Colorado
Colorado funeral home owners plead guilty to corpse abuse after nearly 200 bodies found decomposing
The owners of a Colorado funeral home accused of piling hundreds of bodies in room-temperature conditions inside a dilapidated building and giving loved ones concrete instead of ashes have pleaded guilty to corpse abuse.
Jon and Carie Hallford, who own the Return to Nature Funeral Home in Colorado Springs, Colorado, pleaded guilty to 191 counts of abuse of a corpse on Friday.
“The bodies were [lying] on the ground, stacked on shelves, left on gurneys, stacked on top of each other or just piled in rooms,” prosecutor Rachael Powell said in court.
Their loved ones are “intensely and forever outraged,” she added. Some of the families were in the courtroom when they pleaded guilty.
MIXED-UP REMAINS, ROTTING BODIES, FAKE ASHES: HOW GRIEVING FAMILIES UNCOVERED THESE 5 FUNERAL HOME HORRORS
Crystina Page, whose son died in 2019, said outside the courtroom on Friday: “He laid in the corner of an inoperable fridge, dumped out of his body bag with rats and maggots eating his face for four years. Now every moment that I think of my son, I’m having to think of Jon and Carie, and that’s not going away.”
The Hallfords also faced charges of theft, money laundering and forgery, which were dismissed with their plea deals.
The couple spent $882,300 in COVID relief funds on things like vacations, cosmetic surgery, car and tuition for their child.
Jon Hallford could serve 20 years in prison under the plea deal and Carie Hallford could serve 15 to 20 years.
Six people who objected to the plea deals, calling their recommended sentences insufficient, will get a chance to speak before they’re sentenced in April.
MOURNING LOVED ONES TARGETED BY ‘DESPICABLE’ FUNERAL HOME SCAM
If the judge rejects the plea deal, the case may still go to trial.
The Hallfords already pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in October in connection with their misuse of funds.
The accusations go back to 2019 and the improperly stored bodies were discovered after neighbors reported a stench coming from the building.
Authorities in hazmat gear found bodies stacked on top of each other, some so decayed they couldn’t be identified, and the place was infested with bugs.
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Following the gruesome discovery, Colorado has tightened funeral home regulations.
Fox News Digital’s Greg Wehner and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Colorado star and Heisman Trophy favorite Travis Hunter says he will enter the NFL Draft
Colorado Buffaloes two-way star Travis Hunter said Thursday he plans to declare for the 2025 NFL Draft.
“That’s definitely for sure,” Hunter, 21, told reporters when asked if he intended to declare.
A favorite to win the Heisman Trophy, Hunter plays both cornerback and receiver for the Buffaloes. He is projected by many to be selected first overall next April.
When asked about playing both offense and defense as a professional, Hunter acknowledged the rarity of doing both, saying, “It’s never been done.”
He added: “I understand that it will be a high risk, [teams] don’t want their top pick to go down too early and I know they’re going to want me to be in a couple packages. But I believe I can do it. Nobody has stopped me from doing it thus far.”
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In 10 games for Colorado this season, Hunter has 74 receptions for 911 yards and nine touchdowns — all career bests. Defensively, Hunter has three interceptions, eight passes defended and 23 tackles.
Hunter was a highly recruited player coming out of high school. A consensus five-star prospect, he originally committed to Florida State before flipping his commitment to Jackson State — becoming the first five-star recruit to commit to an HBCU.
Hunter played for one season at Jackson State under head coach Deion Sanders, then transferred to Colorado before the 2023 season when Sanders took the head coaching job there.
Last season, Hunter averaged close to 115 plays per game, participating in offense, defense and special teams.
Sanders’s son Shedeur, who plays quarterback for Colorado, is projected to be among the first signal-callers selected in next year’s draft. Another player who could be a Heisman finalist, Sanders said Thursday that Hunter is the more deserving of the two to win the award.
“If it’s between me and him, I would want him to get it,” Shedeur Sanders said. “He does a lot of amazing things and things that haven’t been done before. I’m not a selfish guy. I know what he’s capable of, so I would rather him win.”
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