Suspect in Amie Harwick murder released from jail on $2M bond
HOLLYWOOD HILLS, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- The man accused of killing sex and family therapist Amie Harwick at her Hollywood Hills home bonded out of jail Tuesday night.
Gareth Pursehouse, a 41-year-old resident of Playa del Rey and a former boyfriend of Harwick, bonded out of jail just before 10:30 p.m., according to the Sheriff's Inmate Information Center. He was being held in lieu of $2 million bail.
Harwick, who was once engaged to "The Price is Right" host Drew Carey, had a restraining order against Pursehouse until two weeks ago, when it expired, Los Angeles police said.
LAPD arrived to Harwick's home Saturday in the Hollywood Hills at about 1:16 a.m. and found her beneath a third-floor balcony with injuries consistent with a fall.
Pursehouse was arrested later that afternoon at his home in Playa del Rey.
Coroner's officials on Tuesday released the official cause of Harwick's death. She died of blunt force injuries to her head and torso after being transported to a hospital, according to the Los Angeles County office, which described the incident as a homicide.
Friend of murdered sex therapist Amie Harwick describes suspect as a 'stalker'
One of Harwick's friends said Pursehouse was "a stalker" who "didn't take it well at all" when the couple ended their previous relationship.
Friends and clients of Harwick launched a new online petition on change.org calling for changes to domestic violence laws to provide more protection for victims. Supporters want to eliminate time restrictions on restraining orders, so they only expire upon request. They also want to give victims the power to file a restraining order without having to face the defendant in court. According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, one in seven women will be stalked in their lifetime and will feel at some point that they will be severely harmed or even killed.
