As the laws were then interpreted, he believed that he would have to link a specific action taken by Lois Jurgens to the precise cause of death. That this was much more a question for doctors than for the police did not sway Votel. Lois Jurgens, 93, of Arvada, Colorado, formerly of Malvern and Glenwood, Iowa, passed away June 13, 2022. We thought it would be no use.. There was obviously going to be trouble, and he didnt want to get involved. One might get a first impression that Lois was cold and indifferent, but to Rekdahl, this seemed a defense for insecurities.
Dennis Craig Jurgens, 3.
He wrote deferred in the box where he was to specify the manner of death, and put the certificate aside. He attended Olney Rural Elementary School and graduated from Filley High School in 1959. Want more true crime books? Now the town is most frequently described as middle class. Lois' remedy for the toddler wetting his diaper too frequently was to place a spring-action clothespin upon the end of his penis. child abuse law. She died aged 87 on May 7, 2013. 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. Its not unusual, the doctor said. From behind their curtains and blinds, the Jurgenses neighbors on Gardenette Drive had been watching the comings and goings all morning with mounting interest. To use this feature, use a newer browser. How a Group of Desperate Comics Creators Hatched Doomsday - Vulture He knew Peterson as a man always willing to help others, as a doctor very much for his patients. 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. 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. She is buried at the Union Cemetery, in Maplewood, Ramsey County, Minnesota. . It was just inconceivable to Woodburn that Dennis had been so injured by slipping and falling on a basement floor. Tragically, just a few years after the adoption, Dennis died from peritonitis. Found more than one record for entered Email, You need to confirm this account before you can sign in. She died aged 87 on May 7, 2013. Dennis Craig Jurgens was an American 3-year-old boy who was murdered in White Bear Lake, Minnesota in April 1965. Lois attended cosmetology school in Des Moines, Iowa. When he wouldnt have a bowel movement, she said, she pulled the feces from his rectum with her hands. His intensely angry adoptive mother, Lois Jurgens, know for her short, volatile temper, murdered him. The childs death occurred before there were state-mandated sentencing guidelines, and Thomson argued that she should have served less time. or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. She said she had set Dennis in the sink to wash him after he had wet his diaper, then had gone into another room to get a clean diaper. He would later learn much more, would attend seminars and organize a county task force on the problem, but it cannot be said that Gingold knew nothing in 1965 about the battered-child syndrome. Lt. Clarence (Buzz) Harvey at first did not know what to make of the blonde 42-year-old woman who appeared at the front desk of this towns solitary police station on the morning of Sept. 18, 1986.
She committed one of the most unusual child murder cases in history in Minnesota. He had lived in this home since 1953, and it gave him much pleasure. Instead the judge agonized, repeatedly expressing from the bench his sense of conflict and uncertainty. Though the name of the adoptive family was not given, many suspected that the story was about Lois Jurgens. 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. . contact HH at the best online prices at eBay! Lois Jurgens Obituary (1930 - 2012) - Elkhorn, Wi, IA - the Des Moines Rekdahl by now had quite a dim outlook on this placement. In 1987, Jurgens was convicted of third-degree murder of Dennis. We will review the memorials and decide if they should be merged. None.. The situation had made him uncomfortable, so uncomfortable that he hadnt pulled down the blankets or examined the body further.
BOOK WORLD - The Washington Post Murder of Dennis Craig Jurgens | Mystery & Crime Amino State v. Jurgens :: 1988 :: Minnesota Court of Appeals Decisions He liked them. Lets not build up some fiction that now we have done everything we should do.. | 
Her brother, Jerome Zerwas, was the police lieutenant of the town of White . I thought the burn accident was a weird story when she told it, but again, there just was not that level of awareness, things didnt get referred. He was the son of teenage Jerry Sherwood (who was herself a ward of the state) and her teenage boyfriend.
. That was not binding on the prosecutor, but the defense attorney would zero in on this. Donna Neely wondered, as she studied the Jurgenses now-silent house from her front window. Years later, the attorney representing Roberts interests at the 1965 custody hearing would still remember those photos. She grew up and attended school in Malvern, graduating in 1947. I have several children about that age with this same problem. He felt that she needed psychiatric help very badly and, without it, might become psychotic. Thirty years later, writer and artist Dan Jurgens is revisiting the storyline that gripped the world. Published Jan 18, 2023. There was also pressure from supervisors to place, especially because there were so few Catholic children. She was sentenced to a maximum of 25 years in prison and was paroled in 1995. In the 1960s, the term child abuse had not yet been coined[citation needed][2] and no one, not even medical professionals and teachers, was required to report suspicions. This memorial has been copied to your clipboard. Lois considered herself a devout Catholic and believed she was doing "God's work" by making Dennis "perfect" in her eyes. On January 13, 2000, she was initially suspected of poisoning her husband, Harold. . 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.
You consider how well you can sell this to 12 people in the jury box. But neither the judge nor anyone else was willing to face the implications of such findings. Lois Jurgens agreed, but seemed scared that she would not be offered another child. Well, I do, he replied. Jurgens and Weeks joined CBR to discuss launching Lois & Clark 2 and spoilers for its first installment. Are you sure that you want to report this flower to administrators as offensive or abusive? On bare skin, the heat just flashes off. The White Bear Lake police log for the morning of April 11, 1965--Palm Sunday--included the sort of events to be expected in such a town. Most simply remain hidden. .. They had cited the Fifth Amendment protection against self-incrimination. View Obituary & Service Information At the funeral, a crown of roses rested on Dennis head. The boys mouth was getting full, he wasnt swallowing, so Lois put horseradish on the fork. She knew he had high school and one year of college behind him, and that he was an only child with strong bonds to his mother. Lois A. Jurgens (92) of Petersburg passed away September 25, 2019. The body was severely undernourished, nearly emaciated. This browser does not support getting your location. in the third degree and sent to prison. She believed that Lois Jurgens was accepting and embracing Dennis, and he seemed healthy and adjusted. Lois Jurgens | Photos | Murderpedia, the encyclopedia of murderers . . Those looking back now, those who unraveled the case, tend to shrug and shake their heads when Votels name comes up. Such stories are not rare. Even with half the body obscured, VanderWyst noticed the bruises--an awful lot of them he would say later. He does not sound very well behaved, she said. last He assured that it was going on, that this would be his responsibility to get the information, bring it back to me so I could complete the certificate. The investigation, trial, and My biggest feeling was that it was a sad situation and I wanted to get out of there as soon as I could. He couldnt comprehend anyone torturing a kid, Peterson would explain many years later. En dd i White Bear Lake - A Death in White Bear Lake 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". Dennis and Robert Jurgens, 1965. In early December, 1963, Rekdahl paid her last postplacement visit to the Jurgenses. The next day, Rekdahl phoned the Jurgenses family physician, Dr. Roy Peterson, who was treating Dennis. I dont think this case is an aberration at all, said Michael McGee, the current Ramsey County medical examiner who finally ruled Dennis death a homicide.
She is buried at the Union Cemetery, in Maplewood, Ramsey County, Minnesota. Its kind of hard to believe., ``How can you take a babys life like that and beat it for two years and then walk free? she said. Remove advertising from a memorial by sponsoring it for just $5. Lois Germaine Josephine Zerwas Jurgens (August 12, 1925 - May 7, 2013) was an American convicted murderer responsible for one of the most unusual child murder cases in history in Minnesota.