lois jurgens' death

If hes notified there would be fifty people at her house, and she didnt want that many people around. There was no possibility that Dennis had died from a blow to the head. 'Convergence' makes Superman a super-dad - USA TODAY In winter, they got the north wind, so the lake froze too rough for ice skating. Dennis was lying face up in his crib, his stiffened arms raised eight inches off the bed. Harold and Lois Jurgens, on the advice of their attorney, no longer would make themselves available for questioning. At the funeral home, Lois Jurgens brother, Lloyd Zerwas, came to pay his respects. With the exception of the severe burns, his health remained quite good. In the early 1980s, Dennis' birth mother, Jerry Sherwood, looked for Dennis, only to find out he had died in 1965.

The topic under consideration was the possible placement of Dennis Puckett with the Jurgens family.

Dennis and Robert Jurgens, 1965.

From a newspaper notice of his death she had learned that the boys body bore multiple injuries and bruises. Ivey's Lois Jurgens is a woman so proud and righteous, her sense of morality . . There was a problem getting your location. There was also talk years earlier of her having started the fire at her in-laws' home which killed her mother-in-law, with whom she never got along. The case drew widespread publicity and was the subject of a book and a made-for-television movie. A jury deliberated about five hours Friday before finding Lois Jurgens, 61, of Stillwater, Minn., guilty of third-degree murder, or an unintentional killing. Lois, who abused Dennis constantly, escalated to new levels of rage as the flood waters filled her basement. so its not unusual.. That doctor (Peterson) also presented problems--he was a typical doctor, couldnt believe his patient was killed.. If I had it to do over again--well, in 1987 I wouldnt approve, but if it were 1965, I dont know what I would do. State v. Jurgens :: 1988 :: Minnesota Court of Appeals Decisions He knew Peterson as a man always willing to help others, as a doctor very much for his patients. VanderWyst didnt push the matter. From the patio off his living room and the balcony off his bedroom, he could look across the lake to Manitou Island, and beyond, to the town of White Bear. . Dennis struggled with such training and was forced to pray and recite his Rosary kneeling on a broomstick for extended periods, until he did it correctly. Dennis nose was blood-red--VanderWyst thought it looked as if you just wiped it once more youd probably take the rest of the skin away. Your account has been locked for 30 minutes due to too many failed sign in attempts. Peterson did not give us any conclusive answers about the condition of Dennis or about his death, VanderWyst wrote in his report for that night. . contact To use this feature, use a newer browser. Dennis lay in the ground at St. Marys Cemetery, no name given to his death. This is the story of a small boys murder that went undeclared and unprosecuted for 22 years in a community full of people who knew what had happened. The just announced 80-page Death of Superman 30 th Anniversary Special will find Superman, his friends and his family revisiting his death, while dealing with a destructive new threat known as Doombreaker. Please try again later. Its easy today to say, Why didnt they prosecute? but it was a different time, a different time. When they cleared land for his basement, theyd found old rolls of amusement park ticketsthree rides for a nickel. As he viewed the body, he thought: This boy has been murdered. During this period, Lois was once again placed in a psychiatric facility. No, nothing struck me, the doctor replied, except for these bruises. Unused Superman Art Reveals a Rejected Electric Costume Design They are good people. In spite of extensive physical evidence pointing towards severe abuse, the medical examiner did not classify the death under any of the standard classifications of accident, suicide or murder; he simply marked it "deferred". Lois Jurgens, One of The Most Terrible Moms in America! He naps both in the forenoon and the afternoon. She seemed to Scott County welfare workers a hostile and sullen young woman, unhappy and emotionally underdeveloped. In her effort to make Dennis "right" in her eyes, Lois embarked on a series of sadistic and corporal punishments: Angered at Dennis for rejecting certain foods, she responded by placing horseradish on the food and then force-fed it to him. Dennis Craig Jurgens (December 6, 1961 - April 11, 1965) was an American 3-year-old boy who was murdered in White Bear Lake, Minnesota, in April 1965. Lois Jurgens, the sadistic baby torturer and killer! - Amino Star Tribune photo by Donald Black. He could never forget how Lois Jurgens looked at those photos stoically, showing no emotion. Nbc Night at the Movies a Child Lost Forever - Variety charles edward ed holland memorial park funeral homes and cemeteries. During the early morning hours of April 11, 1965, Dennis Jurgens died at the hands of Lois Jurgens. And a Dr. Peterson called at 10:09 a.m. to report a DOA--dead on arrival--at 2148 Gardenette Drive. C $186.13. Late in August, Lois had called Rekdahl to report the matter. She always proclaimed her innocence. The welfare department case work was very limited. VanderWyst and Korolchuk had brought in the file themselves and lobbied for prosecution. She would be a poor candidate for adopting a child at this time, the psychiatrist in 1955 had advised St. Pauls Bureau of Catholic Charities, where the Jurgenses for years had vainly sought children. One day, Zerwas walked into the squad room and found the two officers investigating Dennis death. Thirty years after the original Death of Superman storyline, the iconic tale's writer Dan Jurgens has confirmed which alternate Superman villains almost killed the hero. Oops, some error occurred while uploading your photo(s). Her brother, Jerome Zerwas, was the police lieutenant of the town of White . She died aged 87 on May 7, 2013. Ep 50-52 A Death in White Bear Lake by Barry Siegel- Sources, Photos While he waited for the coroners investigator to arrive, he asked Lois Jurgens if there was anything he could do--such as take Robert to his own home, to be cared for by his wife. Want more true crime books? No. Did the doctor remember his thoughts on why this child died, his inner feelings that day? Her mother having long ago disappeared, Jerry Puckett had bounced among assorted relatives and county homes for girls. White Bear Lake, a picturesque American town where kids freely ride bikes, play two-square and parents throw neighborhood BBQsand where 3 year old Dennis Jurgens died on Palm Sunday 1965. Add to your scrapbook. Rekdahl found him friendly and talkative--perhaps too much so, for he often strayed widely from the subject at hand. VanderWyst was not close social friends with the Jurgenses, but he knew them well enough to greet them on the street. She saw Harold, then 40, as a tall, rather swarthy man of German and Norwegian extraction, with dark brown hair and eyes. . But this death didnt look as though it was from natural causes. Other testimony and evidence was more troubling. Lois Jurgens served eight years of her sentence and had a quiet life as a widow in Stillwater, Minnesota. How in the heck could that happen? Lois Jurgens was the infamous subject of one of the most unusual child murder cases in history in Minnesota.She was the adoptive mother of six children in the 1960s and 1970s, and brutally abused them all, killing one of them, three-year-old Dennis Jurgens, in 1965.. Jurgens was one of sixteen children. It just made me sick. You couldnt get action from the prosecutor and police.

Their investments and savings totaled $2,200. Tragically, just a few years after the adoption, Dennis died from peritonitis. However, he was in failing health and his autopsy results did not indicate poisoning. This sort of thing happened back then.. What to make of Dennis Jurgens death now was passed into the hands of the Ramsey County coroner. Instead, Dorothy Engfer began telling others in the neighborhood what shed seen. The autopsy report mentioned bruises head to toe. Lois Jurgens had a reputation amongst her extended family and neighbors as an intense, angry woman with a short and volatile temper, but Dennis' arrival in her home provoked sadistic rages that targeted Dennis as he aged from one to three-and-a-half years of age.

They had a son--a 2-year-old named Robert, whom they had adopted at birth through private channels. They were of varying colors--black and blue, yellowish green, reddish--which meant that some were fresh, some old. and Judith Ivey as 0 cemeteries found in Maplewood, Ramsey County, Minnesota, USA. Blankets covered him to the waist. Saint Paul, Ramsey County, Minnesota, USA.
She did not want this to influence their decision, but in all truthfulness, that was the reality. Sherwood became suspicious and persuaded authorities to investigate.
The trial of Lois Jurgens for the murder of 3-year-old Dennis made national . She talked about it all the time, in fact. Beatings and displays of Lois' explosive temper were daily events; especially bad days could include her slamming a child's forehead into a nail protruding from a wall, forcing a child to stand barefoot in snow, and shoving a used sanitary napkin in a child's face. In summer, Peterson caught little sunfish off his dock or from his motorboatthey had the loveliest taste, the fillet just the size of a half dollar, two good bites each. But how did such an infection occur in the first place? Forever' w/ the Jurgens who says he still has the yellow legal pad on which he did his quick sketch was the victor. Rekdahl thought Lois Jurgens, then almost 37, to be a rather attractive woman, although she was short and a trifle on the chubby side. For a time, that appeared to be the end of the story. This was the first child-abuse case he had handled. They just buried the body in St.. What was to be the core of the case against Lois Jurgens 22 years later essentially came out then, albeit in a less detailed, more muted fashion. Lois Jurgens agreed, but seemed scared that she would not be offered another child. or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. When it froze, hed hang lights on the seven surrounding elm trees, put out snow sculptures of bears and seals tinted with food coloring, and invite all the neighborhood kids to join his own two children in skating and hockey games. Dan Jurgens on how The Death of Superman has "withstood that test of time" By Grant DeArmitt published 27 July 2022 The creator best known for The Death of Superman explains its impact 30. At this time there are a number of persons yet to be contacted who supposedly have information and are relatives of the family, Korolchuk wrote on Thursday, April 15, four days after the death. Murder of Dennis Craig Jurgens | Mystery & Crime Amino Of course, there was that one bad accident involving third-degree burns to Dennis penis and scrotum. Rekdahl expressed some concern. As he read, he stiffened in his chair. Pitera stared at the body. When Dennis cried, Lois would force his head under the cold water faucet at the kitchen sink. Lois Jean Jurgens, the daughter of Lawrence A. and Marjorie V. (Johnson) Jones, was born on May 26, 1929 in Malvern, Iowa. Gladys and Dorothy talked frequently to each other about what they had seen, not unaware that theyd recommended the Jurgenses to the welfare department caseworker. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for The Death of Superman By Jurgens, TPB, DC Comics 1993, New, Sealed. With Lois's mental health deteriorating, a hearing explores the question, should Lois and Harold Jurgens keep custody of their 5 year old adopted son, Robert after the death of this brother, Dennis. It was full of redwood and log railings, and the lawn and trees ran almost to the waters edge, a good hundred feet of lake frontage in all. For that reason, Dennis, a week after his birth, was baptized a Catholic. If the doc cant figure this out, hed say, well. The house at 2148 South Gardenette Drive, White Bear Lake, where the Jurgenses lived from 1957 to 1967. Even so, doctors do not usually see third-degree burns in an area that isnt covered by clothing. . Sherwood also told D'Angelo that Dana Ivey's interpretation of Lois Jurgens is eerily accurate. She died aged 87 on May 7, 2013. Woman Tortures Adoptive Son To Death Lois Jurgens (40) was variously described as both short-tempered and vindictive by her neighbours and others who encountered her in the town of White Bear Lake, Minnesota, and it was well known that she experienced bouts of severe depression and psychosis. Rekdahl by now had quite a dim outlook on this placement. He pulled the file on the ancient case and began leafing through the yellowing pages. They would have to find out. This was a murder. It is essentially unconceivable to me, without a protruding object above the floor, that he could have been injured in this way, Woodburn said.

In spite of extensive physical evidence pointing towards severe . . Well, I do, he replied. . As the new adopted children were older, there were many first-hand histories (recounted to the media during the 1987 trial of Lois Jurgens) describing the severe abuse they suffered at their adoptive mother's hands. He attended Olney Rural Elementary School and graduated from Filley High School in 1959. Notes References A Death in White Bear Lakeby Barry Siegel. Lois Jurgens appeared with her attorney Doug Thomson in Ramsey County . Lois Jurgens.
Whod listen? Resend Activation Email. The prosecutor had a different attitude back then, Votel said recently. Lois Jurgens reaction to Dennis during the visit was less than enthusiastic. As it happened, Peterson at the time was deputy coroner in Ramsey County. Please reset your password. There was a television movie broadcast in 1992 on NBC en*led A Child Lost Forever that told the story from the perspective of Jerry Sherwood (played by Beverly D'Angelo). About: Lois Jurgens Obituary. Dr. The trial of Lois Jurgens for the murder of 3-year-old Dennis made national headlines and was the top news story of the state of Minnesota in 1987. After all, Dorothy Engfer more than once had seen Lois smack Dennis so hard the blood flowed from his nose, and Gladys DeMars had watched Dennis over two summers wither from a husky, jolly baby to a wan little boy covered with bruises and black eyes and split lips. Your new password must contain one or more uppercase and lowercase letters, and one or more numbers or special characters. By all accounts, Lois was obsessed with abusing Dennis, and she wanted the world to know he was a "bad child," and made no apologies about the inappropriate way she was disciplining him. The situation had made him uncomfortable, so uncomfortable that he hadnt pulled down the blankets or examined the body further. The testimony from Dr. Woodburn, the pathologist who did the autopsy on Dennis, was unequivocal. Peterson departed soon after. Harold (Harry) Jurgens, 76 of Filley passed away at Gold Crest Retirement Center in Adams on January 7, 2018. The suspicious death of Dennis Jurgens wasnt properly investigated for 20 years. April 11, 1965. The first came now.
The victim
On January 13, 2000, she was initially suspected of poisoning her husband, Harold. Stanley Wiatros was one of them. Donohue, their attorney, had allowed Lois before the hearing to be examined by a psychiatrist only under the strictest conditions. They wanted an infant under a year old, and they wanted a Catholic child. I just examined him to see that he was in fact dead. Murder of Dennis Jurgens - Wikiwand Her brother, Jerome Zerwas, was the police lieutenant of the town of White Bear Lake, Minnesota, where she lived at the time. Doug Thomson, who defended Jurgens, said his client did not get out early. They carried assorted life insurance polices worth $10,000. Lois obsessed about Dennis' weight, which according to medical records was appropriate for a child of his age and build at the point of his adoption. Edit a memorial you manage or suggest changes to the memorial manager. Why was there no disposition of this case? An email has been sent to the person who requested the photo informing them that you have fulfilled their request, There is an open photo request for this memorial. PAUL When 3-year-old Dennis Craig Jurgens died on April 11, 1965, there were so many bruises on his body that the coroner said he stopped counting them. They beat my baby to death, Sherwood told Buzz Harvey. She thought Dennis was sloppy fat. This particularly surprised Rekdahl. Soon the word spread from house to housethered been a death, the younger Jurgens boy had died. The first few days of the police investigation by VanderWyst and Sgt. Harold and Lois Jurgensa middle-class, churchgoing couple who had been unable to have children of their ownhad adopted Sherwood's son, Dennis, in 1962. Throughout the years of frequent abuse, it has been reported that while Harold Jurgens made little effort to curb his wife's abuse of young Dennis, he personally never mistreated the boy. Only 5% to 10% of the bruises on Dennis could have been caused by such a fall. On April 26, Korolchuk drafted an analysis of the information they had gathered.
Resend Activation Email, Please check the I'm not a robot checkbox, If you want to be a Photo Volunteer you must enter a ZIP Code or select your location on the map. In 1992 A made-for-TV movie was made based on both Jerry's story and this case called, ' A Child Lost Forever ' w/ the remarkable Beverly D'Angelo as Jerry Sherwood and Judith Ivey as Lois Jurgens. They wanted to do something, but felt it was none of their business. . Man held is death of retarded foster child, Minneapolis Star, May 21, 1971. In early December, 1963, Rekdahl paid her last postplacement visit to the Jurgenses. At first, that seemed to be the conclusion that the official inquiry would also reach. This woman was no crank. Certain neighbors and family members knew there were problems with Lois' treatment of Dennis but did nothing to prevent it. Now the town is most frequently described as middle class. DENNIS JURGENS: MURDERED BY AN EVIL WOMAN - YouTube The next day, Dennis brother, Robert, was picked up and taken to a local hospital, on order of Juvenile Court Judge Archie Gingold. To receive the type of severe burns he suffered, Dennis would have had to be exposed to steaming-hot water for a significant length of time. conviction
Top Rated Seller. "There was obviously going to be trouble, and he didnt want to get involved.". In 1951, some 14 years before Dennis's death, a psychiatrist at the Mayo Clinic entered this assessment in her file: "It is . Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel. He had served as a reference when they adopted Robert. By the second week, the investigation began to encounter obstacles. Lois Jurgens had a reputation amongst her extended family and neighbors as an intense, angry woman with a short and volatile temper, but Dennis' arrival in her home provoked sadistic rages that targeted Dennis as he aged from one to .mw-parser-output .frac{white-space:nowrap}.mw-parser-output .frac .num,.mw-parser-output .frac .den{font-size:80%;line-height:0;vertical-align:super}.mw-parser-output .frac .den{vertical-align:sub}.mw-parser-output .sr-only{border:0;clip:rect(0,0,0,0);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px}3+12 years of age. Murder of Dennis Jurgens - Abuse at The Hands of Lois Jurgens Heroes abound now in White Bear Lake, visible and proud of their roles in unraveling the mystery of Dennis death. Please complete the captcha to let us know you are a real person. Soon after, Jerry Puckett dropped her plan to convert--but by then Dennis was already registered as Catholic on the adoption rolls. All photos uploaded successfully, click on the Done button to see the photos in the gallery. In the decade preceding the adoption of Dennis, Lois Jurgens had suffered bouts of depression and psychosis, including an extended stay at a psychiatric institution where electroconvulsive therapy was administered. The same day that she spoke to the priest--Aug. 30, 1962--Rekdahl informed the Jurgenses that they were going to be approved for a second adoption. The trial of Lois Jurgens for the murder of 3-year-old Dennis made national headlines and was the top news story of the . On the other hand, she realized the improbability of being offered another Catholic baby in the near future. In 1965, it was a private general practitioner, Dr. Thomas Votel, who handled the coroners duties on a part-time basis for $6,300 a year. There was testimony from other officers that he impeded the investigation into the child's death. When the White Bear Lake police called her a year ago, she knew immediately whom they were talking about. They had shocked James Nelson. In 2005, playwright Brian Vinero wrote a theatre piece, The Jurgens File, which was developed at New York City's 78th Street Theatre Lab; it told the story from the perspective of the community. She died aged 87 on May 7, 2013. Rekdahl suggested that if she had negative feelings, it would be best for them not to take the child. VanderWyst climbed into his patrol car and backed down the Jurgens driveway at 11:48 A.M. VanderWysts departure did not go unnoticed. Clothing retains the heat. Donna Neely wondered, as she studied the Jurgenses now-silent house from her front window. We did not have enough evidence of any kind to deny them. They beat my baby to death. The next morning, six coroners jurors were asked to view the body of a dead boy, and to remember everything they saw.
They talked with more than a dozen relatives and neighbors of the Jurgenses. Nor had his arrival two hours before. Her secret was revealed after Sherwood began searching for the son she gave up for adoption and learned in 1983 that he had died of a bowel injury. He had lived in this home since 1953, and it gave him much pleasure. from United States. In the early 1980s, Jerry Sherwood went looking for the newborn son she gave up for adoption 20 years prior. A Death in White Bear Lake: The True Chronicle of an All-American Town Description above from the Wikipedia article Lois Jurgens, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia. They also caught crappies and smallmouth bass and northern pike, but the sunfish were the best. According to reports from family members who eventually testified at the murder trial, Dennis turned purple from being force-fed the bitter and spicy horseradish and also having his oxygen supply cut off when Jurgens covered his mouth and nose.

last Product details Publisher : Ballantine Books (November 28, 2000) Language : English Paperback : 560 pages ISBN-10 : 0345487176 Lois Jurgens headed to trial. No, she explained. We came very close to trying to do something. Please ensure you have given Find a Grave permission to access your location in your browser settings. There was enough evidence to sustain child abuse and neglect charges. Petersburg, ILLois A. Jurgens (92) of Petersburg passed away September 25, 2019. To the casual observer, the Jurgens seemed to be a normal, church-going family with a perfectly maintained house and yard. based on information from your browser. He liked them. They had just buried the body, and that was all. The doctor did not want to be there. There were many fateful moments in Dennis brief life, moments in which his destiny could have been changed. Buy It Now. Lois Jurgens had a reputation amongst her extended family and neighbors as an intense, angry woman with a short and volatile temper, but Dennis' arrival in her home provoked sadistic rages that targeted Dennis as he aged from one to three-and-a-half years of age. There is 1 volunteer for this cemetery. No, Lois said, sounding definite. Walter Moore, a co-worker of Harold Jurgens, also came to the funeral. Harvey had been a rookie cop here in 1965, but Sherwoods story triggered no memories. There were at least a dozen bruises on the face alone, some large and others small. ``You have to understand this child is only 3 1/2 years old and virtually every day Lois Jurgens had him he was a victim of some kind of physical or mental abuse, and I dont think eight years was quite enough to compensate society for the act she committed, Robinson said. Votel went through living hell, one local judge said. memorial page for Lois Germaine Josephine Zerwas Jurgens (12 Aug 1925-7 May 2013), Find a Grave Memorial ID 134346102, citing Union Cemetery, Maplewood, Ramsey County . .