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The murder of successful ophthalmologist Toni Henthorn became sensational news back in 2012, but few would suspect the many twists that came following the woman's fall from the 140-foot cliff. From tales of deceit to a history of violence, this case became as twisted as one could imagine and ended with the person closest to Toni getting implicated in the murder, which was originally assumed to be a freak accident.
This murder is set to be the subject of the latest episode of 20/20 on ABC, which premieres at 9.00 PM EST on Friday, February 28, 2025. The logline for the episode, as revealed by ABC News, reads:
Toni Henthorn was an accomplished ophthalmologist with a seemingly perfect life that included a loving husband and a beautiful 7-year-old daughter named Haley. Toni and her family lived outside Denver, Colorado, where she had a thriving private practice."
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"But when she and her husband Harold celebrated their 12th wedding anniversary with a hike in Rocky Mountain National Park, Toni fell to her death from a 160-foot cliff. “GMA3” co-anchor Eva Pilgrim examines Toni Henthorn's suspicious death in all-new “20/20.”"
This case is filled with interesting details that all add up to provide a comprehensive picture of the gruesome crime. While there is almost too much to talk about, let us go over five interesting details from the murder of Toni Henthorn.
5 key details about the murder of Toni Henthorn
1) Toni Henthorn fell to her death while celebrating her 12th marriage anniversary, and her husband did not really try to save her
While taking a hike in Rocky Mountain State Park in Colorado on September 29, 2012, Toni allegedly slipped and fell to her death from a cliff that was over 130 meters tall. While Harold called 911, the dispatcher later claimed that she felt Harold was not trying to give her proper CPR.
Park rangers and dispatchers also revealed that Harold Henthorn was changing his story of the fall.
2) This was not the first accident that happened with Toni Henthorn
Interestingly, while Toni and Harold Henthorn were working at their mountain cabin in 2011, a 20-foot beam fell on Toni and snapped her vertebrae. She later told her mother that if she had not bent over at the time the beam fell, she could have died.
3) Harold Henthorn had taken out three life insurance policies on Toni Henthorn and was the sole beneficiary in each case
As the investigation went deeper, the authorities discovered that there was life insurance worth $4.7 million on Toni's life, which would have directly benefitted Harold. Toni's family members allegedly did not know of these policies and immediately claimed that Toni was to blame for their daughter's death.
4) Harold Henthorn's first wife also died in an "accident," and he lived off the insurance money from her death
While not a lot is known about Harold's first wife, Lynn Henthorn, she also died in a freak accident after being married to him for 12 years. She was crushed to death while they were trying to fix a tire in their Jeep Cherokee. Despite doubts, this was declared an accident, and Harold got away with Lynn's insurance money.
He had also lied about his financial condition to Toni and was actually living off Lynn's insurance money.
5) Harold Henthorn also had a map with an X marked on the spot where
Harold Henthorn's car had a map that had a spot marked "X." This is exactly the point from where Toni Henthorn fell to her death. Along with other evidence, like his need for control in their marriage, his first wife's death, and inconsistencies in his story, Harold was charged with the murder of Toni Henthorn.
He was ultimately sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The upcoming episode of 20/20 will cover this case in more detail.
