Hugh and Dian Harlan

[MegtheEgg86]

Went to go post about this case until I realized there was no specific thread for it, so here we are.

First of all, were there ever any updates to this case? Was Hugh ever found?

If not, what does everyone think? Did Hugh kill his wife, or were they accosted by the same party three years apart?

[justins5256]

If I remember correctly, there was a discussion a few months ago about the least discussed cases on this forum and someone mentioned this story. I think there are one or two threads about it, tops. I find this strange because even though this case did not air during the "glory years" of the show, it is a very compelling, well presented and memorable case just the same.

It has been some years since I last watched it, but my gut feeling was and still is that Hugh Harlan probably murdered his wife and skated by on lack of evidence. I think it's possible that he felt guilty about the murder as the years went on and possibly hiked into the woods or hitchhiked out of the area and took his own life. Perhaps his body was never recovered, or it was and ended up a "John Doe" - which could be true if he took his own life in another state.

The keys weren't found far from the truck. This reminds me of Gail Delano abandoning her car, ditching the keys, and ending it all in another state.

Those are pretty much my gut feelings from the segment. I find it hard to believe another party had it in for this seemingly eccentric, but nice, older couple and went out of their way to murder Diane Harlan and presumably strike again at Hugh three years later.

[MegtheEgg86]

Originally Posted by justins5256

If I remember correctly, there was a discussion a few months ago about the least discussed cases on this forum and someone mentioned this story. I think there are one or two threads about it, tops. I find this strange because even though this case did not air during the "glory years" of the show, it is a very compelling, well presented and memorable case just the same.

It has been some years since I last watched it, but my gut feeling was and still is that Hugh Harlan probably murdered his wife and skated by on lack of evidence. I think it's possible that he felt guilty about the murder as the years went on and possibly hiked into the woods or hitchhiked out of the area and took his own life. Perhaps his body was never recovered, or it was and ended up a "John Doe" - which could be true if he took his own life in another state.

The keys weren't found far from the truck. This reminds me of Gail Delano abandoning her car, ditching the keys, and ending it all in another state.

Those are pretty much my gut feelings from the segment. I find it hard to believe another party had it in for this seemingly eccentric, but nice, older couple and went out of their way to murder Diane Harlan and presumably strike again at Hugh three years later.

Agreed. That seems the most likely explanation, in my opinion.

Apparently Diane's dogs were something of a point of contention for the couple, what with Hugh giving Diane what little money he had and her spending it on the animals, other people, and so on. Wasn't there also something about how she fed him dog food a few times without him knowing it? In any event, I find it interesting that she was killed with a dog leash, and that Hugh did not correctly recall if the dogs had wandered back to the house with their leashes.

Gail Delano was immediately what I thought of when the keys were mentioned. The fact that someone who knew him said it would've been uncharacteristic of him to just abandon a vehicle (he would've most likely given it to someone else who needed it if he were leaving, she said) is somewhat telling. Gail left absolutely everything behind; looks like Hugh did the same, unfortunately.


In any event--and in all seriousness--what fascinating two people. I always thought they were some of the more "colorful" UM characters, which is why it surprises me that this case doesn't get talked about so much.


By the way, what the hell is "ragweed pot"? Exactly what it sounds like? I have no point of reference for smoking anything other than tobacco, but I can't imagine that being incredibly enjoyable.

[justins5256]

Originally Posted by MegtheEgg86

By the way, what the hell is "ragweed pot"? Exactly what it sounds like? I have no point of reference for smoking anything other than tobacco, but I can't imagine that being incredibly enjoyable.

It's dirt cheap, low quality marijuana, typically from Mexico.

The fact that he was a chronic smoker and left it behind doesn't bode well either.

[Mastermind]

Two theories come to mind:

1.Because of the significant time period between Diane's murder and Hugh's disappearance..I think it's not impossible that the two may be unrelated.

2. I wonder if Hugh's disappearance was some amateurish attempt at vigilantism.
Some person who knew (and maybe had an unrequited love for) Diane may have wanted Hugh to pay for the crime.

[MegtheEgg86]

Originally Posted by Mastermind

2. I wonder if Hugh's disappearance was some amateurish attempt at vigilantism.
Some person who knew (and maybe had an unrequited love for) Diane may have wanted Hugh to pay for the crime.

A revenge killing? I could maybe see that, especially in light of the fact that Hugh's truck was found in the same area where Diane was killed.

[Gelatinous Goo]

Originally Posted by MegtheEgg86

In any event--and in all seriousness--what fascinating two people. I always thought they were some of the more "colorful" UM characters, which is why it surprises me that this case doesn't get talked about so much.


By the way, what the hell is "ragweed pot"? Exactly what it sounds like? I have no point of reference for smoking anything other than tobacco, but I can't imagine that being incredibly enjoyable.

I loved that segment!

I didn't recognize the names Hugh and Diane Harlan at first, but as I read on, I knew who you were talking about. The first think that came to mind was "Oh, 'ragweed pot'!"!!! I then thought to myself, "What the hell is ragweed pot", only to read it in your post (literally) two seconds later! How odd is that?! I always assumed it was "ditch weed", AKA pot that grows in the wild, usually as a result of undigested seeds in bird droppings. It's of very low potency (often male plant as opposed to female) and grows all over the place.

[Gelatinous Goo]

Originally Posted by MegtheEgg86

In any event--and in all seriousness--what fascinating two people. I always thought they were some of the more "colorful" UM characters, which is why it surprises me that this case doesn't get talked about so much.


By the way, what the hell is "ragweed pot"? Exactly what it sounds like? I have no point of reference for smoking anything other than tobacco, but I can't imagine that being incredibly enjoyable.

I loved that segment!

I didn't recognize the names Hugh and Diane Harlan at first, but as I read on, I knew who you were talking about. The first think that came to mind was "Oh, 'ragweed pot'!"!!! I then thought to myself, "What the hell is ragweed pot", only to read it in your post (literally) two seconds later! How odd is that?! I always assumed it was "ditch weed", AKA pot that grows in the wild, usually as a result of undigested seeds in bird droppings. It's of very low potency (often male plant as opposed to female) and grows all over the place.

[XCalibur]

The only hole in the theory that Hugh murdered Diane and committed suicide out of guilt is that one can't help but think surely Hugh's body would have been found. After all its kind of hard for a person committing suicide to hide their own body. Unless they jump into some sort of terribly hot furnace like what happened to Dave Bocks, or into a large body of water. But why would Hugh bother to do that?

Even though at first glance this seemed like a solvable case, I always had a strange feeling watching it, like it was just to mysterious to be solved. Kind of like the case of the man who supposedly died in two different fires, or the one where the two men who had a business at the same location dissapeared and one was shot with his dog.

[MegtheEgg86]

Originally Posted by XCalibur

The only hole in the theory that Hugh murdered Diane and committed suicide out of guilt is that one can't help but think surely Hugh's body would have been found. After all its kind of hard for a person committing suicide to hide their own body. Unless they jump into some sort of terribly hot furnace like what happened to Dave Bocks, or into a large body of water. But why would Hugh bother to do that?

Even though at first glance this seemed like a solvable case, I always had a strange feeling watching it, like it was just to mysterious to be solved. Kind of like the case of the man who supposedly died in two different fires, or the one where the two men who had a business at the same location dissapeared and one was shot with his dog.

In the last case you mentioned, though, the man who was found with his dog--Tom Young--had likely committed suicide, and it was a year before he was ever found. I think if Hugh did commit suicide, it was probably a "Gail Delano" type deal, where he traveled to another location far from Morro Bay. With Hugh's long beard, he may have even been mistaken for a vagrant, and summarily sent to a coroner as a John Doe. Perhaps he's yet to be identified.

[Gelatinous Goo]

Originally Posted by MegtheEgg86

In the last case you mentioned, though, the man who was found with his dog--Tom Young--had likely committed suicide, and it was a year before he was ever found. I think if Hugh did commit suicide, it was probably a "Gail Delano" type deal, where he traveled to another location far from Morro Bay. With Hugh's long beard, he may have even been mistaken for a vagrant, and summarily sent to a coroner as a John Doe. Perhaps he's yet to be identified.

Also, keep in mind that people like Hugh and Diane likely lived slightly "off the grid" for many years. They had little money, which means less documentation. I tend to believe that Hugh did kill Diane in a final fit of eccentric rage. Being eccentric, a "Delano" outcome for Hugh is perfectly in the cards. From what we learned from the friend interviewed, Hugh really did sound like a decent person. He would have been so overcome with guilt that suicide would likely be his only option. I could see him putting on nice clothes and shaving his beard before killing himself in some other location. There's a John Doe out there somewhere.

[MegtheEgg86]

Originally Posted by Gelatinous Goo

Also, keep in mind that people like Hugh and Diane likely lived slightly "off the grid" for many years. They had little money, which means less documentation. I tend to believe that Hugh did kill Diane in a final fit of eccentric rage. Being eccentric, a "Delano" outcome for Hugh is perfectly in the cards. From what we learned from the friend interviewed, Hugh really did sound like a decent person. He would have been so overcome with guilt that suicide would likely be his only option. I could see him putting on nice clothes and shaving his beard before killing himself in some other location. There's a John Doe out there somewhere.

Oh yeah, totally agreed. I got to thinking yesterday--do the "free spirits" of UM suffer any more than other victims because of their lifestyle choices? Keith Reinhard comes to mind, as does David Stone. In any event, I surely hope not.

[Gelatinous Goo]

I wonder if LE ever created an age-enhanced photo of Hugh to get an approximation of what he would look like clean shaven. They could take the most recent photo they had of him sans beard and simply do the age progression, then spread the word to morgues nationwide.

That's a good question, by the way. There are the "free spirit" eccentirics and also the reclusive eccentrics. All in all, I would say that the free spirits suffer a worse ultimate fate than even the recluses. Unlike the hermits, the free spirits usually maintain contact with friends and family and care enough about others to not wish them any suffering on their account.

[justins5256]

Originally Posted by XCalibur

Even though at first glance this seemed like a solvable case, I always had a strange feeling watching it, like it was just to mysterious to be solved. Kind of like the case of the man who supposedly died in two different fires, or the one where the two men who had a business at the same location dissapeared and one was shot with his dog.

I think I see where you are coming from. For what it's worth, I do feel that some times UM intentionally or unintentionally took some artistic license and added "mystique" to some mysteries that probably have otherwise simple and mundane explanations - not to say that they are not "mysteries", just that there is often a more logical explanation, but UM doesn't always go for that.

It's interesting that you pigeonholed those particular two cases, Clarence Roberts and Tom Young/Keith Reinhard, in this thread about Hugh and Diane Harlan.

I believe that all three cases are prime examples of what I'm talking about. All three have very logical and realistic explanations, but UM portrayed them in a sensational and sometimes sinister light that made them seem very bizarre and unusual.

I, on the other hand, prefer more of an Occam's Razor approach to matters. If you apply that axiom to these particular stories, you'll see just how easily they come apart.

[kadrmas15]

Hmm, I am not sure whether Hugh Harlan killed Diane or not? Personally, I do not think he did. It will sound bad, as it is not the best defense but I think if he was going to kill her, he would have done it in a different way. I mean the whole strangling with the dog leash? Plus she was not killed at home but in a completely different part of Morro Bay.

However I have always doubted Hugh Harlan regardless of what one thinks about whether he killed his wife or not, I seriously doubt he himself was murdered, especially by the same person or persons that killed his wife if he was not the one that killed her. Hugh seemed like the type, he had his own way of thinking, his own way of doing things, he was eccentric and lived in his own world in many ways, in a world that only he himself seemed to truly understand. So I can see how he might just decide one day that he wants to go somewhere else and move on.