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MONEY, MADNESS, and MIDPOINTS

Michael Barisone on HF Victor 2013 Courtesy dressage-news.com

Horse people make up a special community fueled by a passion for horses. Years ago I was lucky enough to attend riding clinics held at Linden Hall by multi-time Olympic medalist Bruce Davidson and earned dressage spurs training with a student of the legendary Karl Mikolka. My lifelong interest in the world of horses has allowed me to watch the following story unfold from the beginning.

In April 2026 Netfix began airing a true crime documentary called UNTOLD: The Shooting at Hawthorne Hill about events I have followed for several years. The film, however, glossed over several key issues that triggered the shooting and avoided mentioning crucial elements that added to the controversy. Since I studied the charts in detail this seems a good time to share a more detailed analysis.

The rarefied world of dressage, a discipline that demonstrates the highest level of equestrian training, has been abuzz for more than six years over the case of Michael Barisone and a shooting incident at his pricey dressage training stables in New Jersey.

Michael Barisone, an expert horseman, was a reserve rider of the 2008 Beijing Olympics Ridng Team, and named the 2009 Sportsman International Horseman of the Year. Thereafter, he created and operated highly respected and expensive dressage training and horse boarding facilities in New Jersey and Florida. In 2019 it cost $2500 per month for horse board and training at his elite New Jersey stables and some horses in his care were valued at prices in the neighborhood of $200,000.

This professional riding coach shot a boarder at his exclusive New Jersey dressage facility on August 7, 2019. The woman survived and Barisone was jailed without bail on attempted murder charges until his trial in April 2022.

BACKGROUND

One of Michael Barisone's past students was a member of the U.S. Bronze medal winning team in the 2016 Olympic Games which added a feather to his training cap and his reputation was spotless. His Hawthorne Hill facility in New Jersey, not far from New York City, was a favored spot for well-heeled equestrian amateurs and Olympic hopefuls.

Lauren Kanerek, an aspiring equestrian, falsely posted to her Facebook page that she was a USEF/USDF Bronze Medalist and moved her horses to Barisone's stables in hopes of improving her competitive skills. She signed up for personalized expert coaching, boarded two horses, and lived rent free in part of Barisone’s house with her boyfriend in 2019.

In equine training facilities it is common for worker students to live on the premises and help with the horses and farm work to defray costs. Kanerek's boyfriend, Robert Goodwin, was supposed to perform carpentry tasks and repairs on the house and barn to offset costs of the other horses Kanerek owned. Kanerek, age 38, and her boyfriend were admittedly both ex-heroin users, but Kanerek’s father, a wealthy retired lawyer, helped her live in style. Lauren Kanerek had previously lived in North Carolina where, according to the New York Times at the time of the trial, there was at least one pending charge against her for cyberstalking and several women had filed complaints with the United States Equestrian Federation and SafeSport against her for bullying.

TENANT FROM HELL

The relationship between Barisone and Kanerek broke down in the summer of 2019 after a flood in the main farmhouse forced Barisone and his fiancee, along with her children, to move into accomodations in a barn. Kanerek and her boyfriend remained in the apartment in the house. Barisone repeatedly asked Kanerek and her boyfriend to leave his farmhouse because they were not paying rent, but they refused. Barisone finally posted an eviction notice after numerous fruitless calls to the police, who could do nothing because there was no written lease agreement.

In the weeks leading up to the incident, Lauren Kanerek admited under oath that she placed illegal recording devices around the property and made numerous thinly veiled threats against Barisone in social media posts. There were hundreds of posts aimed at undermining Barisone's reputation. Reports that Kanerek and her boyfriend dressed up like ninjas and roamed the grounds in the middle of the night to terrify the family was briefly brought out in the film.

In August Kanerek and her boyfriend wrote a letter reporting Barisone's facility to the fire department for unsafe conditions. On August 6 township officials, acting on that letter, erected notices to vacate the premises with a $5,000/day fine if everyone did not leave. This also was not mentioned in the Netflix documentary.

Someone also called the Division of Child Protection to investigate alleged abuse of Barisone’s girlfriend's children. During the 2022 trial, Laura Kanerek initially denied making any calls to social services, but the defense found two calls on her cell phone made in July 2019 to the Division of Child Protection number.

On August 7, just hours after a state social worker showed up to question Michael Barisone and his girlfriend about the anonymous child abuse reports, Barisone confronted Kanerek and her boyfriend. He had access to a little pink and black 9 mm Ruger pistol that one of his boarding clients kept in his office safe for safekeeping.

According to Kanerek’s testimony, Barisone shot her twice in the chest and another bullet went wild. Despite her injuries Kanerek managed to call 911 and was able to appear at the initial hearing to press charges a few weeks later. The prosecution said the third shot was meant for her boyfriend, so Barisone was prosecuted on two counts of attempted murder.

Barisone said he did not remember the incident or why he was badly beaten when police arrived. The defense suggested he may have been beaten before the shooting.

Barisone's attorney argued that Michael Barisone acted in self defense and that Lauren Kanerek had driven him to the breaking point, triggering a mental breakdown.

THE CHART

Michael Barisone 2008 Olympic Team Rider and business owner DOB: August 17, 1964

Shooting occurred August 7, 2019

Some people believe there is no value in midpoints. However, it is possible to blend the qualities and symbolisms of any two planets to understand whether they are helpful or not helpful. Any midpoint that includes Saturn will be negative and midpoints that include Jupiter (except, of course, the Saturn/Jupiter midpoint) will be beneficial.

The best and most helpful of these is the Jupiter/Chiron (jk) midpoint. The worst of these are the Saturn/Jupiter (hj) midpoint and Saturn/Chiron (hk) midpoint. The Saturn/Chiron midpoint can represent harmful (Saturn) spur of the moment (Chiron) decisions or actions.

On the date of the shooting incident Michael Barisone’s natal Sun was opposed by the Saturn/Chiron midpoint. And that midpoint was connected to numerous other planets in his birthchart. His impulsive act (Chiron) created a chain of unpleasant events and the loss (Saturn) of his business, his prestige, and his livelihood. He spent more than two years in jail awaiting trial. He faced twenty years in prison if found guilty.

Here is an example of someone's spur of the moment decision and action that caused a great deal of harm and heartache.

The transiting Saturn/Chiron midpoint marked as 'hk" on the chart below created a Grand Cross with his natal Sun, Jupiter, and Juno/Pallas conjunction. Also notice the green circles that mark the opposition of his Mercury by transiting Neptune and indicate Barisone's confused mental state during the time he was persecuted by Kanerek and her boyfriend. The defense team asserted that Michael Barisone's mental health problems were exacerbated by Lauren Kanerek's harassment, intimidation, and threats.

THE VERDICT

The jury agreed that Michael Barisone had been pushed to the edge. On April 14, 2022 Barisone was found not guilty by reason of insanity on attempted murder charges of Lauren Kanerek and Kanerek’s boyfriend, Robert Goodwin.

NOTE: The chart below looks similar to the date of the shooting. That is because transiting Saturn (rather than the Saturn/Chiron midpoint) was opposite Barisone's natal Sun forming a T-square with his natal Jupiter when he received the verdict. But, this time helpful Jupiter and Neptune were quincunx his Sun.

He was required by the court to 30 days of psychiatric observation although declared not guilty. He continued to be incarcerated while waiting for a bed in a facility to fulfill the 30 day mandate and not released until the fall of 2023.

However, even now in 2026 he remains under court supervision with restrictions on his travels. Barisone was permanently banned from equestrian activities by the SafeSport group in December 2025 oddly enough not long after he sued the USET (U.S. Equestrian Federation) for not acting on his allegations against Ms.Kanerek in 2019 which he asserts would have prevented the incident.

Lauren Kanerek DOB: November 30, 1981

NOTE: This article was originally posted by yours truly to the M*gi S*ciety's member's website in 2022 but has been edited and updated to post on my own website in light of the new documentary airing on Netflix, UNTOLD: The Shooting at Hawthorne Hill

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