The preliminary hearing in Wexford County 84th District Court began last week, where the prosecution laid out the case against Cortney Bartholomew, 41, and her husband Bradley, 48. Prosecutors claimed the couple lured Rebecca Park, 22, with a fake $18,000 check, citing an alleged inheritance from her grandmother. Park, who was 39 weeks pregnant, vanished on November 3, 2025, and her body was found on November 25, 2025, in Manistee National Forest. A friend of the family drove the Bartholomews and Rebecca to the hospital after her water broke the night before she disappeared.
Richard Farlor, Rebecca’s fiancé, testified that he had a sexual relationship with Cortney from April to September 2023. He recounted that Cortney told him she wanted another child but could not have one. Farlor also said the Bartholomews forced Rebecca into a vehicle and drove her into the woods, where they allegedly killed her.
Cell‑phone data placed Cortney near the forest at the time of the murder, and she sent over 90 text messages to Farlor after Rebecca vanished, claiming she had transferred $2,000 from an inheritance. Prosecutors allege the couple removed the unborn baby while Rebecca was still alive and disposed of the infant in a dumpster. The infant’s remains have never been recovered, and investigators are still looking for evidence.
Bradley told investigators Cortney planned the killing to conceive, while Cortney blamed Bradley for the murder. Neither defendant has entered a plea, and both face first‑degree murder, felony murder, torture and assault charges.
The judge will review the evidence again on November 9, deciding whether the Bartholomew case moves to trial. The outcome will determine if the pair faces a full trial or is dismissed on procedural grounds. The families, including Rebecca’s fiancé, await the decision.