Documents describe how investigators believe the 22-year-old, who was 38 weeks pregnant, was lured, attacked and left in the Manistee National Forest.
CADILLAC, Mich. — Court affidavits unsealed this week in Wexford County lay out what investigators say happened to Rebecca Park, 22, a Manton woman found dead Nov. 25 in the Manistee National Forest after being reported missing Nov. 3. The filings name Park’s mother, Cortney Bartholomew, 40, and stepfather, Bradly Bartholomew, 47, who were arrested Dec. 1 and arraigned the next day on multiple felony counts.
The documents matter because they set the foundation for the case as it moves toward a probable cause hearing. Prosecutors allege the Bartholomews planned and carried out a killing that also ended the life of Park’s near-term baby. The filings summarize interviews, digital records and physical evidence collected by the Wexford County Sheriff’s Office and state investigators. The couple faces first-degree murder, felony murder, torture and related counts that carry possible life sentences if a jury convicts them. The next steps focus on whether a judge finds enough evidence to send the case to circuit court.
According to the affidavits, Park went to the Bartholomew home near Boon on Nov. 3. Investigators say she was restrained and assaulted there, then taken by vehicle into a remote stretch of the Manistee National Forest. The filings state she suffered fatal injuries and her unborn child did not survive. Search teams later found Park’s remains on Nov. 25, following weeks of ground searches and interviews around Manton and Boon. During arraignment on Dec. 2, a district judge reviewed the charges and set the schedule for preliminary proceedings. The filings characterize aspects of the attack as “torture,” a word that appears in the charging language, and describe efforts to conceal evidence in the days that followed, the records say.
The documents also describe interviews with family members and associates, as well as data from phones and vehicles. Prosecutors say the Bartholomews lured Park under a pretense before transporting her, and that attempts were made to remove the near-term infant. The filings list a timeline of calls and messages on Nov. 3 and outline routes consistent with travel from the home toward forest roads. A separate affidavit details how deputies recovered items believed to be connected to the assault. Officials have not released toxicology findings. Defense counsel for the Bartholomews did not enter substantive pleadings at arraignment; both defendants remain jailed.
Public records show Park, who lived in Manton, was due to give birth within days. The Wexford County Sheriff’s Office announced the arrests on Dec. 1 after search activity intensified in the forest. On Dec. 2, the couple appeared in 84th District Court in Cadillac to face charges including first-degree premeditated murder, felony murder, torture, unlawful imprisonment and removal of a body, among others. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office has supported local prosecutors, who said the case will be handled in Wexford County unless a change of venue is later granted. Prior incidents involving the defendants have not been detailed publicly by authorities, and no plea had been entered beyond the initial advisements.
Procedurally, the case is moving through standard felony steps: probable cause conference and preliminary examination in district court, then potential bindover to circuit court. A judge scheduled the next probable cause conference; the exact date was not immediately available in the records reviewed Wednesday. If bound over, the defendants would be arraigned in circuit court, and pretrial motions would follow. Prosecutors said additional forensic testing is pending. Any decision to add charges related to the unborn child’s death would be addressed at or after preliminary examination, according to standard practice in Michigan courts.
Outside the courthouse in Cadillac, a small memorial of flowers and stuffed animals has grown near the steps as friends and neighbors try to process the case. A family acquaintance who attended the arraignment said Park “was excited to be a mom” and had been preparing for the baby’s arrival. The sheriff’s office has kept a visible presence near search areas in the forest while deputies canvass neighborhoods in Manton and Boon. Court security limited access during Tuesday’s hearing as reporters and residents waited for updates in the hallway.
As of Wednesday afternoon, both defendants remained held in the Wexford County Jail while investigators waited on lab results and prepared for the next hearing. The court’s docket shows additional filings expected before the preliminary exam. Further updates are anticipated at the scheduled probable cause conference.
Author note: Last updated December 10, 2025.