harold Henthorn funneled the $500,000 to his brother anticipating that he would eventually be charged criminally for Toni Henthorn's death and might not have access to the money. It wasnt until Toni came back to Mississippi to visit, for the first and only time in a decade without Harold, that Yvonne began to worry for her daughters safety. The 200 Greatest Singers of All Time This is an adapted chapter from Caleb Hannans new Kindle Single The Accidents; read the full story here. Every morning, she wakes up asking herself, "Did it really happen? He tossed the flat in the back, as Harold had said hed done in one version of his story. In 2012, Harold and Dr. Toni Henthorn celebrated their 12th wedding anniversary with a hiking trip in Rocky Mountain National Park. Was that a dream?". The Bertolets found it odd that long after shed ceased to be a baby, Harold kept a video monitor running in his daughters room. Nevertheless, even in this case, Harolds numerous statements widely differed from each other and were not believable. Feds say Henthorn pushed his wife over a cliff at Rocky Mountain National Park. The Defendants jealousy and selfish ambition prevented any of his energies from being expended in considering the good of others, and, as such, his actions were accordingly contemptible.The Defendant mistakenly believes that he is a father and parent just because he has a child. Harold Henthorn, convicted of killing his second wife by shoving her off a cliff, will not get a new trial according to a ruling. Solutions . Henthorn had been living a lie for years. Many notorious serial killers have been sociopaths, such as Ted Bundy and John Wayne Gacy. She died on the operating room after being flown to the hospital in a helicopter. In 1994, Henthorn was arrested for shoplifting $47.49 worth of men's underwear from a JCPenney store. Gary Clexton, a court-appointed special administrator representing Toni Henthorn's estate, declined to discuss the new court case involving Rob Henthorn and the half million dollars. He then let them take the lead when it came time to give her CPR. They were out hiking when Toni lost her balance on a steep cliff in Rocky Mountain National Park on September 29th, 2012, bleeding out on the ground 130 feet below where she fell. Henthorn was able to keep his shoplifting arrest a secret from everyone who knew him. After a careers worth of experience, Roberts told Detective Weaver that she could confidently say the accident scene that took Lynns life and the behavior of her husband were the most unusual she had ever come across. Man Accused in Wife's Deadly Fall Also Killed First Wife: Prosecutor. Harold stopped to check and had the vehicle propped up on a jack. Now those cops had a message for Douglas County: You need to go take a second look at something you thought you were done with. He insisted to anyone who would listen that he was an in-demand fundraiser who had a large staff and made millions a year. Nice, right? The Defendant preyed on women of faith in a Christian environment because, as with Toni, Christian women move forward in life with goodness in their heart as opposed to vigilance in their eyes. He needed things done his way something that was becoming more and more evident with each passing day. The Bertolets have always been a close-knit family, loving, helping and protecting one another. Unlucky in love, but a success just about everywhere else. / CBS Colorado. His second wife had $4.5 million in life insurance. Incidentally, the highway was quite deserted at that time of the year and did not witness much traffic. In the process of his own investigation, Detective Weaver discovered that no officer had called the restaurant where Harold claimed, at least in one version of his story, he and Lynn had eaten before the accident. By the time Detective Weaver called Roberts, she had been promoted all the way up to chief of the department, and had witnessed more deaths than she cared to count. Special administrators representing Toni Henthorn's estate are trying to recover the money so it eventually benefits Haley Henthorn, Toni Henthorn's daughter, not Harold Henthorn or his brother. As exhibited previously of the mother / daughter relationship between Toni and her mother, the Defendant saw no value in a mothers love; the Defendant only saw the financial value of the life of the mother.To a child, evil and villains are supposed to be easily identifiable. The basic facts of the case are these. Now that effort is laid to waste. First published on September 23, 2015 / 11:02 PM. Now that Harold had taken that daughter away from them, however, and made it almost impossible to talk with her, the quirks became decidedly less charming. The 100 Best Albums of 2022. To the young person contemplating committing suicide in need of compassion and skillful guidance, Tonis life mattered and was indispensable. There were other inconsistencies too. The Douglas County Coroner had ruled Lynns death as accidental. In 2014 federal magistrate judge Kathleen Tafoya said at a hearing, "The court views these transfers as an attempt to hide $500,000 in cash assets which could be used should the defendant decide to flee the country. And he maintains his innocence. Testimony in the Henthorn trial showed Harold Henthorn never really had steady employment, had brought in no income while married to Toni Henthorn, and had been living off his ophthalmologist wife and her family's money for years. Additionally, the police ascertained that Harold stood to gain substantial life insurance money following Tonis demise, which gave him a motive for murder. The audacity of Henthorns crimesand the fact that hes only been charged with one murder, though public opinion has deemed him overwhelmingly guilty of twocontinues to shock and amaze, even years after they first came to light. Not long after that he found what a lot of good detectives manage to find: a mantra. She was a beautiful hazel-eyed blonde Southern Belle who excelled in academics, sports, music and leadership. Selena Gomez vs. Hailey Bieber: Why Everyone Thinks They Need to Pick a Side. They also would have discovered that the amount was so high because Harold had changed the policy. Then, while she was standing below a raised porch with her back turned, Toni felt the weight of something heavy hit her on the neck and knock her to the ground. She told Toni she thought Harold wasnt working as much as he said he was, if at all. Most people dont know that within that department there are teams of cops who work cases just like police in less scenic precincts. If he is ultimately convicted of murder, he will face a mandatory life sentence with no possibility of parole. She said she believed Harold was living off of his first wifes life insurance, a death that everyone in the Bertolet family understood to be the result of a tragic car accident. To Toni Bertolet Henthorns family, her friends, and the people for whom she cared, Tonis life was about the moments that took our breath away.Todd Bertolet. ", VIDEO:Watch the CBS4 special "Inside The Investigation: Harold Henthorn. In fact, the most endearing and only statement that has been uttered by the Defendant is that he lost his best friend, a less than committed affirmation of a supposedly loving relationship. Friends and family thought they knew him, but did they, really? The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". But there was something else. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. My wife is Yvonne and our two sons are Barry and Todd. In photographs released by the US Attorney's Office after the. The Bertolets had accepted those quirks early on because thats what a good family does they worked hard at liking the person that made their daughter happy. They spoke to a co-worker of Lynns who said the whole scenario seemed suspicious. I feel for him and his family. The Defendant evidently perceived a strong and viable mother / daughter relationship as a threat to his authority in his warped world. Now he needed an answer to a question that was gnawing at him. He would put them on speakerphone and then do the majority of the talking, while Tonis voice came in faint and distant, as if she were standing in another room. Harold even called 911, and when first responders reached the scene, they noticed that Toni had fallen from a height of 140 feet to her death. He had done a lot: Two tours in Vietnam, a return to the country to help evacuate Saigon and 20 years patrolling Air Force bases. The story behind that tragedy was revealed last November in an episode of CBS' "48 Hours" and, apparently, more details are forthcoming with the "Dateline" broadcast this month. Yvonne had spent more than a decade suppressing her motherly intuition about Harold so that her daughter would be spared the consequences. Prosecutors and authorities learned that before Tonis death, she had been subjected twice to injuries allegedly caused by a wooden beam. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Even after shed fallen asleep, Harold found a way to keep his eye on his only child. My child now asks the appropriate question of how do I know. Oh it was nothing, Mrs. B! Harold had insisted on one of their phone calls afterwards. A federal jury on Monday convicted a man of murder for pushing his wife off a cliff as they hiked in Colorado to celebrate their wedding anniversary. They were the first people to witness his incredibly odd behavior the evening his first wife died. Harold had her body cremated, scattered the ashes on Colorados Red Mountain, and collected the $500,000 life insurance payout from the plan she had recently signed up for. And that was the end of the story, except for one detail: according to investigator Robert McMahan, On the front passenger fender of the vehicle, right behind the wheel well of the missing wheel, was an apparent partial foot print type mark. Meaning it looked like someone had tried to kick the car off its jack. But every time she broached the subject of Harolds job, the couples lack of money or his need for control over every part of her life, Toni always had the same response: If you do that, Ill suffer the consequences.

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