Dateline: Mystery At Heath Bar Farm — What happened to Thomas Foley's wife, Dar Foley? Details of case explored 

On February 7, 2009, Thomas Foley made a panic-stricken 911 call that set off a series of events that would lead to one of Michigan's most debated murder trials. He had just found his wife, Dar Foley, lifeless in their Coldwater home's shower, with a gunshot to the head. What unfolded was a rapid investigation, a conviction that was met with astonishment, and an even more astonishing twist that saw Thomas Foley walk free in 2011.

Despite being legally cleared of the crime, whispers of doubt have persisted, keeping the case firmly in the spotlight. Thomas Foley, who was 40 at the time, was initially found guilty based on indirect evidence, like his claim of turning off the shower, which was found to be dry by the investigators, and a tiny bloodstain of Dar on his shirt. The prosecution had pointed out his financial incentive — a $280,000 life insurance payoff.

In July 2011, a jury set Thomas Foley free, acknowledging the fresh testimonies about a mysterious vehicle and discrepancies in the original case. Despite his efforts to clear his name and bring attention to the case's mishandling, the identity of the person who actually killed Dar Foley remains a mystery to this day.

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The case against Thomas Foley and the first trial

From the very beginning, Thomas Foley was the person everyone looked at as the most likely culprit. The lawyers trying to convict him painted a picture of a man who was desperately unhappy in his marriage and saw a chance to get some life insurance money to start over.

Some of Dar Foley’s co-workers even testified that Thomas Foley had shared romantic thoughts about them before he decided to try and work things out with his wife again. Let’s not forget about Thomas’s job situation — or lack thereof — because he didn’t have one at the time of the murder.

When the detectives were looking into it, they found some clues that made Thomas seem suspicious. There was this tiny speck of Dar’s blood on his shirt, which the scientists said came from touching, not from the blood flying around when she was shot. They also found a plastic bag with fingerprints that matched Thomas’s, and it had the bullets that matched the gun that was used in the murder. But, the actual gun that did the deed was never found.

Things got messier for Thomas when he said he turned off the shower, but the police found it dry when they got there. The people trying to put him in jail said he killed Dar, made it look like someone broke in and messed up the house, and then took their son to a birthday party to make it seem like he couldn’t have done it. It was like a story you’d see in a movie, but this was real life.

After all the evidence and stories were told in court, the jury decided Thomas Foley was the one who did it. They gave him a serious punishment in November 2009 — spend the rest of his life in prison.

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New evidence, retrial, and Thomas Foley's fight for justice

A year had passed when some unexpected folks came forward with fresh information, which significantly changed the course of the case. One of these witnesses mentioned they had noticed a somewhat old white car zooming off from the area around the Foley’s place at the time of the terrible incident. This car was driven by a young man who was not recognized by anyone in the family.

There was another person who confirmed seeing a different suspicious vehicle in the vicinity of the barn. Plus, the police had missed a key piece of evidence, which was a picture of some shattered glass outside the house. This broken glass was actually quite important because it backed up what Thomas Foley had been saying about dropping a window frame that very same day.

Because of these new details, a judge decided in March 2010 to discard Foley’s guilty verdict, saying that the new information could suggest he didn’t do it. The Michigan Court of Appeals agreed with the judge, and so they decided to have a new trial, which started in July 2011.

During this trial, Foley’s lawyers did a better job of bringing forward the new witnesses and their stories. They questioned the timing of everything that was first thought to have happened. After deliberating over the case for nine hours, the jury said Foley was not guilty, and he was finally set free.

However, even though the trial ended with Foley being declared not guilty, people still have different opinions about what might have happened. Some think Thomas Foley didn’t do it, but others are still suspicious.

Thomas Foley has moved to a new place but he hasn’t stopped pushing for the police to look into his wife’s murder. He wrote a book called The Ultimate Sacrifice, where he tells his side of the story and suggests some other ideas, like maybe someone broke into their home and hurt Dar, and then used her credit card for their own gain.

Dar’s family is still not convinced by what Thomas Foley says. They think the book is more about him getting attention than really trying to find out who killed Dar.

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