Episode Summary
On a cold day in March 2010, workers discovered a woman lying unconscious under the MacKay Bridge in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada – barely breathing and clinging to life. It was 31-year-old Holly Bartlett. Police say she walked almost a quarter of a mile from the front door of her condo building, where she crawled through a hole in a barbed-wire fence, climbed a 20ft concrete cable abutment, and fell to the frozen ground below. But that theory makes no sense to Holly’s friends and family, who spend the next ten years trying to understand what happened to Holly Bartlett.
Listen Now
For our friends in the Deaf and Signing community, you can view an ASL version of this episode HERE.
Episode Info
To check out the video of Holly’s walk that night, visit our Instagram @crimejunkiepodcast.
Holly Bartlett
Map A
Drawn by Ashley Flowers
Map B
Drawn by Ashley Flowers
Crime Junkie Podcast’s Instagram Handle
Map C
Drawn by Ashley Flowers
Map D
Drawn by Ashley Flowers
Map E
Drawn by Ashley Flowers
Private investigator Tom Martin (left) with investigative journalist Maggie Rahr (centre) and Holly’s friend Peter Parsons (right).
Paul Fraser – Holly’s cab driver
Holly skydiving
Episode Source Material
- Podcast: What Happened to Holly Bartlett? – AMI/Maggie Rahr
- AMI: What Happened to Holly Bartlett documentary (available only in Canada)
- The Coast: Holly Bartlett’s unlikely journey, by Tim Bousquet
- The Coast: Police announce independent review into Holly Bartlett’s death, by Tim Bousquet
- CBC News via Yahoo: Holly Bartlett witness changes key details in death investigation
- CBC News: Police handling of Holly Bartlett’s death criticized in review
- The fifth estate (CBC): Holly Bartlett – the long way home, by Mark Kelley
- Halifax Examiner: Holly Bartlett’s family is angry with Halifax police, by Tim Bousquet
- The Coast: Telling Holly’s Bartlett’s story, again, by Rebecca Dingwell
- CBC News: Holly Bartlett’s death reviewed
- CTV Atlantic: Justice for Holly: Family goes public with battle
- CTV Atlantic: Halifax police say they’ve improved after Holly Bartlett’s death
- Global News / The Canadian Press: External review confirms 2010 death of Holly Bartlett was accidental (note: full text of SPVQ’s operational review of the investigation is posted here)
- CTV Atlantic: Investigation into blind woman’s death flawed, but conclusion correct: review