CITRUS COUNTY, FLORIDA: When a person is murdered by a member of their family, it leaves a lot to reflect on. When Denise Hallowell, a teacher from Inverness, Florida, was found murdered in her home in 2019, the culprit turned out to be her son Carlos.
NBC's true crime show, 'Dateline', will be doing a rerun of the Season 30 episode titled 'Horror at the Lake' which was reported by Dennis Murphy. It will air on the channel on Friday, August 18, at 8 pm ET.
Who was Denise Hallowell?
Hallowell was a resident of Citrus County in Florida and was a well-respected schoolteacher in the town. She had two adopted sons. She herself was adopted as a child and understood the struggles of being an orphan.
Hallowell had said just this to Fox 13 News when she was accused of abuse and her reputation was tarnished.
One of Hallowell's sons, whom she had adopted from Honduras, had accused her of physical abuse. The then 12-year-old alleged she had locked him up for hours and did not give him food.
The accusations were soon cleared as authorities found no evidence against Hallowell. Along with that, her other son Carlos, whom she had adopted from Guatemala, also stepped in to defend his mother against the "false" accusations.
Back then, Hallowell had said, "I am a forever mom. Many children need good homes, forever homes." She ended up losing her job at the school because of the allegations.
Who killed Denise Hallowell?
On July 13, 2019, Carlos called up emergency services after finding his mother dead in her bed. When police arrived, they found the murder weapon, an ax, lodged in the back of her head.
Carlos was the only primary suspect in the crime and he denied any involvement. Later on, however, police were able to confirm otherwise after recovering hard evidence.
They had discovered some CCTV cameras and the victim's phone from a lake nearby that confirmed their suspicions about Carlos at the time of the murder.
Carlos later confessed that his relationship with his mother had deteriorated over the years and he had fought right before attacking Hallowell with an ax he used to chop wood.
