The AP has chimed in shedding a great deal of light on this case of a husband and wife day hiking in Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore near Miner’s Castle and the husband “allegedly” murdering her by pushing her over the edge.
Cliff Case Document tells of Affair
Thursday, February 15, 2007
The Associated PressMISSAUKEE COUNTY — A McBain man accused of pushing his wife to her death from a cliff at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore was expecting her to seek a divorce and was having an affair, according to a police affidavit.The document, filed in Alger County District Court, says Thomas David Richardson killed Juanita L. Richardson to cash in on a life insurance policy and gain freedom to pursue his lover.
Defense attorney Jason Elmore said Thomas Richardson, 44, was innocent and the affidavit is based on speculation.
“Those are the opinions and interpretations of police officers who believe he’s guilty,” Elmore said.
Alger County Prosecutor Karen Bahrman said the affidavit was written to summarize a large volume of evidence police had gathered.
Juanita Richardson, a 43-year-old secretary at McBain High School, dropped 140 feet from a cliff overlooking Lake Superior on June 22. Thomas Richardson is charged with open murder.
The affidavit said Thomas Richardson gave conflicting accounts of what happened.
He first said the couple hiked about a half-mile to the overlook and he left to use the bathroom as his wife sat near the cliff eating a snack. He said when he returned, she was gone, the report said.
Richardson later said he saw his wife jump off the cliff but withheld that from police to protect his wife’s “reputation,” the affidavit said. It said Richardson theorized Juanita Richardson was despondent over “empty nest syndrome” and a possibly cancerous lump.
The next day, Thomas Richardson again changed his story and said he saw his wife fall instead of jump, the report said.
The Richardsons met with an attorney nine days before her death to plan their first will, the affidavit said. During the consultation, Thomas Richardson pushed to have the documents executed before the couple’s planned Upper Peninsula vacation trip, the affidavit said.
It said life insurance policies on Juanita Richardson, naming her husband as beneficiary, totaled more than $240,000.
This guy doesn’t seem very bright hopefully they “allegedly” nail him to the wall. My favorite is how they visited a lawyer to complete their first will only 9 days before the incident.
via Grand Rapids Press @ MLive
tip via Siler @ Siler’s Path
Technorati Tags:PIRO, Murder, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, simplehiker, MISSAUKEE, munising, hiking
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