In a significant development, a judge ruled yesterday that Jon and Carie Hallford, owners of the Return to Nature funeral home, will face separate trials for their alleged involvement in leaving nearly 200 bodies to decompose in a building in Penrose. The decision underscores the complexities and potential conflicts within their defense strategies.
The judge’s decision to try the husband and wife separately came after Carie’s defense team argued that their defense approach would be “antagonistic” towards Jon’s. This move indicates a possible rift between the couple regarding their defense tactics for the over 260 felony charges they are facing.
The exact number of charges the Hallfords will face is still uncertain. Recently, the District Attorney’s Office added 26 new charges against them, including 24 counts of forgery, one count of abuse of a corpse, and one count of theft.
A new trial date for the state charges has not yet been set. Additionally, Jon and Carie Hallford are also facing over a dozen federal wire fraud charges, with that trial scheduled for October.
As the legal proceedings unfold, the community and those affected by the alleged actions of the Return to Nature funeral home await further developments in this high-profile case.
