Why did Christopher Christensen kill himself? Daughter reveals ‘toxic’ marriage lead to Disneyland death

The daughter of Christopher Christensen, who took his own life at Disneyland on December 3, 2022, claimed that he saw it as the only escape from his ‘toxic’ marriage with his ‘abusive’ wife.

Trigger warning: This article contains mentions of suicide and may be triggering to certain readers. Discretion is advised.

The 51-year-old, who was the principal of an elementary school in Huntington Beach, jumped from the parking lot at Disneyland. At the time of his death, Christopher Christensen was facing child endangerment charges after his wife, Marlena, called the cops over false accusations of abuse. He was due to be presented in court on December 5, 2022.

Christopher posted a long letter on Facebook before taking his own life where he stated that Marlena called the police last month after they had a heated argument. In the call, she had accused Christopher of abuse.

He added that law enforcement put Christopher in jail, supposedly without evidence, and took Marlena’s statement at face value. He spent two nights in jail and was also charged with two offenses related to domestic violence. Christensen got his bail for $10,000.

In his lengthy Facebook post, Christopher Christensen blamed the legal system and called it "flawed," and added that because of his arrest, he was about to lose his job. After posting bail, he and his wife tried to clear his name but were unsuccessful in doing so.

Christopher said that the couple loved and adored each other. However, a heated argument took place between them in November in front of his stepdaughters (Marlena’s daughters from a previous marriage). Despite the fight, Christopher insisted that he didn't hit, slap or even physically hurt his wife or two kids during the verbal altercation.

In the Facebook post, he wrote:

“Unfortunately, Marlena’s anger got the best of her that night and she called the police, which landed me in jail that night. Yes, me! A man who has never hit or harmed ANYONE in his life!”

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Brittany Christensen, Christopher Christensen's daughter says his wife Marlena tore the family apart

Brittany Christensen is one of the late principal's three children from his first marriage, which ended in divorce in 1999.

In an interview with the Daily Mail, the 26-year-old said that the charges were incorrect as Marlena had been very difficult for their family over the past year. She added that they hadn't had any contact with her and said:

“I'd just now started regaining contact with him over the last two weeks, and it's been really great. He'd been trying to figure out how to leave her. In my opinion, it seems like this, in his mind, was his way out of his relationship.”

Christopher Christensen with his daughter Brittany (Image via Facebook/Christopher Christensen)

Brittany went on to talk about Marlena’s abusive behavior toward their entire family over the last five years. She stated that Marlena weaved her story against Christopher to the cops with lies.

Brittany also shared a screenshot of the text messages Marlena sent her when they had an argument back in April.

Marlena wrote:

“You're a horrible disgusting excuse for a daughter and sister. Go find your Dad, play the hero. But it's me he will be missing I the morning.”

Brittany claimed that after their argument at her apartment, when Christopher Christensen tried to separate from his wife, Marlena keyed the former's car. Brittany filed a complaint about this incident with the police. She alleged that it caused around $6000 of damage. She also showed photos of the scratches to Daily Mail.

Brittany accused Marlena of exhibiting a consistent pattern of inappropriate behavior and manipulation toward their family for a while now. She said that even though Christopher Christensen asserted that his relationship was great until two weeks ago, it had constantly been toxic and mentally draining for Christopher.

Brittany told the Daily Mail,

“In my opinion, it was a slow chipping away at my dad's soul for much longer than just two weeks and I wish at this stage she could have left my family alone. She's done a lot, personally to my family recently, to myself, to my husband. So there's a lot going on in this that is very complicated.”

While talking about Christopher Christensen’s arrest in November, Brittany said that Marlena put Christopher in a horrible position with her false allegations. She painted a tainted picture of him in front of the world, which was inaccurate and untrue of his character. Brittany thinks this incident had become too much for him.

Christopher Christensen with his wife Marlena (Image via Facebook/Christopher Christensen)

However, Marlena denied Brittany’s accusations. She said in a comment on Facebook that she is "living in a nightmare" and is trying to grieve.

Marlena addressed Christopher Christensen as the love of her life and shared that she was heartbroken at what happened. She denied having any part in his death and said that it wasn’t her fault, she did not make him do this. Marlena claimed that she is not sick and she knows in her heart what is true.