2007, brianna hall was driving home from college, to what she didn t know. except that her elder sister courtney had called and it sounded bad. she said there was an accident and you need to come home right away. it was courtney who eventually broke the news to ashton and brianna. their mother, their father s wife of close to 30 years, was dead. but neither courtney nor chris waited at the house to tell them what happened or to comfort them. nor did they linger over the body at the hospital. they couldn t. because father and daughter were escorted to separate squad cars and driven to the police station to talk about the accident. what was that ride like? quiet. i remember crying the whole time. i couldn t comfort my father. he couldn t comfort me. we got to the station and they said that my dad would be a few more minutes. chris, so frenzied at the scene, had calmed down by then. he was a cop among cops, after
single moment the powerful bond of love. their parents with them, and with each other. they were probably closer with their parents than most children. they re the parents i hope to one day be. cristi is the vivacious glue of the family. chris, her perfect mirror. my dad is a little more kicked back, quiet, relaxed. they re the perfect balance. chris was a police officer in san bernardino until he was shot in the line of duty. then he went off to become police chief in two small towns in idaho. then in 2005, anticipating an empty nest and eventually retirement, the halls bought this place in calimesa. they liked because of this backyard and spa. life seemed to have hit a sweet spot.
hall had come to live out their golden years, though they were far from old when it happened. just experienced, with life and each other. as far back as i can remember, it s always been chris and cristi. they were never thought of as separate. they were a unit. these are the three daughters. courtney, brianna and ashton. all of them of course have heard scores of times the story of how their parents met. it was 1978. cristi had gone to see a relative at the air force base in nearby san bernardino. quite by chance, while she was there she encountered a security guard who, to her at least, looked just like elvis. it was blair christopher hall. chris to his friends. apparently she was a little flirty at the gate. [ laughter ] in short order, chris and cristi got married. she was 17. he, 20. and as the girls grew up, they said they never doubted for a
he called courtney, he said, and they began a frantic effort to revive her. i could tell we were losing her. from what a a fall? in your gut, tell me what happened. she slipped or something. i don t know. that s the only thing i can think of. but chris apparently hadn t noticed the nasty three-inch laceration on cristi s head. and here the point of the police interview is revealed. the gash she has on her head she has a gash on her head? she s got a huge gash on her head, okay? something like that is not consistent with just falling down. not consistent with just falling down? why would the police think that? i mean, you ve been around for a while. i know where you re going. and no. there s nothing. why in fact was this ex-police-chief being questioned at all about the apparently disastrous accident that killed
ashton remember hearing from her mother. we happened to be laying on the bed with her. we started talking. she was like, i am just i m so happy that i have you girls and dad. it was one of those conversations that you don t have every day. still, there was work to be done. it was not a new house. it could use some remodeling. particularly the bathroom. courtney was still living with her parents as the work began. they re going to be doing the tile work and stuff. so we wouldn t have a shower for that day. so, shower out of commission, they decided to wake up early, put on their bathing suits and rinse off in the outdoor spa before the contractor arrived at 6:45 a.m. it was june 7th, 2007. chris got up first, turned on the spa to warm it up, then called brianna at her college dorm in san diego. your wake-up call, baby. get out and go on that run. back at the house, courtney dozed through her first wake-up. while chris and cristi made their way outside to the spa. just af