Overview

• Nathaniel Archuleta pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and received a 45-year prison term with no parole
• A trail of blood leading from a downstairs bedroom undermined his claim that Mary Halcomb’s September death was a suicide
• Authorities found a coercive sticky note suggesting she had given him the right to “euthanize” her if she broke his heart
• Prosecutors say Archuleta confessed in jail that he shot Halcomb after seeing her text another man
• At the plea hearing, Halcomb’s family spoke of nightmares, sleepless nights and the loss of shared dreams