Dr. Amie Harwick, Gareth Pursehouse.Photo: Paul Archuleta/Getty; Youtube
On Feb. 14, 2020, therapist Dr. Amie Harwick enjoyed a night out with friends at a burlesque show, before returning to her Hollywood Hills home to get ready for bed.
However, the 38-year-old successful therapist who was once engaged to comedian Drew Carey had no idea that her life was about to end.
Drew Carey and Amie Harwick.
At about 1 a.m. on Feb. 15, Pursehouse, 45, of Playa del Ray, allegedly attacked Harwick, strangling her in her bedroom on the third floor, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors claim that when Pursehouse heard Harwick’s roommate screaming for help, he threw her over the wrought-iron balcony in her bedroom.
Harwick fell 20 feet, landing on the patio in her backyard. Barely alive - police officers on the scene said they could hear her shallow breaths — she died two hours later at the hospital.
Arrested in 2020 and charged with murder and burglary, Pursehouse is now on trial for her slaying, facing life in prison if he is convicted. In opening arguments on Aug. 29, Deputy District Attorney Victor Avila told the court how DNA collected from blood found on doors and on the floor of the home matched Pursehouse’s DNA,Law & Crimereports.
DNA collected from under Harwick’s fingernails also matched Pursehouse’s DNA, Avila said, Law & Crime reports.
Amie Harwick.Amie Harwick/Instagram
Outside on the balcony, police found a syringe that FBI chemists said was filled with a lethal dose of nicotine, Avila said, Law & Crime reports.
“It was poison,” he told the court.
Pursehouse, a photographer who was taking pictures at the event, approached Harwick on the red carpet and began loudly berating her, witnesses testified.
He began texting her after the event, but she told him she didn’t want to talk to him further, prosecutors told the court, Law & Crime reports.
He persisted, at one point leaving a voicemail in which he was crying, Avila said, Law & Crime reports.
“She rejected his advances, she cut off all communication with him, so he punished her, broke into her house, and killed her,” Avila said.
The Defense Hits Back
In his opening statements, defense attorney Evan Franzel told the court that Pursehouse felt depressed after running into Harwick at the January 2020 event.
“The evidence will show that running into her at that event sent him into a thick fog of depression and made him feel that the only way he could get relief from that pain was to go and talk to her,” Franzel said, Law & Crime reports. “The evidence will show he never intended on killing her”
He broke into her house to talk to her and planned to use the nicotine-filled syringe to kill himself, Franzel said, Law & Crime reports.
He also argued that Pursehouse did not throw Harwick over the balcony, saying she fell while trying to get away from him, Franzel said, Law & Crime reports.
“He set a chain of motions into actions that led to her death,” Franzel said, according to Law & Crime.
The trial is on hiatus because of Covid but is expected to resume on Monday.
If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
source: people.com
