Former youth pastor accused of pushing wife off cliff in Zion National Park dies days after arrest
Key takeaways
- A former Las Vegas youth pastor who was accused of pushing his wife off a cliff while hiking in Zion National Park died Thursday — just days after he was taken into custody, authorities said.
- David Vander Meer, 49, was being held at Clark County Detention Center on first-degree murder and insurance fraud charges stemming from the death of his wife, Bernadette, two decades ago.
- The official cause and manner of death will be released by the Clark County Coroner’s Office, police said.
Zion National Park, as seen near Springdale, Utah. (Rick Bowmer / Associated Press) By Kori Mc Nair June 26, 2026 7:44 PM PT 4 min Click here to listen to this article Share via Close extra sharing options Email Facebook X Linked In Threads Reddit Whats App Copy Link URL Copied! Print 0:00 0:00 1x This is read by an automated voice. Please report any issues or inconsistencies here.
See more from the L.A. Times in Google Search. Set us as preferred. A former Las Vegas youth pastor who was accused of pushing his wife off a cliff while hiking in Zion National Park died Thursday — just days after he was taken into custody, authorities said.
David Vander Meer, 49, was being held at Clark County Detention Center on first-degree murder and insurance fraud charges stemming from the death of his wife, Bernadette, two decades ago. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said he was taken to a hospital for “self-sustained injuries” on Wednesday and was later pronounced dead on Thursday.