Lauren Kanarek, a dressage rider, survived the August 7, 2019 shooting at Hawthorne Hill in Long Valley, New Jersey, when her trainer, former Olympic equestrian Michael Barisone, shot her twice in the chest after months of escalating conflict over training, housing, and dueling harassment complaints. Barisone was charged with two counts of attempted murder and found not guilty by reason of insanity in April 2022. He was committed to a psychiatric hospital, released under court-ordered conditions in late 2023, and the case returned to public attention with a 2026 Netflix documentary that Kanarek’s family has publicly condemned.1People. Where Is Lauren Kanarek Now
How the Conflict Started
Kanarek began training with Barisone at his Washington Township, Morris County farm in 2018, paying $5,000 a month for training, boarding, and a farmhouse where she lived with her boyfriend, Rob Goodwin.1People. Where Is Lauren Kanarek Now Barisone had been an alternate on the 2008 U.S. Olympic dressage team.2Today. Where Is Michael Barisone Now
By 2019 the arrangement had turned sour. Kanarek was frustrated that she trained mostly with Barisone’s assistants rather than the man himself, and she began posting about him and his staff on Facebook, sometimes at 3:00 a.m. Barisone called the posts “horrific.”1People. Where Is Lauren Kanarek Now She publicly accused him of being racist, homophobic, and antisemitic; he denied the accusations. On July 25, 2019, she wrote: “It’s about time to possibly go to war. Anyone who repeatedly kicks a resting beast will eventually wake her up!”3CBS News. Michael Barisone Lauren Kanarek Shooting Social Media She also reported him to the U.S. Center for SafeSport.
Barisone tried to evict Kanarek and Goodwin, calling them squatters and accusing them of secretly recording him. They said the recording devices, including one in Kanarek’s locker, were in places they believed were legal. Both sides made multiple 911 calls in the days before the shooting. Barisone’s legal team later pointed to an alleged report Kanarek made to New Jersey’s Division of Child Protection and Permanency accusing him of abusing his then-fiancée’s children as the “final straw.” Kanarek testified she did not recall making such a report.4Yahoo Entertainment. Olympian Michael Barisone Shot Student
What Happened on August 7, 2019
Barisone retrieved a 9mm Ruger from his office safe and confronted the couple at the farmhouse. He shot Kanarek twice in the chest and fired at Goodwin but missed. Goodwin tackled him and held him down until police arrived, finding Barisone beaten and the gun on the ground nearby.5Biography. Michael Barisone Now Untold Hawthorne Hill Netflix
Kanarek, then 38, was in critical condition. She underwent emergency surgery on her left lung, was placed in a medically induced coma for four days, and spent three weeks in the ICU.6CBS News. Lauren Kanarek Attempted Murder Michael Barisone Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity Her father, Jonathan Kanarek, said she was hospitalized for about a month and that her physical recovery would never fully end.7WFMD. Family of Shooting Survivor Says Defamatory True Crime Doc Painted Olympic Equestrian Shooter as Real Victim
The pistol belonged to Ruth Cox, a 74-year-old client from North Carolina. She told police she had brought the gun from North Carolina and that Barisone had asked to see it two or three nights earlier. Cox entered New Jersey’s Pretrial Intervention program on a fourth-degree unlawful transfer charge.8Daily Record. Barn Manager Michael Barisone Morris County NJ Farm Enters PTI
The Trial and the Insanity Verdict
Barisone was arrested the day after the shooting and charged with two counts of first-degree attempted murder and two counts of second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose. He faced up to 80 years in prison.9Daily Record. Michael Barisone Trial Former Olympian Found Not Guilty He spent roughly two and a half years in jail awaiting trial.2Today. Where Is Michael Barisone Now
The trial before Judge Stephen Taylor in Morris County Superior Court began on March 28, 2022, and ran eleven days. Judge Taylor rejected self-defense as an option, leaving Barisone’s attorneys, Ed Bilinkas and Chris Deininger, to rely entirely on an insanity plea.10Horse Sport. Was Barisone Insane
The defense psychiatrists, neuropsychologist Dr. Charles Hasson and psychiatrist Dr. Steven Simring, testified Barisone suffered from a delusional disorder and persistent depressive disorder. Hasson said Barisone had a psychotic break that “degraded his thinking to such an extent that he did not know what he was doing was wrong.” Simring described him as “unmoored by reality,” gripped by persecutory delusions that Kanarek and Goodwin were conspiring to harm his horses, ruin his reputation, and endanger his family. The state’s expert, forensic psychologist Dr. Louis Schlesinger, testified there was “no basis to conclude that Barisone had any sort of psychosis,” and called Barisone’s claimed memory loss around the shooting a “red flag.” Supervising Assistant Prosecutor Christopher Schellhorn argued Barisone acted out of anger and frustration.11Daily Record. Michael Barisone Olympian Trial Diagnoses Mental Disorder
Kanarek testified. Asked whether she had a plan to destroy Barisone, she answered: “At some point, yes.” The defense pointed to that answer, and to her social media, to argue she had waged a deliberate campaign to push him past a breaking point.3CBS News. Michael Barisone Lauren Kanarek Shooting Social Media The jury saw a photograph of the bullet wounds on her chest.10Horse Sport. Was Barisone Insane
The twelve-member jury deliberated about 18 hours over four days. On April 14, 2022, it returned a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity on the attempted murder count involving Kanarek, not guilty on the count involving Goodwin, and not guilty on all weapons charges. The jury also declined to convict on the lesser charge of aggravated assault.9Daily Record. Michael Barisone Trial Former Olympian Found Not Guilty
Commitment and Release
Under New Jersey law, a defendant found not guilty by reason of insanity can be civilly committed for treatment. Barisone was sent to the Ann Klein Forensic Center in Trenton for a 30-day evaluation, then transferred to Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital in Morris Plains, with periodic “Krol hearings” to determine whether he remained a danger.2Today. Where Is Michael Barisone Now
In mid-November 2023, Judge Taylor authorized his release. The conditions require him to live at a friend’s home in Whitehouse Station, receive regular psychological treatment in Clinton, possess no firearms, have no contact with Kanarek, limit alcohol consumption, and return to court in three months for a status update.12Eurodressage. Michael Barisone Discharged From Psychiatric Hospital
The Civil Cases and the USEF Fight
Kanarek sued Barisone personally, and he countersued. Both parties dismissed their claims with prejudice in early 2023, with no money exchanged, according to Barisone’s attorney.13Nancy Jaffer. Another Milepost for Michael Barisone A separate suit Kanarek brought against Sweet Grass LLC, a partner entity in Barisone’s farm, ended in a confidential settlement in late March 2023.14NorthJersey.com. Michael Barisone Shooting Trial Morris County NJ Suing Insurance Companies Barisone also sued three insurance companies to recover his criminal defense costs after they denied coverage on the ground that the shooting was intentional.
On July 31, 2025, Barisone sued the United States Equestrian Federation in federal court, alleging the organization received complaints between 2017 and 2019 that Kanarek was bullying, harassing, cyberstalking, and threatening people in the sport, but never forwarded them to the U.S. Center for SafeSport. The complaint names two people who reported Kanarek’s conduct, Josephine Stagaard and Robin Brueckmann, and alleges Barisone himself contacted USEF General Counsel Sonja Keating on August 1, 2019, calling his situation “life and death.”15Chronicle of the Horse. Barisone Sues USEF for Failing to Report Kanarek Complaints to SafeSport The case was transferred to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in September 2025.16CourtListener. Barisone v. United States Equestrian Federation USEF filed a motion to dismiss on December 19, 2025; as of February 2026, it remained pending.17Eurodressage. Michael Barisone Sues USEF Gets Permanent Ban From SafeSport
On December 15, 2025, SafeSport changed Barisone’s status from temporary suspension to permanent ineligibility, citing sexual harassment, emotional misconduct, and violations of national governing body policies.18USEF. Safe Sport Sanction List The ban is subject to appeal, and Barisone’s attorney has said he will appeal.19Chronicle of the Horse. USEF Responds to Barisone Suit as SafeSport Bans Athlete Permanently
The Netflix Documentary and the Family’s Response
Untold: The Shooting at Hawthorne Hill premiered on Netflix on April 21, 2026. Both Barisone and Kanarek sat for interviews. According to Barisone’s fiancée, Lara Osborne, the documentary uses hundreds of pages of discovery material that were excluded from the criminal trial under the judge’s evidentiary rulings.5Biography. Michael Barisone Now Untold Hawthorne Hill Netflix
Jonathan Kanarek called the film biased and said filmmakers spent significantly more time with Barisone than with his daughter, who participated for about two days. “Netflix thinks it’s more valuable to try and say this, you know, young girl drove this famous man crazy than to tell the truth about it,” he said.20Yahoo News. NJ Family Says Netflix Documentary Is Biased The family’s attorney, Steven Beer, called the film a “classic and regrettable true crime documentary” geared toward suggesting Kanarek “could have driven [Barisone] to that point.” Beer said the family asked Netflix and production company Propagate for an advance screening to help Kanarek manage her anxiety, and that the request was denied.21Fox News. Family of Shooting Survivor Says Defamatory True Crime Doc Painted Olympic Equestrian Shooter as Real Victim Jonathan Kanarek said his daughter was harassed online after the release, including messages telling her she “should be dead.”7WFMD. Family of Shooting Survivor Says Defamatory True Crime Doc Painted Olympic Equestrian Shooter as Real Victim No defamation lawsuit against Netflix or the filmmakers has been reported as of mid-2026.
Where Things Stand Now
Barisone lives in Florida, where he rides and trains on a private farm, and is engaged to Lara Osborne. His participation in USEF-sanctioned events is blocked by the SafeSport permanent ineligibility ruling he is appealing, and his federal suit against USEF is pending.22Yahoo Sports. Where Is Michael Barisone Now
Kanarek remains in the sport and is still with Goodwin. In the Netflix film she said: “Come hell or high water, I’m going to continue in this sport.” Beer said she “is not a professional victim” and “wants people to learn from her experience.”1People. Where Is Lauren Kanarek Now