Delia d'Ambra (2:20)
Hi park enthusiasts. I'm your host, Delia D', Ambra, and the case I'm going to tell you about today is a really, really tough one. It involves a horrific crime, arson, domestic violence, and minors who were subjected to all of those things at once. I'll be listing some resources at the end of this episode because I think it's important that anyone who's listening, who may find themselves in a situation with a partner where they feel abused, unsafe, or feel their children are unsafe, can know there are resources out there to help them. The story takes place in Arapaho National Forest in Colorado. For those of you who may be unfamiliar with this part of the United States, it's one of the most visited national forests in the entire country. The Rocky Mountains are a big draw, but a lot of people also come to the area to camp, check out lakes, visit old mills, or hike in the more remote wilderness areas. The region of the forest where this specific crime took place is known as the Barber Fork Area, which is about a one hour drive west of Denver and near the town of Idaho Springs. What authorities found there in June 2016 was a scene that likely has stayed with many of them and probably always will. This is Park Predators Sam Around 7:45 in the morning on Friday, June 17, 2016, a dispatcher at an emergency Communications center in Clear Creek County, Colorado received an alarming 911 call from a young boy. The kid said that his mother, 36 year old Christina Archuleta Blazer, sometimes pronounced Blasi A or Blasier, had suffered severe burns at their family's campsite and she needed immediate medical assistance. Shortly after that call came in, deputies with the Clear Creek County Sheriff's Office and local paramedics rushed to the scene, which was located along County Road 140 in the Barber Fork area of the National Forest. When units arrived, they found a deeply unsettling scene. Christina was in a very unwell state near her family's campsite. She had third and fourth degree burns across 60% of her body, with most of the damage concentrated to her torso. Next to her were her two sons who were 7 and 10 years old, and her boyfriend, 32 year old John Anthony Vasquez. However, I did see some variation in the source material in court records that said the youngest son was six, not seven. But either way, there were limitations to the kind of aid deputies and paramedics could render to Christina in the woods, so they quickly called for a medical helicopter to come to the scene and fly her to the burn unit at the University of Colorado Hospital in Aurora. When she arrived, she was listed in critical condition. Meanwhile, back in the National Forest, investigators began to get their bearings and figure out what exactly had happened to help in that effort Clear Creek county officials called in the Colorado Bureau of Investigation to assist them, which was a larger state agency with more resources. In addition to a car registered to John, they discovered a seven gallon gas can that was half full but missing its spout, a container of Fireball brand whiskey, and several beer bottles, one of which was broken. After collecting all that stuff, investigators arranged for John and the boys to speak with detectives in the parking lot of the Barber Forks trailhead, which, just looking on the map, doesn't seem to have been too far away from where the family was camping. According to police reports, one of the first things investigators noticed when they sat Christina's sons down was that the youngest one had visible second degree burns on his left hand. They asked him how he got the injury, and he said that his mom's boyfriend had spilled gasoline on her and then she'd caught on fire. The boy explained that he'd tried to pour water on his mother to put out the flames, but he'd gotten burned in the process. The other son told investigators that he hadn't actually been at the family's campsite when his mom caught on fire. He'd been down at a nearby creek, but quickly returned when he heard his brother shouting that their mom was on fire. When he arrived, he said he saw his mom's boyfriend John, kicking dirt on Christina, who by that point was visibly engulfed in flames. Because neither of Christina's sons are named publicly in court documents or the available source material, I don't think it's appropriate for me to name them here since they're minors. That being said, not being able to differentiate between them by name makes it hard to delineate which one of them was the one who tried to help Christina at the campsite and which one was at the creek when the fire first broke out. But regardless, the point is, both of the boys were young and very shaken up by what had happened to their mother. One of them told deputies that John had only been in their life for about a year up until that point, and during that time, there had been lots of fighting between him and Christina. Now, after providing their initial statements to investigators, the boys were allowed to see their biological father, who was divorced from Kristina, and they remained in his custody for the time being. For investigators, it seemed as if everything the boys had revealed pointed the finger at John for allegedly dousing Christina with gasoline, which I have to assume made authorities extremely suspicious of him. So to get as much information as possible, the sheriff's office had forensic interviewers sit down with both of Christina's sons at a facility in Arvada, Colorado, that specialized in helping children who'd witness abuse or violence. During those interviews, one of the boys, and I don't know if it was the younger one or the older one, clammed up and said he didn't want to talk about what happened, but the other one did. He revealed to authorities everything that had transpired prior to the incident at the campsite. He said that the family's camping trip had been planned at the last minute, and they'd arrived in the national forest late at night on Thursday, June 16. Not long after getting there, Christina and John had started fighting, and John ended up kicking Christina, and Christina punched John in the face, injuring his lip. Because of the couple's altercation, no one had taken the time to set up the family's tent, and so their only option for shelter that night was to sleep in John's car. Right before going to bed, John had reportedly made a fire and eaten s' mores with the boys. The following morning, June 17, they'd all woken up to discover that the battery to John's car was dead. So one of Christina's sons went to find something to jump it with, and the other son went down to the creek. A short time later, the one who'd been at the creek said he heard his brother shout the words, quote, I hate you, Johnny, and screamed that their mother was on fire. One of the boys then grabbed the jug of water and attempted to extinguish the flames. The son who provided all this information to authorities said that Christina had been rolling on the ground when he and his brother were trying to help her. And he'd learned from speaking with his brother that his brother had physically witnessed John pour gasoline on Christina and use a blue lighter to set her on fire near one of her shoulders. Eventually, the boys and Kristina had managed to put out the flames, and she'd been able to tell one of them to call 911. But. And here's the thing that I think is probably the worst part of this kid's account. The brother who saw the alleged arson take place said that John had just stood there and laughed while Kristina burned alive. In addition to obtaining the forensic interviews with the boys, authorities also gathered their clothing as evidence. Investigators had noted that there was what looked like blood and fire destruction on their shirts and pants. Authorities also learned that apparently the boys had tried to get in touch with their grandparents around midnight when John and Christina had been fighting, and they'd even gone as far as calling 911 during that altercation. But Christina eventually got on the line and told the operator that everything was fine. While on their way home from the facility where the forensic interviews took place, Christina's sons discussed what had happened with their father and their stepmom. The stepmom recorded the discussion on her phone and captured the boys talking about a bottle being broken or something about their mom breaking a glass bottle before John doused her with gasoline and set her on fire. When the boy's father asked his sons if either of them had assisted John in the arson, they said no, they hadn't. Not long after recording the boys discussion during the car ride, their stepmom emailed that audio file to detectives at the sheriff's office. So if investigators didn't already have a mountain of incriminating information to confront John with, they did now. According to police reports, not long after being initially questioned at the Barber Forks trailhead parking lot, authorities arrested John, but not for attempted murder or arson. He'd been detained for violating the conditions of a restraining order that Christina had previously gotten against him in Jefferson County, Colorado, where the couple lived. I'll get more into detail about their relationship and this protection order in just a bit, but for right now, I want to stay focused on the crime scene and investigators first formal interview with John. To make sure they really had their ducks in a row before confronting him, Detectives needed to know just exactly what had been discovered at the crime scene. According to police reports, evidence techs had successfully determined where in the campsite Christina had caught on fire, and it was about 10 to 11 yards away from the site's designated fire pit. Investigators hadn't found any evidence of a struggle or disturbance on the ground at that specific location. But it was clear that once Christina had realized she was burning, she'd moved downhill and across a nearby road in the direction of the neighboring creek. Detectives had found a trail of what appeared to be burned clothing, a watch, and a hoop earring all along that path. But interestingly, though, there weren't any burned items or signs of fire between where Christina had ignited and the campsite's fire pit, which I think indicated to investigators that they weren't looking at a scenario where she'd been near the fire pit or tending to an open flame when she caught on fire. Otherwise, there should have been some burned clothing, jewelry, anything that looked out of place between the fire pit and the ignition point. The one person investigators hoped would provide answers to their growing list of questions was John. So shortly after arresting him for violating the restraining order, deputies sat him down for an interview at the sheriff's office. Despite being advised of his Miranda rights, he agreed to cooperate and willingly spoke with detectives on his person. They found two disposable lighters, one of which was blue, which was a detail one of Kristina's sons had already provided investigators. But I don't think John knew that had happened. Anyway, his account of, well, pretty much everything was vastly different from what his girlfriend's sons remembered. He admitted to arguing with Christina on the night of June 16, but swore nothing between them had turned physical. However, the detectives who were interviewing him were looking at his face as he was talking, and they could see that his lip was busted. So they asked him how that had happened, but John wouldn't elaborate. He explained that on the night he'd been arguing with Christina, they'd each been drinking. He'd had a beer and some of the fireball whiskey they'd packed, and Christina mostly drank the whiskey. On the morning of the 17th, he said he'd awoken and tried to start a fire in the campsite's fire pit to cook everyone breakfast. But the next thing he knew, Christina was on fire. John told authorities that he'd try to yell at her to stop, drop, and roll. But then everything after that, well, it was a bit of a blur. When detectives asked him straight up if he'd doused her with gasoline and set her on fire, he said, no, he hadn't. He claimed that once the flames were out, Christina had gone to the nearby creek, and then he'd helped her get inside the passenger seat of his car while they waited for emergency responders to arrive. Now, that part of his story about helping Kristina into the car was fairly easy for investigators to corroborate because they'd actually found a pillow in the passenger seat of his vehicle that had what appeared to be blood on it. So that detail pretty much checked out. But almost everything else John had told them, let's just say detectives were very skeptical of. I mean, in one of Kristina's son's interviews, he'd specifically said, quote, johnny spilled gasoline on mom and lit a lighter. End quote. But there was one small problem. An arson investigator with the CBI who'd thoroughly searched the crime scene hadn't found any sort of ignition source. There was no lighter on the ground, no cigarettes, no remnants of a match, nothing. One assumption investigators likely had was that John could have used one of the disposable lighters that had been found in his pockets to set Christina on fire, which I think is the obvious choice. But in the arson investigators opinion it probably would have helped to find some source of ignition at the crime scene, but that tied a specific incendiary device to everything else they'd gathered as evidence so far. Basically, John having the lighters wasn't a smoking gun type of thing. It was just circumstantial evidence, not hard proof. I imagine what would have been ideal evidence was to have a charred lighter or matchbox at the crime scene with his fingerprints on it or something. So it was essentially John's word against Christina's two minor age sons and Christina herself. But at that point in time she was in no state to speak with authorities and that prognosis was about to go from bad to worse. When you're starting a new business venture like a podcast, it seems like your to do list is never ending. From scripts to setup, filming schedules to logos, it's super easy to feel overwhelmed. That's why finding the right tool, one that streamlines the process and makes things simpler, is a game changer for millions of businesses. That tool is Shopify. 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On Saturday, June 18, the day after the incident at the campsite, Colorado authorities arrested John for attempted second degree murder and first degree assault. @ his first appearance in court the Monday after his arrest, he pleaded not guilty and a judge set his bail at $2 million. A few days after that, the court issued a new protection order forbidding him to have any contact with Christina and her sons by the end of the month, Clear Creek County's district attorney filed more charges against him and amended the existing ones he was already facing. According to court filings, there ended up being nine different felony counts, which included charges for child abuse, radio criminal impersonation, 4th degree arson, assault, violation of a protection order, and finally attempted first degree murder, which was an upgrade from the previous charge of attempted second degree murder. Based on everything I gathered, it seems authorities genuinely believed John intentionally attacked Christina with gasoline and fire. In other words, premeditated murder. I would imagine prosecutors entertain the scenario that perhaps he'd equipped himself with the tools necessary to take Christina's life via arson in advance of their camping trip. Now, some of you may be wondering, wait, what was that criminal impersonation charge against John? Well, according to the court filings, it had something to do with John using the fake name Chris Wilson to gain some kind of benefit for himself or another in order to injure or defraud somebody. The specifics of what benefit he obtained, though, and why he used a false identity is something the source material doesn't provide much detail about. But nonetheless, that criminal impersonation charge was part of the amended charges the DA's office filed against him on June 29, almost two weeks after the crime. According to court documents, Christina was listed as a witness for the prosecution at that time, but unfortunately, that would never come to be. On July 20, a little over a month after she was attacked, Christina passed away from her injuries, according to coverage by Vail Daily and nine News, she never recovered enough to tell authorities who specifically had attacked her. According to an article by Yesenia Robles for the Denver Post, one of her parents wrote on a now inoperable GoFundMe page in part quote, I'm sure a lot of you have already heard that our dearest daughter went to be with the Lord. What a heart wrenching time I will miss her. Her poor boys, they took this so hard. It was so devastating to see their broken hearts. End quote. Christina's death triggered the district attorney's office to upgrade John's charges. Once again. He was recharged with first degree murder instead of just attempted first degree murder. One of the prosecutors over the case told the press, quote, the penalty for first degree murder is life without the possibility of parole. The charges reflect that the incident was a premeditated act. We mourn the passing of this mother of three who meant so much to her family and friends, end quote. Yeah, you heard that quote correctly. Mother of three. Christina wasn't just the mom of her two boys who'd been with her and John during that fateful camping trip. She also had an older son from a prior relationship who was left without his mother. Not long after her death, loved ones laid her to rest in the Del Norte Cemetery in Colorado. Her tombstone features a heart shaped photo of her which sits above the words beloved mother, daughter and sister. Based on everything I read in news coverage and court documents, John and Christina had been in a romantic relationship for about two years prior to her death. Like I mentioned earlier, before this crime happened, John had a conviction that stemmed from a domestic violence incident between him and Christina. Vail Daily reported that in October 2015, the couple had gotten into an argument about the remote control to Christina's television. At some point during that altercation, Christina had started recording John on her phone. He ended up dropping and breaking her tv. And in the recording she'd made, he was heard making excuses for his actions. He was eventually found guilty of criminal mischief related to that domestic violence incident and life went on. They continued to stay in one another's orbit despite their issues. But as a convicted criminal, one stipulation of John's court ordered conditions was that he wasn't supposed to consume alcohol. During his four week murder trial, which took place in April 2018, it came out that the argument he and Christina had the night before her death revolved around him continuing to drink. Court records state that on the morning of the crime, Christina picked up a bottle of beer he'd been consuming and shattered it. Prosecutors argued that had caused John to fly into a rage and pour gasoline on her, chase her and then use one of his lighters to set her on fire. Among the witnesses who testified about the attack were Christina's two youngest sons. News coverage states that they had to relive and remember in detail the morning their mother was attacked and how they tried to save her in the wake of their mom's death. They'd been living with their dad, who was divorced from Christina, and I assume that's where they remain today. Other things that greatly impacted jurors at trial were forensic experts who testified about the arson element of the crime, and John himself, But not in the way you might think. Jurors got to hear the audio recording of him that Christina had captured during her 2015 domestic violence incident. And that went a long way Because John's defense at trial was basically what had happened to Christina was not intentional. It was the result of a terrible camping accident. But when the jury listened to how John spoke to Christina when she'd recorded him back in 2015, that was it for them. It was clear to the panel members that he was a violent abuser who'd likely intended to harm Christina and take her life that fateful day in June 2016. The jury also learned that he'd hit Christina's sons in the past, which didn't do him any favors. On April 26, 2018, jurors found John guilty of felony murder, second degree murder, first degree assault, fourth degree arson, child abuse, Criminal impersonation, and violating a protection order. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, plus 21 years. In Colorado, a first degree murder conviction automatically carries a mandatory life sentence. The 21 years he got was for being found guilty of criminal impersonation and child abuse. The judge who determined his sentence described John's actions as senseless, sick, depraved, and despicable. At the sentencing hearing, Christina's loved ones recounted their memories of her and expressed deep sorrow for how much of her life had been taken away by John's horrific act. They emphasized that her two youngest sons would likely have mental scars for the rest of their lives. After the sentencing hearing ended, the district attorney told the press, quote, shocking is that over 15,000 people a year are victims of domestic violence, and each year a couple dozen will die at the hand of a so called loved one. Christina, however, isn't just a statistic. She was a loving mother and woman who, who leaves three children behind and a family that will always remember the joy she brought to this world. He later continued, we are happy to receive justice for Christina today. This case was an example of incredible teamwork of so many in the first responder community and the tenacity of Christina's family to see through so many court hearings and a lengthy trial. We are grateful for this result, but continue to mourn the loss of a beautiful woman, end quote. But just because the trial was over and John was carted off to prison. That didn't mean he was giving up his legal fight, not by a long shot. You know what's more stressful than packing school lunches? Realizing you're out of everything at 7am Stock up during Thrive Market's Back to School sale. Thrive is a lifesaver for busy households. No need to vet every ingredient or make multiple trips to different stores. Thrive offers the ability to shop by diet values or even food phases. Perfect for families with kids whose tastes change week to week. Snack options include fan favorite snacks and pantry staples like Yum Earth Gummies, Aloha Bars, poppy sodas and the good crisp chips. 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My friend Madison, who's actually a reporter for Audio Check, has been in a mad rush lately to get all the things done before her baby comes in just a few weeks, and so her and her husband are a bit overwhelmed. She was telling me how they have to assemble the crib and put furniture together and mount things to the wall and that's when I said, hey, you might want to check out TaskRabbit. Tackle your to do list today and get 15% off your first task@taskrabbit.com or on the TaskRabbit app using promo code parkpredators. That's promo code parkpredators@taskrabbit.com for 15% off your task TaskRabbit book trusted help for home tasks In 2022, four years after John's conviction, he made headlines once again when he appealed his case. He argued that the evidence the state had used against him at trial with regards to 4th degree arson was insufficient to merit a conviction. And if he could convince an appeals court that the state had failed to present sufficient evidence in relation to the arson, then that could mean his first degree felony murder conviction, which was folded into that charge via Colorado's version of the Felony Murder Rule, could be overturned. For those of you who want that broken down a little further, how the Felony Murder rule works in many states, including Colorado, is like this. If you're a person who commits or attempts to commit a felony like robbery, kidnapping, arson, so on, and as a result of that felony someone is killed, then you're on the hook for murder. In John's case, he and his defense attorney had found a loophole of sorts, specifically with how the state of Colorado defined fourth degree arson. According to court filings, Colorado's state statute defines that felony this a person who knowingly or recklessly starts or maintains a fire on his own property or that of another, and by doing so places another in danger of death or serious bodily injury. According to John and his team, the state statute wasn't clear on whether fourth degree arson had anything to do with setting a person on fire. It was really the word property that was the crux of their argument. A great article by Michael Karlic for Colorado Politics explains John's appeal argument, like everyone involved in the case, had to figure out whether or not Christina's clothing counted as property, since that was what John had technically set on fire. If her clothing was defined as property, then he was no doubt guilty of fourth degree arson. But if the state statute was ambiguous about her clothing versus her in terms of property, then his argument had some teeth to it. During trial, John and his defense team had tried to make this same point and even asked for an acquittal because of it. But the trial judge denied that request. And I know this may seem like a lot of legal semantics to some of you and is probably a little confusing, but to distill it down as succinctly as I can, there were two critical questions at the center of John's appeal, which I'll read almost verbatim, and they are one can someone be convicted of fourth degree arson if they light another person's clothing on fire while that person is still wearing the clothing? And two can the act of arson serve as the predicate felony for felony murder? The appellate court strongly believed that the answer to both those questions was was yes. The judges affirmed John's conviction and stated in their ruling that property as Defined by state statute for fourth degree arson didn't just refer to a victim's clothing. It also meant the geographic location of the fire, which in Christina's case was the physical campsite that she was visiting or occupying the spot in the woods. In other words, that was what the appellate court said was the property John had committed arson on, which resulted in a death. The appellate court also ruled that the trial court had not violated John's rights by allowing jurors to hear about his previous instances of domestic violence. Now, how it normally works is if you have other crimes in your past that are unrelated to the crime you're on trial for, prosecutors can't bring that stuff in as evidence because it could be prejudicial. However, when a case involves domestic violence and there is a clear history or pattern of abuse between a defendant and their victim, exceptions are made. The other notable conclusion in the appeals court's decision was that John's felony murder conviction and his second degree murder conviction should be rolled into one murder offense, which it eventually was. As of this recording, John is in his early 40s and will likely remain behind bars for the rest of his natural life in the Colorado department of Corrections. I strive not to be too graphic on this show out of respect for the victims and their families. But in this specific case, I think it's important to know that the damage John inflicted on Christina and her family is a critical reminder of just how ruthless some abusers can be. Nine News and Vail daily reported that she died from third and fourth degree burns. Those kinds of injuries are described as going bone deep. It's almost unimaginable to think how cold a person would have to be to watch someone suffering in that way and do nothing to help them but rather laugh while it's happening. Meanwhile, there are two innocent young children in front of you who are trying their best to save their mother. It's hard to even articulate how I feel about John Vasquez, and I can't even begin to imagine how Cristina's loved ones must feel. I hope that with time, they can heal from this tragedy. If you're someone who believes you may have encountered domestic violence or are currently experiencing domestic violence, please know that you're not alone. And there are a wealth of resources and organizations out there that want to help you. You can call the national domestic violence hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE or 1-800-799-7233. You can also contact the entity more than a phone, which partners with domestic violence programs. Nationwide in the US to provide free smartphones and data service to survivors. Their website is morethanaphone.org those resources and additional ones are listed in the show notes and on the blog post. For this episode, Park Predators is an Audio Chuck production. You can view a list of all the source material for this episode on our website parkpredators.com and you can also follow park predators on Instagram arcpredators. I think Chuck would approve.
