Jurgens was one of 16 children. She thought Dennis was sloppy fat. This particularly surprised Rekdahl. Harold and Lois Jurgensa middle-class, churchgoing couple who had been unable to have children of their ownhad adopted Sherwoods son, Dennis, in 1962. Dennis lay in the ground at St. Marys Cemetery, no name given to his death.
Published Jan 18, 2023.
D'Angelo Puts Her Heart Into Nbc'S 'A Child Lost Forever' There was obviously going to be trouble, and he didnt want to get involved. Many years later, asked in court how this placement was approved, Rekdahl--by then a psychotherapist and psychiatric social worker in Napa, Calif., remarried and using the name Gerane Wharton-Park--said: We finally had really no exacting reasons why we could turn this family down. . Judge Gingold would not back down either. Dennis Craig Jurgens was an American 3-year-old boy who was murdered in White Bear Lake, Minnesota in April 1965. During his short life, Dennis . Fittingly for a major anniversary like . The autopsy report mentioned bruises head to toe. Villains also abound, but they remain less noticed. 0 cemeteries found in Maplewood, Ramsey County, Minnesota, USA. That doctor (Peterson) also presented problems--he was a typical doctor, couldnt believe his patient was killed.. ``If she had been convicted of this in 1965 she probably would have done about three years, Thomson said. In 1951, some 14 years before Dennis's death, a psychiatrist at the Mayo Clinic entered this assessment in her file: "It is . The defense attorney was still thinking about a criminal prosecution--even if no one else was. Donna Marlene had seen other things. Jurgens would make his debut as a comic book writer with Sun Devils he began scripting from Conway's plots with #8 and fully took over the writing duties on the title with #10. 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. We reached a point where we could not find any new leads or pick up any new information . One might get a first impression that Lois was cold and indifferent, but to Rekdahl, this seemed a defense for insecurities. They had a son--a 2-year-old named Robert, whom they had adopted at birth through private channels. they figured. You see, Gingold said, I didnt have to go that far. 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. Then there were the neighbors and relatives who had seen incidents and evidence of abuse. Free shipping for many products! 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. There was testimony from other officers that he impeded the investigation into the child's death. There was also a great deal of suspicion surrounding Jerome Zerwas, the brother of Lois Jurgens, who was a police lieutenant in the city of White Bear Lake, Minnesota. Harold (Harry) Jurgens, 76 of Filley passed away at Gold Crest Retirement Center in Adams on January 7, 2018. Photo by Patrick Hendry on Unsplash. 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. Lois Jurgens, 93, of Arvada, Colorado, formerly of Malvern and Glenwood, Iowa, passed away June 13, 2022. Ivan and Gladys Demars, neighbors who had served as references when Dennis was adopted, over the fence had seen the boy with bruises, black eyes, split lips. 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. Learn more about managing a memorial . The coroner noted in his report that Dennis had almost zero subcutaneous fat, at the level of a person who had died of starvation. . On the night of his death, Lois was in an extremely bad mood due to flooding which was filling up the basement with water. Theres nothing worse, Peterson had thought, than seeing a dead child. It is fair to say that this finding raised considerable questions. There was a bluish mark on the right side of the head that started at the temple and extended to behind the right ear. J. was a little nervous today and I felt was probably upset for fear of what we would think of such a thing happening to Dennis, she wrote in her log. . Though autopsy photos showed Dennis body was covered in bruises at the time of his death, the coroner never declared it an accidentor rather, what it really was: murder. During this period, Lois was once again placed in a psychiatric facility. During her several postplacement visits to the Jurgens home in the following, probationary year, Rekdahl increasingly came to judge the placement a success. 1 Bakgrunn; 2 Innhold; . Lois Jurgens served eight years of her sentence and had a quiet life as a widow in Stillwater, Minnesota. Clayton Robinson Jr., a former prosecutor in the case, said Jurgens should not have been released yet. 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. No animated GIFs, photos with additional graphics (borders, embellishments. 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. The official records say 1,200 children died of abuse in 1986, but many experts believe the figure would reach 5,000 if closer attention were paid to some deaths attributed to accident or blamed on sudden infant death syndrome. A Death in White Bear Lake: Notorious crime in city history marks 50 Mrs. She is buried at the Union Cemetery, in Maplewood, Ramsey County, Minnesota More Alchetron Topics References Lois Jurgens Wikipedia (Text) CC BY-SA Topics The Suspicions of Mr Whicher Toz (film) Steve McAnespie Problems arose within the police department as well. Rekdahl decided to call on the Jurgenses. She was diagnosed as having mixed psychoneurosis and also unable to conceive a child with Harold. But in 1962, before the developers and high-speed roads came, this was more truly a small town, inbred and insular, with a population just reaching 15,000. Three-year-old Dennis Craig (Puckett) Jurgens was tortured to death in the wee hours of April 11th, 1965. Novel and Adaptations: Barry Siegel's true-crime novel A Death in White Bear Lake recounts the story via extensive research and oral history. Soon after, Jerry Puckett dropped her plan to convert--but by then Dennis was already registered as Catholic on the adoption rolls. . Get up to speed with our Essential California newsletter, sent six days a week. However, he was in failing health and his autopsy results did not indicate poisoning. We will review the memorials and decide if they should be merged. She died aged 87 on May 7, 2013. Tragically, just a few years after the adoption, Dennis died from peritonitis. Lois Jurgens served eight years of her sentence and had a quiet life as a widow in Stillwater, Minnesota. Lois Jurgens served only eight years of her sentence, released early for good behavior, and lived a secluded life in Stillwater, Minnesota, until her death in 2013. From their patio, they could see huge bass jumping in the water. . You may not upload any more photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 20 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 5 photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 30 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 15 photos to this memorial. Lois Jurgens reaction to Dennis during the visit was less than enthusiastic. Sadly, the mother-son reunion was not meant to be; Jerry's child had died just before his fourth birthday. A vivid portrait of an all-American town that harbored a killer, A Death in White Bear Lake is also the absorbing story of two detectives who refused to give up until they had the killer cold. home | She was born February 25, 1927 to Leslie and Margaret Stowell in Cass County IL. Father Riser told her he definitely would. Her features were still attractive, although the years had added a certain hardness and fleshiness. Los Angeles, ICE detainees allege retaliation for speaking about medical conditions at Otay Mesa center, Downtown L.A stabbing sends six to hospital; 1 arrested, San Diego Roman Catholic diocese facing yet another lawsuit from its insurance company, K-Pop isnt the only hot ticket in Koreatown how trot is captivating immigrants, Los Angeles is suddenly awash in waterfalls. She demanded to know the truth about her son's death. Ep 50-52 A Death in White Bear Lake by Barry Siegel- Sources, Photos 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 . There is 1 volunteer for this cemetery. This month is the 30th anniversary of the release of "A Death in White Bear Lake," a book by then-Los Angeles Times reporter Barry Siegel. Lois Jurgens was disappointed about Dennis age. This account already exists, but the email address still needs to be confirmed. When he arrived at the Jurgens home, though, hed realized all that was pointless. She talked about it all the time, in fact. Lois Jurgens - Alchetron, The Free Social Encyclopedia