Reading through the file 18 years later, Detective Weaver realized something, which would later come out in court testimony from his superiors: that in almost every one of those conversations Harold made a statement that conflicted with something else hed already said. But was it an accident? 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. 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. To one cop, Harold said that they were driving east. The U.S. Attorney's crime auditor testified last week that Henthorn had no employment and no steady source of income. Harold Henthorn pleaded not guilty and has always maintained his innocence. Montoya wanted to cover his wife with something warm. She told Detective Weaver that she had been at accident scenes where family members of victims were crying, screaming, and in some cases so emotional they punched her. In addition, Henthorn has only been in the public eye since 2012, and was only sentenced last year, but his story really spans twenty years. She wanted her to say that she would listen to her mothers warning. Additionally, the police ascertained that Harold stood to gain substantial life insurance money following Tonis demise, which gave him a motive for murder. Stories About Harold Henthorn - CBS Colorado Dale Archer, M.D., is a clinical psychiatrist and the author of Better Than Normal: How What Makes You Different Can Make You Exceptional. The money was purportedly for a business investment, according to evidence presented at an earlier federal court hearing. He had arrived with grand promises, including a claim that he was so rich that Toni would never have to work again. Old Medication, New Use: Can Prazosin Curb Drinking? Colorado Man Convicted of Killing Wife on Fatal Anniversary Hike - NBC News Harold never said she wasnt allowed, of course. The Accidental Husband: With Peter Van Sant, Brian Maass, Barry Bertolet, Toni Henthorn. That she would take it to heart. She died after plummeting about 130 feet off a cliff in a remote, rocky area where the couple had been hiking on Sept. 29, 2012, their 12th wedding anniversary. We are hoping that you have no more nights, no more pain, no more tears with the Heavenly Father. That woman on the mountain, she said. The sentence to be handed down by this court is the only result that the Defendant has actually earned in his adult life. The Defendant is neither a good father nor a replacement for a loving mother. There was something else, too, buried inside the file. var sc_project=9846729; Storyline Colorado, 2001: Toni Bertolet Henthorn, a doctor and mother, falls from a cliff in the Rockies. Harold claimed that one of the cars tires felt mushy, and pulled over to change it. After all, his first wife had also died under unusual circumstances, although her death was immediately ruled an accident. Before becoming a detective hed spent decades moving his wife from base to base. Knowing what you value will help you build the most meaningful life possible. He was a wealthy fundraiser for hospitals and churches. Alex Murdaugh Found Guilty of Murdering Wife and Son. Toni Henthorn was a skilled ophthalmologist and loving mother. The Defendants so called estate planning banked on and invested heavily in the premature demise of his wife. They couldnt talk about Harold on the phone, since every call with her was also a call with him. At least that's what he told family, friends, and everyone else. Did you arrest the husband yet? shed asked. Plot summary Add synopsis Genres Documentary News Certificate TV-PG Parents guide Add content advisory Last pictures of Toni Henthorn killed by her husband Harold Henthorn on Over the course of those dozen years, Bob and Yvonne Bertolet watched their daughter change. Harold was usually cheery, often irrepressibly so. Little did Harold Henthorns friends and neighbors know of the terrible secret he had been hiding for most of his married life. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. A true parent places a childs needs above their own selfish wants. Every morning, she wakes up asking herself, "Did it really happen? 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. Toni Bertolet Henthorns life was a masterpiece and role model to those who were fortunate to be a part of her life. We can only hope to learn more as the trial kicks into gear. PostedNovember 18, 2014 A jury convicted Henthorn of murder in 2015 after about 10 and a half hours of deliberation. Secondly, we wanted to provide a safe and loving environment for Haley, preferably with her mothers Mississippi family. Detective Weaver further discovered that the department was woefully undertrained: the man in charge of the investigation had been a detective for all of five months, had never been the lead on any homicide, and had never undergone any formal training before becoming a detective. Reached this week, Rob Henthorn declined to discuss the half million dollars and referred questions to his attorney, Pam Mackey. Within less than a week, Douglas Countys coroner declared Lynn Henthorns death an accident. Mississippi doctor's murder examined by Dateline - WLBT Harold Henthorn, 59, was convicted of one count of first-degree murder in the 2012 death of his second wife, Dr. Toni Henthorn. To some people he said the Jeep fell when he threw the flat tire into the open hatch in the back. She was in immense pain and had numbness in her fingers when she was taken by ambulance to the ER. Shortly before her death, the change Harold made allowed for double the compensation if Lynn died as a result of an accident. 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. DENVER - A Colorado man accused of killing his wife by pushing her off a cliff has been found guilty, CBS Denver reports. He was a good guy, a loving husband, a good father to their daughter, and extremely busy working as a fundraiser for churches,. Still, Harold persisted in his innocence, and in 2017 he filed an appeal for a retrial, which was subsequently denied. Where Is Harold and Toni Henthorns Daughter Now. Harold and Toni Henthorn Toni and Harold met online in 1999 and married just nine months later. Then came the incident at the cabin. Nothing budged the car. Copyright 2023 Penske Business Media, LLC. A Colorado jury of eight women and four men deliberated for 12 hours over two days before deciding Monday afternoon that Harold Henthorn, 59, was guilty of murdering his wife three years ago. Montoya eventually got so fed up with the fact that Harold wouldnt help warm up his freezing, near-death wife that she used her own coat and left it at the scene once she and her family realized the police were almost there. Her brother, Todd Bertolet, after learning about the theft arrest, said, "I'm blown away. Feds say Henthorn pushed his wife over a cliff at Rocky Mountain National Park. On September 29, 2012, Harold and Toni Henthorn went for a hike at Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. We grieve that we were not by her side in her dying moments. 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. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. If he is ultimately convicted of murder, he will face a mandatory life sentence with no possibility of parole. We feel some of the information in the article is misrepresented or incorrect, Douglas County Sheriff Tony Spurlock toldRolling Stone in a statement, but we still have an ongoing criminal investigation and are not at liberty to discuss the case any further.). "We don't have to worry anymore.". He organized playdates with other parents, told Haley when and what to eat, and made it clear to everyone paying attention that he, not Toni, was in charge. 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. The Defendant feels no guilt, and, as is the case with most criminals, blames the victim, the victims family, the Good Samaritan and rescuers, the press, the investigative authorities, and the judicial system for his troubles. "Believe it or not I forgive him (Henthorn) for doing it. ", After the jury was dismissed, applause erupted in the courtroom. Douglas County had changed tremendously in the intervening years. The Douglas County Coroner had ruled Lynns death as accidental. He slammed the tailgate. 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. 48 Hours examines the case of Harold Henthorn whose wives died 17 years apart in supposedly freak accidents. Author Vissarion Belinsky appropriately noted, Nothing is more sacred and selfless like the love of a mother; every affection, everylove, every passion, is either weak or selfish in comparison with her. The Defendant chose his own selfishness and greed over the needs of his family. 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. Dateline airs Friday nights at 9 PM on NBC. To another he said it wasnt him Lynn was actually rescued by a random group of helpful strangers. But given the inconsistencies in Harolds story plus the inaccurate life insurance figure he shared, along with the fact that no one could explain exactly how the Jeep had fallen in the first place its existence pointed to an alternative explanation: Harold had kicked the car and killed his wife on purpose. After meeting on a Christian dating website, the two got in touch and connected over their love for religion. Even though Harold had money, he refused to travel with Toni back to the South. Even after shed fallen asleep, Harold found a way to keep his eye on his only child. Bertolet said, "There's no doubt he paid for his defense with Toni's money.". How does she know that a trusted person is not lying to her? But there was something else. Earnings for Henthorn were in 1993, 1999, and 2000, but nothing after that. Bertolet said he supported what the court-appointed administrators were doing since Toni Henthorn's family believes Harold Henthorn has likely spent hundreds of thousands of dollars of his dead wife's money to pay his own defense lawyers. What Toni meant was that Harold didnt like to be questioned. Andaccording to Haroldhe was putting the old tire in the trunk, with Sandra underneath the car, when the car slipped off its jack and crushed her. Nevertheless, even in this case, Harolds numerous statements widely differed from each other and were not believable. After all, Harold was a respected member of the community. Then came Harold. The couple met online in late 1999 and got married only nine months later, both in a rush to. To the young man who thought he needed a new prescription for his glasses, but was diagnosed by Toni with an aggressive brain tumor requiring immediate intervention, Tonis life mattered and was indispensable. 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. Only then did it come crashing down. On May 6, 1995, Harold and Lynndecided to go on a long drive along a highway in Sedalia, Colorado. The Defendant claimed to be financially wealthy, when, in fact he had no fortune at all. 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. Then came more subtle attempts to choke off any contact Toni might have with those who loved her. They had lunch together, and headed down a nearby ridge to take pictures, passing the camera back and forth all the while. Her dreams seemed to come true when she met Harold. Her husband's past is probed and deadly secrets are revealed. Gacy was a popular Chicago contractor who entertained children in hospitals, yet also raped, tortured, and killed 33 young men. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. The Defendant deserves the sentence of this Court as he has worked his entire adult life earning the same. "That was very meaningful," Bertolet said. When Harold Henthorns second wife, Dr. Toni Henthorn, appeared to lose her life after a tragic fall, authorities became suspicious of the two times widower. Black Widower: How One Man Allegedly Murdered Two Wives Henthorn had been living a lie for years. var sc_invisible=0; What kind of mind thinks like that to kill based on an opportunity? Sandra's death is now being re-investigated more thoroughly by the Douglas County Sheriff's Office. 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. Tonis brother Barry Bertolet spoke at the sentencing. DATELINE Harold Henthorn case update involves possible - Starcasm The Jeep was then salvaged. In the Defendants selfish quest to hoard a child as a possession, he interfered with and severed a sacred relationshipthat of a mothers love for her child and the childs need for the love her mother. He was constantly talking, often bragging, and always had to be the center of attention. The file contained a note from a woman named Patricia Montoya, who called the day after the accident with a question. 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. The sentencing today is the final act in completing our first goal and has opened the door to achieving the second goal. Dateline: Toni Henthorn's Wedding Ring Diamond Was Missing - 2paragraphs So Yvonne continued with a final warning. In 2012, Harold and Dr. Toni Henthorn celebrated their 12th wedding anniversary with a hiking trip in Rocky Mountain National Park. Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. After his second wife died in an accident, authorities found that circumstances of his first wife's death were more suspicious than they realized. We are forced to say goodbye, forced to learn to live without our loved one, and forced to fill the emptiness that remains in our hearts. Detective Weaver heard something similar from Rebecca Roberts. Where is Harold Henthorn Now? - The Cinemaholic 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. var scJsHost = (("https:" == document.location.protocol) ? She was a volunteer with the West Douglas County Fire Department who arrived on scene shortly after Montoya left. According to Henthorn, he said a tire felt "spongy," so he pulled off the road to change it. In December, Toni Bertolet's husband, Harold Henthorn, received a mandatory life sentence for her death. She called the Sheriffs office the next day to ask where she could pick up the coat. All of Lynns belongings, along with the Jeep, were returned to Harold. The Harold Henthorn-Toni Henthorn murder case will be aired on the latest episode of 48 Hours. Henthorn was indicted on Nov. 6 in the death of his second wife, who fell to her death while hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park. All of this led to the filing of murder charges last week. For both wives of Harold Henthorn, the locations where they died were deserted and Henthorn was the only other person present. Harold Henthorn and Toni Henthorn tied the knot in 2000. On Thursday, prosecutors released photos and audio used in the murder trial of Harold Henthorn, 59 Henthorn was convicted last month of first-degree murder in the 2012 death of his wife Toni,. The case now before Weaver was different, though. 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. Henthorn told authorities his wife was busy taking photographs and must have slipped, although he didn't see exactly what happened because he was using his phone at the time. He pushed her.. 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. "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. 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. When Detective Weaver called her nearly 20 years later and asked if she had any idea why he, an officer from Douglas County, might be calling out of the blue, Montoyas answer came quick and definitive. 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. He needed things done his way something that was becoming more and more evident with each passing day. IE 11 is not supported. She died on the operating room after being flown to the hospital in a helicopter. Toni and Harold Henthorn were celebrating their 12th wedding anniversary the weekend when she died. But I would be very careful. Following the death of his first wife, Harold married a second time after meeting Dr. Toni Jill Bertolet Henthorn on a dating site. Harold Henthorn flanked by first wife Lynn and second wife Toni. To the young man facing total blindness from an injury requiring the skilled hands of a surgeon, Tonis life mattered and was indispensable. 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. He insisted to anyone who would listen that he was an in-demand fundraiser who had a large staff and made millions a year. Not only for the death of the wife hed just lost, but for the one whod died so many years before. I disagree with the Defendants counsel when he proclaimed that the Defendant told lies to his detriment; the truth is the Defendant told lies for his direct benefit.