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| Alix Tichelman, via Facebook |
Hayes, formerly an executive at Google and Apple, was in his early 50s, with five children and a yacht. Tichelman was a "makeup artist/model/stylist/hustler/writer/baddest bitch/exotic dancer" in her mid-20s. It's unclear how many times they met up, but it can't have been very many; Tichelman had been living in Atlanta, Georgia with her boyfriend only a few months prior.
What is clear, according to police, is that they met on Hayes' yacht the evening of Saturday, November 23rd, 2013. Authorities say the ship's surveillance camera chronicled Tichelman injecting Hayes with heroin. He has an adverse reaction and eventually falls to the floor, unconscious.
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| Forrest Hayes, via NY Daily News |
The body was found the next day. Presumably the security footage was reviewed shortly thereafter, but Tichelman was not arrested until July 4th, 2014, when Santa Cruz police posed as a client to lure her into a trap. She was taken into custody because, authorities said, her Facebook suggested plans to leave the state.
Oh, by the way, that boyfriend she was living with in Atlanta died under similar circumstances. She's heard in a 911 call telling the dispatcher she knows it's an overdose "Because there's nothing else it could be. I know that for a fact." She also asserts it was "definitely accidental."
What's obviously unstated is what police were waiting for. Should we believe that, were it not for her posting on Facebook, she would not only be free but possibly skipped the state? Does this suggest that prosecutors are now forced to go with a case they didn't think was strong enough? Perhaps they were waiting for Atlanta authorities to build up their own case.
This past wednesday, July 16, Alix Tichelman pleaded not guilty to several charges, including manslaughter. Her lawyer pointed out that it was not in her client's interest for Hayes to die, ending a "lucrative source of income."
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| Tichelman and attorney, via LA Times |