Mike’s drug use

By the time Jill’s case was reopened, Mike’s life was already a mess. His dependency on drugs got him arrested in April 2008 for drugged-driving charges and he appeared in court on July 31 for a follow up on the charges. On August 1, he spoke with his third wife about the kids and he expressed his hope to be back home soon.

Mike’s unusual and untimely death

On August 2, Mike got a call from a friend at around 4:30 p.m. about shooting some clay pigeons later that day, but Mike never showed up. On August 3, that friend still hadn’t heard from Mike by noon, so he decided to drive to Mike’s big house near Woodland Park to see what was going on. He found the front door open and went inside. He found Mike inside his trophy room, lying on an inflatable mattress in front of the TV, surrounded by 25 of his rifles and hunting trophies. The friend thought Mike was asleep, but as he drew closer, he realized Mike was dead.