A MURDER investigation was launched after a doctor was found dead.
Thomas Burchard's lifeless body was discovered in the trunk of a car that belonged to a woman named Kelsey Turner.
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Who was Thomas Burchard?
Thomas Burchard was a 71-year-old doctor and psychiatrist from Monterey, California.
He resided in Salinas with his longtime girlfriend, Judy Earp.
The couple met during the early 2000s while on a trip to Las Vegas with mutual friends.
Although the two had no children together, Burchard was involved in the lives of Judy's four children.
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"He was extremely generous. If he saw somebody in need, he would literally give them the shirt off his back," Judy remembered of her late partner to ELLE.
In the years leading up to his death, Burchard was involved in a platonic friendship with a Playboy model named Kelsey Turner.
"The last conversation I had with him, he had to go to Las Vegas to check things out because she was a compulsive liar," Judy said to KTNV.
"All I know Tom was a big guy, almost six feet, 250 pounds. I don't think one woman could get him into the trunk of the car."
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What happened to him?
On March 7, 2019, Thomas Burchard was found dead in the trunk of a Mercedes-Benz that was abandoned near Lake Mead.
The vehicle belonged to Kelsey Turner, who he went to Las Vegas to visit.
An autopsy attributed Burchard's cause of death to blunt force trauma.
On March 30, 2019, Turner, her boyfriend Jon Kennison, and her roommate Diana Pena were arrested in connection to the late doctor's murder.
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On July 27, 2022, Kennison was found guilty of second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder.
For his crimes, he was sentenced to 18 to 45 years in prison.
Following her agreement to an Alford plea deal, Turner was sentenced to 10 to 25 years behind bars for second-degree murder.
Third suspect Pena testified against Kennison and Turner.
Ultimately, she was found guilty of being an accessory to murder and was sentenced to three years probation.
How can I watch Burchard's 20/20 episode?
Burchard's demise at the hands of Turner and Kennison is retold in an episode of ABC's 20/20 titled A Model Murder.
On February 24, 2023, A Model Murder is scheduled to air via the above-mentioned network at 9pm EST.
The show's anchor Chris Connelly leads the broadcast as he collects first-hand testimonies from those who were involved with Burchard's case.
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For those that miss Friday's broadcast, there are streaming options available.
When the episode's cable premiere concludes, audiences can head on over to watch the special by streaming it on Hulu.
