Anti-crime activist faces drug, violence charges

BOISE, Idaho -- An Idaho woman once held up by the Bush administration as a crusader against domestic violence has become entangled in a case that involves meth, death and many unanswered questions.

Barbara Dehl, 49, was held Friday in the Ada County Jail. This past week, a grand jury indicted her on two felony counts of kidnapping and one count of trafficking methamphetamine.

The charges stand in stark contrast to Dehl's life five years ago, when she stood with teary eyes next to Republican Gov. Dirk Kempthorne as he signed a law named after Dehl's deceased daughter, Cassandra Dehl.

The 17-year-old girl was killed in 1999 by her boyfriend when he purposefully drove the pickup truck they were riding in off the side of a road during an argument. State courts had refused to issue a protective order barring him from coming near the girl, contending Idaho's domestic violence law did not apply to teenagers in dating situations. A jury eventually convicted the boyfriend of misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter.

After Cassandra's death, Dehl, a divorced mother, tirelessly lobbied state lawmakers to extend domestic abuse protections to teenagers trapped in abusive dating relationships. When "Cassie's Law" passed, Kempthorne said Dehl's efforts would become "one of those lasting legacies ... that will save lives in the future."

Click Here In 2002, at the request of Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo, Dehl was appointed by U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft to serve on the National Advisory Committee on Violence Against Women and she attended a ceremony in the East Room of the White House with President Bush in 2003 when he announced new initiatives to combat domestic violence.

She appeared on national talk shows, won state citizenship awards and formed an educational nonprofit foundation dedicated to teen domestic violence prevention.

Yet, as far back as 2000, some Idaho lawmakers thought they glimpsed a character flaw - though they couldn't pinpoint just what it was.

"I had heard rumors, but they were just rumors," said state Sen. Bart Davis, an Idaho Falls Republican whose own college-age son was murdered two years ago in Boise. "I remember not feeling peaceful about who she was. But I have misjudged people before. I just decided I would separate the issue from the proponent."

Ada County Deputy Prosecutor Heather Reilly said public defenders have been appointed for Dehl and her two co-defendants, including her live-in boyfriend, Larry Dwight Hanslovan, and Ronald Huntsman. Hanslovan is charged with two counts of kidnapping, meth trafficking and use of a firearm. Huntsman is charged with first-degree murder in the death of 22-year-old John Schmeichel.

Dehl's lawyer, Joseph Ellsworth, wasn't immediately reachable by phone for comment on Friday.

According to court records, police allege Dehl, Hanslovan and Huntsman conspired to kidnap a young couple and interrogate them about money, jewelry and drugs that were missing from Dehl's safe.

Sometime during the violent questioning, Hanslovan and Huntsman received information about Schmeichel. Police allege the two men jumped in Dehl's SUV and went out and picked up Schmeichel. He was found in a shallow grave on March 24.

All three face arraignment May 4 before 4th District Court Judge Joel Horton, when they are expected to formally hear the charges against them and have their bail set.

[...another announcement on the lack of credibility of some of those (divorcing) mommy lobby folks who misrepresent themselves as conservatives to our Republican congressmen (who voted with Hillary's feminists to pass the VAWA, Child Support Act and other family breaking enticements to divorce). As for the daily chant to the whole nation about any and all violent crimes committed anywhere in this large and populated nation by men, it's a tactic used in university women's studies courses to turn women students into man haters. And as for journalists, I was in classes with some who later became journalists. Most of them were homosexual socialists--men and women who hated all heterosexual men (especially fathers) and hated traditional family structure. Thanks to Stanley and Joe for relaying the following.]

Arrest reveals the true Barbara Dehl

By Kevin and Erica Neuendorf

Idaho Press-Tribune
Posted: 04/06/05 - 03:21:44 pm MDT

How is it that former Spirit of Idaho recipient Barbara Dehl is behind bars today following charges of murder, kidnapping and drug trafficking? It's a tragic turn of events for someone not so long ago portrayed as a martyr by you and the Idaho Press-Tribune. It's sad that our family has had to wait until now to tell our side of the story, with anger and hate pent up in each of us hoping that one day the truth would be made evident.

She led many to believe that her daughter, Cassie, had been in an abusive relationship with my brother, Justin Neuendorf, enlisting many, including you, to help fight her emotional cause and bring an already aching family to its knees. We read the slanderous lies you printed, we heard the damaging accusations she bellowed from the steps of the Capitol, we cringed at the sight of her on "The Montel Williams Show" and stood in disbelief as this story made its way across the nation. Daily, we wondered aloud if anyone would ever know the type of person they chose to stand behind.

Well, today, you know exactly what many people tried to tell you all along. Barbara wasn't exactly who you all made her out to be. More importantly, the truth bears little resemblance to the story you let it become. Sadly, you flouted all rules of responsible journalism when you let Dehl skew reality and shape a tragic accident into a delusional lie.

Certainly, her story made for good reading and perhaps in your effort to gain readership or scoop your competitors, you leveraged her and this fictional story to the extent that you never truly captured the real story. There was no truth behind any of that which she led you to believe. First, there was no evidence of any domestic violence occurring during the time that Justin and Cassie were dating. Second, my brother did not leave her to die that day his truck rolled to the bottom of a ravine. She died tragically in his arms that night, a result of a crushed aorta, and he then led his friend to safety so he would not perish as well.

What you would have discovered had you exercised due diligence as journalists was that Barbara was never the role model mother she wanted you to believe.

With her child gone, Dehl tried to make good on her inadequacies as a mother and rallied the support of those she knew could cut the deepest wound and fabricate a truly gripping tale.

The only element missing was truth. I, along with the rest of our family, very much resent the negative picture that has been painted of Justin, and the utter failure of most so-called "journalists" to check out both sides of the story. The grievous assassination of this young man's character in the media was uncalled for, and the facts of the situation were blurred by accusations and conjecture hatefully spewed by those that should have been most diligent in honoring Cassie's memory.

But now the real truth about who Barbara Dehl is has finally come out for those too shallow to ever have wanted to discover it in the first place. Today, the Neuendorf family, along with the friends and loved ones who stood together with us during this time, feel vindicated and relieved that, despite the loss of someone's life and the kidnappings, the truth can be told.

This is the first response our family has been able to print since that tragic day in December 1999. For years, we have wanted to speak out and tell our story but not many would listen, but now maybe they will. Now maybe they will check a source and not be manipulated by the emotional saga which she led many to believe. We have wanted to tell our story many times, but death threats, political agendas and possible legal actions have kept us silent.

Perhaps more than anything, Dehl's arrest can help us move on from Cassie's tragic death. Not a day goes by that my brother doesn't suffer as a result of that accident. He made the difficult choice to honor her memory by going on. His wounds run deep as do the wounds suffered by our family.

Sweet justice comes in knowing that this manipulative woman is now behind bars and those that helped propagate her lies now can see the error of their ways.

Kevin and Erica Neuendorf are residents of Colorado Springs, Colo.

Events of case should be a lesson to media, others

By Brad W. Neuendorf

For six years, my family has been drug through the mud by almost every politician, newspaper and TV station in Idaho along with numerous magazines and national television talk shows concerning the death of Cassie Dehl, the deceased fiancée of my brother, Justin Neuendorf.

The local and national press, along with the politicians, have spun the story so many directions without checking facts that the whole tragic accident has been skewed by speculation and accusations of domestic violence. There is absolutely no evidence other than one suspicious letter that gives any insight into alleged domestic violence between Justin and Cassie. Nonetheless, the media and politicians have used a tragic event for their personal gains.

What really happened that night rests with the three people involved in the accident. What we do know is that Cassie was never left to die. She died in a matter of minutes from a crushed aorta.

For years, my family and friends have had to suffer through the nonsense that was reported. We received numerous death threats because the media portrayed my brother as a murderer. Rather, he was one of three people involved in a horrific accident that led to the death of his future wife.

Our phone number had to be changed and unlisted. We lived with guns at every door, wondering when someone would act on a threat.

Now you know why we were so nervous. We knew exactly who we were dealing with, but you could not see through the immediate opportunity that was created for you. You took her story as gospel and neglected to check into a single fact.

In the past few articles about Barbara Dehl's arrest on felony drug trafficking and kidnapping charges, you have continued to fail to look into the depth of this case. People are hurt because they feel they have now lost a voice on domestic violence. Don't look at this as "losing a voice," but as a lesson on whose voice we listen to.

Cassie's death was in no way related to domestic violence, yet Cassie's Law is all about teens in violent dating relationships. Many have expressed sorrow for Dehl, saying that she may have turned to meth because of grief. Give me a break! A pipe and a small bag of pot maybe, but 4 pounds of methamphetamines? Can any of us really see that as a method of grieving? Let's not forget to ask where Cassie's "mom" was while she was growing up.

Let this be a lesson on handing out awards to impress constituents. Sen. Mike Crapo, if you believe that Barbara Dehl represents the "Spirit of Idaho" then I am ashamed to have you representing us.

The fine policemen of the Treasure Valley deserve a big thanks. You have finally allowed the truth to come out, and although many are still blinded and in disbelief, you have allowed my family to finally have a word. This is the first response our family has been able to print since that tragic day in December 1999.

For years we have wanted to speak out and tell our story but many would not listen. Now maybe they will. Now maybe they will check a source or find another side of the story. We have wanted to tell ours for years but death threats, political agendas and possible legal action has kept us silent.

Thanks to our friends who have shown support for my family. We, too, have suffered a terrible loss and it has been a very difficult time for my family, especially my brother. Your support and encouragement have helped him to stay with us and for that I can never say enough.

Finally, please stop using a beautiful young girl's death to further your own agendas. She is missed by many, especially my family who loved her like a daughter. Can we please let her finally rest in peace?

Brad W. Neuendorf is a resident of Riggins.

You are right. There is a problem, however, that I see -- in this time -- in ending many of the DV programs -- given 30 years of lies from liberals, and the ensuing results -- more people are engaging in DV, road rage, violent criminal behaviors of all kinds. What I'm saying is: the very party who "brought" these matters to US attention are the very same ones who've encouraged social "outgrowth" in these bad behaviors. So, therefore, these programs are needed for a time until the culture can be "righted". Meaning? Well, I'd abolish "no fault divorce" on the spot, for starters... Yes, the same DV proponents you will also find on the "affiliated links" lists with other groups who GROW the problems.

The problem is.. zero-hour is here. And socially, America is in a race with itself to right, truly right, the ground zero. Ground zero being: family.

That was the point all along in the mad money-making, hype "low unemployment stats by growing government" agenda of the left -- to tear apart the American Family. The rest of their agenda is obvious: promote same sex unions, promote "consensual child/adult sex", etc, etc., etc. What these "promotions" do is not only corrupt innocence in children; but create a paranoid madness in the society at large.

We know LBJ foisted a $5.4 trillion dollar war on "poverty". I wonder how large the figure, of that sum, was allocated to teaching women to hate men, and to know their every crime would be coddled and excused away. And then some knuckledragger gets it into his head to be angry about the rampant legal and social preferences for WOMEN and takes violent action on his "own" as a payback.

Liberals screech ad nauseum "the earth as an organism" but say DIDDLY-SQUAT about the "culture as an organism" -- except to "blame the culture" when a criminal commits a crime.

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