An autopsy report released October 5 revealed that David Vander Meer, a Las Vegas charter school counselor, died by suicide while being held at the Clark County Detention Center. Vander Meer had been accused of killing his wife, 28-year-old Bernadette Vander Meer, at Zion National Park in 2006.
According to the Clark County coroner’s office autopsy report, the 49-year-old inmate used two strips of bedding to hang himself. Metropolitan Police Department corrections officers last saw Vander Meer alive in his cell at approximately 9 p.m. on June 24. About 30 minutes later, he was discovered in a prone position, leaning forward while bound to an immovable metal stool. After corrections officers alerted medical personnel and cut the ligature with a seat belt cutter, Vander Meer was taken to University Medical Center’s trauma unit, where he was pronounced dead shortly after 2:30 a.m. on June 25.
Vander Meer had no known history of verbalizations or suicide attempts, and his domestic partner last spoke with him on June 23, noting he appeared to be his usual self. During the investigation, Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill previously stated that Vander Meer had strangulated himself in a unique and novel way. A suicide note and will left by Vander Meer proclaimed his innocence regarding the suspected murder of his wife, with the note stating that allegations against him were largely false but not entirely, and that they painted a picture that could not be escaped.
Vander Meer, a former youth pastor and counselor at Somerset Academy Lone Mountain, was accused of intentionally pushing his wife off a cliff at Angels Landing during a 2006 hiking trip. Authorities stated his motivation involved an affair with a 16-year-old girl in the youth group he led. He was arrested on June 22 outside a yoga studio in Summerlin. Utah authorities had previously considered Bernadette Vander Meer’s death suspicious, and the investigation was reopened in 2022 following a tip from a former youth group member regarding grooming allegations.
