Harold Henthorn faces a mandatory life term when he is sentenced Dec. 8. Henthorn was able to keep his shoplifting arrest a secret from everyone who knew him. 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. The only question was whether Harold Henthorn would ever face any consequences. He was older. 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. 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. Bob Bertolet, Tonis father, and Todd Bertolet, her younger brother, read the following victim impact statements at Harolds sentencing. He probably could have continued to live that lie, but if he did this, then greed got the best of him. It had been a full day, and the sun had set. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Lynn Henthorns death was a tragedy, not a crime. It's a mandatory sentence for first-degree murder. Where Is Harold and Toni Henthorns Daughter Now. Harold Henthorn with Sandra Lynn, his first wife. In the upcoming documentary, Brian Maas will investigate the crime that captured the nation when Harold Henthorn was finally arrested for the murder of his second wife 20 years after the death of his first wife, Sandra Lynn Rishell, aka Lynn . He rested the car on the same type of jacks Harold said hed used, in the same spot on the same side of the road where Lynn died. Harold was later sentenced to life in federal prison. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". My wife is Yvonne and our two sons are Barry and Todd. Toni Bertolet Henthorns life was a masterpiece and role model to those who were fortunate to be a part of her life. The silence of the victim, Toni Bertolet Henthorn, in the court today represents her loudest cry for her daughter and the injustice at the hands of the Defendant.In closing, this trial was about the last moment in Tonis life and the moment that Toni took her last breath. He then let them take the lead when it came time to give her CPR. "We don't have to worry anymore.". 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. Mississippi doctor's murder examined by Dateline - WLBT She had a passion to console and give advice to those who were in need of direction and comfort. She had insurance policies, and Henthorn collected $496,000 from her death. Also, an extensive review found that Henthorn, who had a clean police record besides a couple of minor traffic citations, had been charged with shoplifting underwear! He tossed the flat in the back, as Harold had said hed done in one version of his story. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Tonis alma mater, the University of Mississippi, has set up an endowment in her name that will raise money for ophthalmology education and surgical equipment. That wasnt really a concern for the Bertolets Tonis father, Bob, had grown wealthy by making smart bets on pieces of land that turned out to be full of oil. According to Henthorn, he said a tire felt "spongy," so he pulled off the road to change 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. If he is ultimately convicted of murder, he will face a mandatory life sentence with no possibility of parole. To another he said it wasnt him Lynn was actually rescued by a random group of helpful strangers. Nor did the coroners office report whether the contents of Lynns stomach indicated one story was more plausible than the other. Friends and family were delighted for the pair, who seemed to be the perfect match. DENVER (CBS4) - CBS4 has learned that the brother of convicted killer Harold Henthorn -- Rob Henthorn -- has been ordered to appear in court next month to explain what happened to $500,000. Dateline: Toni Henthorn's Wedding Ring Diamond Was Missing - 2paragraphs She had already suffered through one previous marriage, and her parents knew that her deepening faith and the fact that she and Harold now had a child of their own meant it was unlikely she would ever choose to divorce him. Harold stopped to check and had the vehicle propped up on a jack. Knowing what you value will help you build the most meaningful life possible. 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. Jul 26, 2017 Slain Woman's Ashes Returned 4 Years After Murder. statements about the tragedy kept changing. Technically he was retired. That detail led to a much closer investigation of Tonis death. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. But for us, there will be, forever in this life, the pain and tears, maybe not seen by others, for our daughter, killed in a cruel, sadistic, senseless and cowardly act of violence.On September 29, 2012, the family as a whole decided on a course of action, not believing that the tragedy was an accident. Storyline Edit 48 Hours re-examines and updates the case of Harold Henthorn whose wives Lynn and Toni died 17 years apart in what were supposedly freak accidents. "48 Hours" The Accidental Husband (TV Episode 2015) - IMDb Initially, the couple appeared ecstatic in their new life and were happy with each other. As always, Dateline NBC will use experts, law enforcement officials, and friends and family members to shape the story. Suffer the consequences meant having to listen to Harold talk until he got what he wanted. 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. Following the death of his first wife, Harold married a second time after meeting Dr. Toni Jill Bertolet Henthorn on a dating site. Harold couldnt account for how the SUV fell off not one, but the two jacks he said hed used to prop it up. A chance to speak frankly with her daughter was something she hadnt had for a long time and Yvonne didnt waste it. The Defendant only made withdrawals and made no deposits in the lives of his wives and their families. The couple seemed quite happy initially and even gave birth to their only child, Haley, in 2005. Only then did it come crashing down. The Defendant demeaned the investigative authorities for uncovering his murder and sinister intentions. The story went like this: Late one night, while Haley slept inside the cabin, Harold asked Toni to help him clean up some debris. There was something else, too, buried inside the file. What kind of mind thinks like that to kill based on an opportunity? The letter was from the Department of the Interior, which oversees every one of the countrys 417 national parks. However, Harold kept insisting on his innocence and in 2017 appealed for a retrial which was subsequently shot down. Sandra's death is now being re-investigated more thoroughly by the Douglas County Sheriff's Office. She told Toni that Harold may have even been having an affair. The Defendant claimed to be financially wealthy, when, in fact he had no fortune at all. 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. When the friends and family of Toni Henthorn heard how she died, only one was able to put into words what so many others were thinking. Her greatest asset was her ability to feel what others were feeling. ", After the jury was dismissed, applause erupted in the courtroom. Do it carefully, not quickly, was Weavers. Then came more subtle attempts to choke off any contact Toni might have with those who loved her. Yet it was hard for the Bertolets not to notice that so much about Harold seemed not to make sense. When that didnt work, he threw it a little harder. Although Toni lived near her family in Mississippi and was a well-established opthalmologist, Harold persuaded her to leave her roots behind and move with him to Colorado. Yvonne had spent more than a decade suppressing her motherly intuition about Harold so that her daughter would be spared the consequences. In 2000, Harold Henthorn married eye doctor Toni Bertolet after they met on a Christian dating website. Then, he asked Sandra to come help him. Its a mandatory sentence for first-degree murder in Colorado; Henthorn was 59. Problems Persist For Henthorn Family: Brother Ordered To Court David Lindley, Multi-Instrumentalist Who Shaped the Sound of Soft Rock, Dead at 78 But was it an accident? Friends and family thought they knew him, but did they, really? 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. 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. Man Accused in Wife's Deadly Fall Also Killed First Wife: Prosecutor. Weaver was the man for the job because even in a room full of patient people, his patience marked him as different. On looking back, authorities realized that they had failed to follow up on numerous leads regarding Lynns death, including the partial footprint found on the Jeeps tire. The Dateline NBC episode 'Over the Edge' tells the story of Toni Henthorn who fell to her death while hiking with her husband Harold Henthorn in Rocky Mountain National Park in 2012. The only witness to the accident was her husband. Where is Harold Henthorn Now? - The Cinemaholic Her husband, Harold Henthorn, was convicted of first-degree murder in her death. His first wife Lynn died in 1995 after a car held up by a jack fell on her. Nice, right? Detective Weaver discovered that there were multiple witnesses to the accidents aftermath who were never contacted. He's either guilty of two murders or he has a perplexing attraction to exceedingly unlucky women. Here's everything to know about them. Henthorn told investigators that his wife paused to take a photo of the view and fell face-first over the ledge. In each case, the Defendant made arrangements to be a lucky recipient of significant benefits from those deathshis own version a post mortem lottery. To Detective Weaver, it was just one sign among many that the investigation was botched from the beginning. (When reached for comment, the Douglas County Sheriffs Department disputed this characterization, but said they could not elaborate. A federal jury on Monday convicted a man of murder for pushing his wife to her death off a cliff as they hiked in Colorado's Rocky Mountain National Park to celebrate their wedding anniversary, rejecting his claim that her fall was a tragic accident. I am haunted by my wifes lament: When Toni died, I died. 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. Toni was a successful eye surgeon yet she wanted nothing more than to be in a loving marriage and have a family. In photographs released by the US Attorney's Office after the. A true parent places a childs needs above their own selfish wants. Toni and Harold Henthorn were celebrating their 12th wedding anniversary the weekend when she died. The couple met online in late 1999 and got married only nine months later, both in a rush to have a child. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. 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. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. There were other inconsistencies too. All of Lynns belongings, along with the Jeep, were returned to Harold. But at the time of Lynns death, there were only five detectives covering an area half the size of Rhode Island. Bertolet said, "There's no doubt he paid for his defense with Toni's money.". The Defendant claimed to be a provider, when, in fact he offered and gave nothing. 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. His second wife Toni died in 2012 after a fall during a hike in Rocky Mountain National Park. 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. To the young medical physician in need of an accomplished mentor to guide a promising medical career, Tonis life mattered and was indispensable. If Harold said they needed a new car, the car got bought. Harold Henthorn, accused of pushing his second wife to her death in Rocky Mountain National Park, is being eyed in the 1995 death of his first wife. 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. The Defendant claimed to be a family man, when, in fact he was a selfish man. Perhaps the most difficult part to understand is that Henthorn had it made. 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. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice James 3:16. He insisted at both the verdict and the sentencing that he would appeal the decision. We ask: How could money be so important to a man, that he would kill the mother of his seven year old daughter?