Teresa Halbach and her family: 5 facts in brief to know

Teresa Halbach, the young photographer from Wisconsin murdered in a case listed in the Make a murderer series on Netflix, was raised on a dairy farm and was close to his big, close-knit family.

The remains of Teresa's last days, from his Wild Cherry Pepsi can to his Canon camera to the rivets of his Daisy Fuentes jeans, have been the subject of numerous forensic analyzes, testimony at the trial and now infamous. on the Internet.

This happens again with the launch of Netflix Make a murderer Season 2 of October 19, 2018. The series, like the first, focuses primarily on the defense theories that Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey – the two men convicted of Halbach's murder – are innocent. Prosecutors and the courts rejected the charges and the two men are still in prison. Avery is Dassey's uncle.

Above all, Teresa Halbach was a promising young woman, 25 years old.

Here's what you need to know:

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1. Halbach had a photography business and was a volleyball coach at a Catholic school

In October 2005, the month of her death, Halbach, with her short, sporty brown hair that she wore behind her ears, her expressive brown eyes, her big smile that dominated her face, was an enthusiastic young woman, at the lively and new personality. photography company. She coached her little sister's volleyball team at a Catholic school, listened to the Beatles and No Doubt, watched "Extreme Makeover" with her younger sisters, and dreamed of becoming a mother. The details of this article, unless otherwise noted, are from the Manitowoc County Court Records, including voluminous testimony at trial, such as that of the family and friends of Teresa, who testified in court to describe the young woman in the courtroom. jury.

Teresa was one of those people whose others remember as "party life" without it sounding like a cliché. When she filmed a video diary that was later broadcast in court, she used the word "love" seven times in eight sentences.

Friends told We Are Green Bay TV that Teresa had an "electric personality" and that she was "just a cheerful and lucky Midwestern girl".

His friends and his mother, in testimonies and interviews with the media, talked about his contagious smile. They talked about his "joie de vivre".

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2. Teresa Halbach was raised on a dairy farm in a small town

Seven years before the murder, Halbach, raised on a dairy farm, graduated from Hilbert High School, a Wisconsin country school with fewer than 200 students. Hilbert, with a population of about 1,100, is located in Calumet County between Lake Winnebago and Lake Michigan.

An old railway town, it hosts events like a Cheese Derby and Cheesehead Run picnic.

Teresa studied at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay to obtain a degree in photography. She graduated in 2002, Summa Cum Laude, and worked for the college newspaper, according to the trial transcripts and Green Bay TV. She was part of a business marketing group in Green Bay and attended another Hilbert High School student, Ryan Hillegas, for about five years, before parting romantically. (He became a central figure of the controversy in the defense motions in the case.)

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3. The Halbach family is near but Teresa's biological father is dead

It was a big family, with his parents, Thomas and Karen, and four siblings. Thomas was actually Teresa's father-in-law; her father had died at the age of 31 in 1988. The 5.6 kg (135 kg) brunette (measures provided by her missing poster) was a passionate traveler. She has traveled to Spain, New Zealand, Australia, Mexico and the United States. She was known for singing karaoke, according to her obituary.

On a tribute page, a friend recalled how Teresa had agreed to sing karaoke with her but had surprised her with her incredible voice. The friend stopped singing. She did not want to ruin the song, but Teresa urged her to continue singing. Hillegas said that she was considering dressing up as a cowgirl for Halloween; she was sociable and liked to go to parties and sometimes to bars, like many people in their twenties. That Saturday she went to a party in Green Bay.

Tim was his older brother and then Mike, who later gained fame in the documentary and media fields for his many family press conferences. He worked for the Green Bay Packers. She had two younger sisters, Katie and Kelly. Teresa lived next to her parents in an old farmhouse that belonged to them, her mother said. She had moved to her house because her rent would go up. Why do not you move closer to home, suggested her mother. His parents offered him an agreement on the rent.

Teresa was particularly close to her younger sisters, shopping, watching movies, and going to the family farm on Sunday night, where the three watched their favorite TV shows together. It was common for children in Halbach to stop on Sundays. For most weeks, she stopped once or twice at the family farm or telephoned.

Teresa took pictures with a Canon PowerShot A310 digital camera. She was organized, the kind of person who tended to keep boxes and receipts. Teresa's mother showed a family photo to the jury. The family sits on a hay bale with a typical Wisconsin red barn in the background.

Katie Halbach was 11 years younger than Teresa. She told the jury that they were close and that the two younger sisters were going to sleep at Teresa's house or go shopping with her. Teresa usually had a PDA, a Palm Pilot, bought from Target. All the tools of the work. Teresa enjoyed shopping at Kohl's, and she was wearing Daisy Fuentes jeans. Her sister noticed that Teresa was wearing them and said that "Daisy Fuentes was an elderly person, so she was wearing jeans for the elderly." The jeans had small rivets on which "Daisy Fuentes" was inscribed. It would be important later. She recalled that her sister loved Wild Cherry Pepsi.

On Sunday, October 30, 2005, the family gathered for the last time to celebrate the birthday of Teresa's grandfather, who was technically on the occasion of Halloween. Teresa and all her brothers and sisters were there. That night, they were treating cows. At 7, Teresa came back to watch "Extreme Makeover Home Edition" with her sisters. She stayed until 10 o'clock.

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4. Teresa recorded a video diary in which she discussed death

In the video diary, created by Halbach three years before her assassination, she talks about her dreams and her death. "Let's say I'm dead tomorrow. I do not think I'll do it. I think I still have a lot to do … I just want people I love to know that every time I die, I'm happy. I'm happy with what I've done in my life, "she says.

In the video diary, she said she wanted to become a mother "because that's the only thing I've always known I wanted to be: a mother. But there is a reason for everything. And I'll be a good mom one day. I go. As long as I am happy. "

Teresa also said that she was religious and that she loved God. She was serene, loved to travel, liked to compliment people, loved to make people laugh.

"I like to know that I love who I am. I like to take pictures. I adore holding a camera in my hand. I love children. I love babies. I do not hate anyone. I like a lot of people. I feel loved. "

She had a roommate named Scott Bloedorn. Bloedorn told the police that he had told Teresa Sunday of the "Halloween parties they had both attended on weekends". He added that they were "just roommates" and that they lived in the same house for 8 to 9 months. He added that Teresa was "always in a good mood and very attached to her family," police said.

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5. Halbach has opened his own photos and photos for AutoTrader magazine

Her last semester at university, Teresa was an intern at Tom Pearce Photography in Green Bay. After graduation, she continued working with Pearce, but then realized that she wanted to start her own business. So she started Photography by Teresa. She took pictures of children, weddings and graduation, spending her brief time on the Earth photographing life and the happiest moments of others. She also worked part-time for AutoTrader Magazine.

People call AutoTrader to advertise their cars. A photographer was assigned to a certain estate and Teresa arranged an appointment with the vendor. The goal was to do this for a while, until his own business took off enough to focus on that. Angela Schuster, director of Milwaukee-based AutoTrader, said Teresa was hired as a photographer in October 2004, according to a defense appeal brief. Most of the tasks were pre-arranged in the AutoTrader offices, but most of the photographers also took pictures, called "snapshots". This meant that the photographer set up his own agreements with the customer and then sold them to the magazine. Halbach did a lot of those hurried shots because they brought in more money.

The police spoke to a man with whom she had personal relationships (he is now a local DJ and does not have a criminal record). She was still in contact with Hillegas, who had also reported seeing her for the last time that Sunday. He told the police that they had attended high school and the first part of college in 2001, after a separation. They spoke "sometimes once a week", and he was also friends with his roommate, Bloedorn, who worked in construction. .

Nobody thought that Teresa had real enemies, although Pearce told the authorities that he had seen her receive unwanted phone calls a few weeks before the murder. "Oh, not yet him," she said without identifying the caller. When Pearce expressed her concern, she said not to worry about that. Who made them remains one of the mysteries of the case.

Teresa had shot photos at Avery's Auto Salvage five times before Halloween, including June 20, August 22, August 29, September 19 and October 10, the transcripts. On one occasion, she told a colleague that Avery had opened the door with a towel. She thought it was "scary". Teresa called Janda's voicemail at 11:43 and left a message. This was played in court. (Barb Janda is Steven Avery's sister.)

"Hello, this is Teresa with AutoTrader Magazine.I am the photographer and I am just calling to let you know that I could come here today, uh, in the afternoon. probably about 2 o'clock or even a little later, but, uh, if you could please call me and remind me if it would work for you, because I do not have your address or whatever it is, so I can not stop without receiving the call – a call back … again, it's Teresa … thank you. "She also left her phone number.

"The appointment was a death," said a prosecutor to a jury. "She did not know what was waiting for her."