American Monster: Stephanie Lazarus

0:00 Speaker 1: Warning. Kind of Murdery contains adult themes, explicit language, and

0:04 Speaker 1: descriptions of violence. It is not suitable for anyone, and

0:07 Speaker 1: we recommend you stop listening.

0:09 Speaker 2: Now true crime with a dash of the paranormal, the garish,

0:23 Speaker 2: the strange in the darkly comic. I'm Zevan Odelberg, host

0:27 Speaker 2: of Kind of Murdery, a podcast that's about more than

0:30 Speaker 2: just murder. It's my very own pocket dimension, home to

0:33 Speaker 2: a curated collection of bizarre and compelling stories. The unsolved,

0:38 Speaker 2: the unsettling, and the unbelievable. I cover it all just

0:42 Speaker 2: so long as it's kind of Murdery. Welcome to my

0:45 Speaker 2: very own pocket dimension. Thank you for being here. I'm

0:48 Speaker 2: Zevan Odleberg. Please join me as we uncover what truths

0:52 Speaker 2: we can and solve what mysteries we may. Kind of

0:55 Speaker 2: Murderies Take the beamer, leave the body, the bullets, and

1:00 Speaker 2: the bite marks. Starts now.

1:13 Speaker 3: In the rapidly dimming twilight of February twenty fourth, nineteen

1:17 Speaker 3: eighty six, LAPD detective stepped through the gates of a

1:20 Speaker 3: condo complex and van Eyes, a suburb of Los Angeles.

1:25 Speaker 3: The detective's faces were etched with stern concentration. The scene

1:29 Speaker 3: that awaited them was grim. Sherry Rasmussen, a twenty nine

1:32 Speaker 3: year old nursing director and a newly wed of just

1:35 Speaker 3: three months, lay dead in her living room. She was

1:38 Speaker 3: found by her husband, John Rutin, an engineer who'd arrived

1:41 Speaker 3: home from work at precisely five point fifty five PM.

1:45 Speaker 3: As Utin pulled into his driveway, the first thing that

1:48 Speaker 3: caught his eye was the open garage door odd. The

1:51 Speaker 3: silver two door BMW, a cherished engagement gift he'd given

1:55 Speaker 3: to Sherry, was conspicuously missing. He felt an immediate twinge

1:59 Speaker 3: of dread. Called in sick to work that day, she

2:02 Speaker 3: should have been home. Swiftly Routon made his way into

2:05 Speaker 3: the house. The living room appeared as if a tornado

2:07 Speaker 3: had swept through. Fragments of shattered porcelain vase were strewn

2:11 Speaker 3: across the floor, A TV wall unit listed to one side,

2:15 Speaker 3: partially torn from the wall. A credenza drawer had been

2:18 Speaker 3: violently pulled out, its papers and documents haphazardly thrown about.

2:22 Speaker 3: Sherry's lifeless body lay amidst the chaos. Her attire, just

2:26 Speaker 3: a robe, t shirt and underwear, indicated that she had

2:30 Speaker 3: been taken utterly by surprise. Lyle Mayer, the lead homicide

2:35 Speaker 3: detective on the case, looked around the room, methodically noting

2:38 Speaker 3: each detail. His years on the force told him this

2:41 Speaker 3: had initially been a burglary until it took an unimaginably

2:45 Speaker 3: dark turn in his mind. He ran through the likely

2:48 Speaker 3: sequence of events. The burglars probably entered through an unlocked

2:51 Speaker 3: front door while one of them busied himself ripping electronics

2:54 Speaker 3: from the wall unit. The other intruder likely went upstairs,

2:57 Speaker 3: only to be confronted by Sherry. Surmised that her casual

3:01 Speaker 3: attire suggested that the home invasion had caught her completely unaware.

3:06 Speaker 3: But Cherry Rasmussen was no easy target. Standing at six

3:09 Speaker 3: feet tall and athletically built, she fought back with a

3:12 Speaker 3: fierce intensity. The struggle between her and her assailant was

3:15 Speaker 3: nothing short of ferocious, leaving clues that suggested a battle

3:19 Speaker 3: waged on two floors of the townhouse. It appears to

3:22 Speaker 3: have started in the dining room on the second floor,

3:24 Speaker 3: where evidence showed that a thirty eight caliber pistol had

3:27 Speaker 3: been discharged. At least one of those bullets might have

3:30 Speaker 3: struck Rasmussen in a desperate bid for survival, Sherry Rasmussen

3:34 Speaker 3: seems to have made a run for it. A trail

3:36 Speaker 3: of blood smeared down the stairs, A bloody handprint lingered

3:40 Speaker 3: near the front door, right next to the alarm panel

3:42 Speaker 3: with its panic button. She almost made it, but her

3:45 Speaker 3: assailant was relentless. Back in the living rooms, signs of

3:48 Speaker 3: a struggle were evident. Cherry had been bitten on her

3:50 Speaker 3: left forearm, possibly during a tussle for the gun. Her

3:54 Speaker 3: head bore the impact of a heavy vase, a blow

3:56 Speaker 3: that probably knocked her off her feet. To finish the

3:59 Speaker 3: grim deed, the assailant grabbed a quilt from across the room,

4:02 Speaker 3: likely to muffle the sound of the gun, and fired

4:05 Speaker 3: more rounds through it, hitting Rasmusen squarely in the chest.

4:08 Speaker 3: She was struck three times, her heart, lungs, and spine

4:12 Speaker 3: all pierced by the bullets. A housekeeper in the adjacent

4:15 Speaker 3: unit later told authorities she'd heard a commotion and a scream,

4:19 Speaker 3: but she mistook it for a domestic dispute and didn't

4:21 Speaker 3: call the police. When the dust settled, Sherry rasmus And

4:24 Speaker 3: lay dead, and her silver BMW was missing from the garage.

4:28 Speaker 3: Yet Puzzlingly, most belongings in the house were untouched. Even

4:32 Speaker 3: Rasmusen's jewelry box sat unopened, plainly visible on her dresser.

4:36 Speaker 3: To Detective Mayor, this suggested a hasty retreat, as if

4:39 Speaker 3: the intruder had been interrupted or scared off. But by

4:43 Speaker 3: what or by whom? The details were haunting each one,

4:46 Speaker 3: raising questions that seemed to deepen the mystery. The assailant

4:50 Speaker 3: had seemingly bypassed numerous valuables, focusing instead on a violent

4:54 Speaker 3: confrontation that ended in murder. The crime was as bewildering

4:57 Speaker 3: as it was brutal, leaving investigators with the scene that

5:00 Speaker 3: refused to fit the mold of a typical burglary gone wrong.

5:04 Speaker 3: Something about the scene raised questions that tugged at the

5:07 Speaker 3: corner of Mayer's mind. Why were certain valuables left untouched,

5:10 Speaker 3: Why were the electronics dismantled but not taken, And, most crucially,

5:15 Speaker 3: if this was a burglary gone wrong, why did it

5:18 Speaker 3: culminate in murder. It was a strange crime scene, one

5:21 Speaker 3: that would stump investigators for years to come. With no

5:24 Speaker 3: immediate suspects and little to go on, the case gradually

5:26 Speaker 3: settled into the backlogs of unsolved murders, casting a long,

5:31 Speaker 3: unanswered shadow over the city of Los Angeles. For twenty

5:34 Speaker 3: three agonizing years, Sherry Rasmussen's murder would remain an unsolved mystery,

5:39 Speaker 3: that is, until the advent of forensic science would finally

5:42 Speaker 3: shockingly point the finger at one of the most unlikely

5:46 Speaker 3: suspects in LA's long criminal history. It was a long

5:50 Speaker 3: night for Lloyd Mahaney, a criminalist from the Los Angeles

5:54 Speaker 3: County Coroner's Office. By the time he arrived at Sherry

5:57 Speaker 3: Rasmussen's home, the clock was ticking past two a and

6:00 Speaker 3: this was already his second homicide of the night. His

6:03 Speaker 3: task was clear, look for trace evidence, the small details

6:07 Speaker 3: that could speak volumes. Mahani started by meticulously scouring the

6:11 Speaker 3: area around Rasmusen's lifeless body. He was looking for the

6:14 Speaker 3: minuscule hair fibers, any anomaly that could offer a clue.

6:18 Speaker 3: Despite his thoroughness, he found nothing that stood out, nothing

6:22 Speaker 3: that screamed here's your clue. Next, he moved on to

6:25 Speaker 3: a more sensitive aspect of his job, a sexual assault kit.

6:28 Speaker 3: Working with professional precision, Mahani collected swabs and slides. Then

6:33 Speaker 3: his eyes landed on something noteworthy, the bite mark on

6:36 Speaker 3: Rasmussen's arm. It was a unique telling piece of evidence,

6:40 Speaker 3: the kind of detail that could become crucial in the future.

6:44 Speaker 3: He chose a six inch swab enclosed in a tube

6:47 Speaker 3: with a red rubber stopper. With great care, he swabbed

6:50 Speaker 3: the indented area, capturing the very essence of the assailant's

6:53 Speaker 3: dental impression. Back into the tube went the swab, sealed

6:57 Speaker 3: by the stopper. Mahani labeled it meticulously with his initials

7:00 Speaker 3: and the coroner's case number. The tube was then placed

7:03 Speaker 3: in a five x seven inch LA Coroner's Physical evidence envelope,

7:07 Speaker 3: marked with Sherry Rasmussen's name, a description of the contents

7:10 Speaker 3: and their origin. He sealed the envelope, noting the precise

7:14 Speaker 3: date and time of its closure. As dawn broke over

7:17 Speaker 3: the San Fernando Valley Mahini completed his work. He headed

7:20 Speaker 3: straight to the Coroner's office, where, at ten thirty two

7:23 Speaker 3: am on February twenty fifth, nineteen eighty six, the evidence

7:27 Speaker 3: custodian booked the swab into the official records, a single swab,

7:31 Speaker 3: perhaps holding the key to unraveling the complexities of this

7:35 Speaker 3: brutal crime now lay in the hands of the Los

7:38 Speaker 3: Angeles County Coroner's office. Time would tell if this seemingly

7:41 Speaker 3: small piece of evidence could illuminate the dark corners of

7:44 Speaker 3: a case that had so far stumped even seasoned detectives.

7:48 Speaker 3: The day after Sherry's brutal murder, her parents, Nells and

7:52 Speaker 3: Loretta Rasmussen, made the journey from Arizona to Los Angeles,

7:55 Speaker 3: their minds a swirling mix of grief and disbelief. Nells

7:59 Speaker 3: wasted no time in seeking out Detective Lyle Mayer, the

8:02 Speaker 3: man helming the investigation. Mayor, briefed him on the current

8:05 Speaker 3: state of affairs, explaining that they were actively searching for

8:08 Speaker 3: one or more burglars responsible for the heinous act. John Ruten,

8:12 Speaker 3: Sherry's husband, was no longer considered a suspect. In the

8:15 Speaker 3: midst of this grim exchange, Nells brought up a piece

8:18 Speaker 3: of information that tingled at the edges of his consciousness.

8:21 Speaker 3: A month or two prior, his daughter had voiced concerns

8:24 Speaker 3: about an encounter with an ex girlfriend of John's, a

8:27 Speaker 3: woman who had audaciously confronted Sherry at her own workplace,

8:30 Speaker 3: a hospital. The kicker this ex girlfriend was an LAPD officer.

8:35 Speaker 3: Sherry's father was convinced that this unnamed woman could be

8:38 Speaker 3: at the heart of the matter. Mayor jotted down the

8:41 Speaker 3: potentially crucial detail in the case file, but curiously, it

8:45 Speaker 3: seemed he never pursued this lead. About a week later,

8:48 Speaker 3: the stolen BMW resurfaced, abandoned and his baron of clues

8:52 Speaker 3: as a deserted island. The car told investigators nothing that

8:55 Speaker 3: they didn't already know. Two months rolled by as life

8:59 Speaker 3: in Los Angeles moved on, but just a few blocks

9:01 Speaker 3: from Sherry's condo, a burglary attempt snapped Mayor's attention back

9:05 Speaker 3: to the case. One of the burglars had brandished a gun.

9:08 Speaker 3: Were these men the key to unlocking Sheherry's case. Mayor

9:11 Speaker 3: thought it plausible and shift his focus to identifying them.

9:14 Speaker 3: Yet the individuals remained as eluse of his fantoms, and

9:17 Speaker 3: the leads ran dry. By late October, Sherry's murder case

9:21 Speaker 3: was gathering cobwebs. The Los Angeles Times published a feature

9:25 Speaker 3: revealing a desperate plea from the Raspusen family. They were

9:28 Speaker 3: offering a ten thousand dollars reward for information leading to

9:32 Speaker 3: the suspects. Mayor was quoted in the article detailing the

9:35 Speaker 3: suspects as two Latino men with heights ranging between five

9:38 Speaker 3: foot four inches and five foot six inches. The clock

9:42 Speaker 3: was ticking, but for the Raspusen family, time had already

9:45 Speaker 3: run out. They were simply waiting for justice to catch up. Now.

9:49 Speaker 3: Nineteen eighty six was a year steeped in violence for

9:52 Speaker 3: the city of Angels. The city's dark underbelly was exposed,

9:55 Speaker 3: with eight hundred and thirty one murders recorded, a number

9:59 Speaker 3: that seems unimaginable today, nearly triple the current rate. The

10:03 Speaker 3: LAPD's homicide detectives were under enormous pressure their success or

10:07 Speaker 3: failure judged by a single metric, the clearance rate. By

10:10 Speaker 3: the end of that turbulent year, they had solved five

10:12 Speaker 3: hundred and thirty eight out of eight hundred and thirty

10:14 Speaker 3: one murders, a clearance rate that stood at sixty five percent.

10:18 Speaker 3: To put it in perspective, four hundred and sixty three

10:20 Speaker 3: were cleared by arrest and the other seventy five fell

10:24 Speaker 3: under the category of cleared other. That's when there's a

10:27 Speaker 3: case where there was enough evidence for an arrest, but

10:29 Speaker 3: circumstances outside of the police's control prevented it, such as

10:33 Speaker 3: a suspect being dead or beyond extradition. For LAPD detectives,

10:37 Speaker 3: clearance rates were more than just numbers. They were akin

10:40 Speaker 3: to a batting average in baseball, a critical statistic monitored

10:44 Speaker 3: both within the unit and up the hierarchical chain. Importantly,

10:48 Speaker 3: once the calendar year ended, the numbers were locked in,

10:51 Speaker 3: unalterable by future arrests. This had an interesting effect. Detectives

10:56 Speaker 3: could inflate their current year statistics by solving older cases,

11:00 Speaker 3: not just the new ones. In two thousand and nine,

11:03 Speaker 3: for example, the LAPD's Olympic Division had just seven new murders,

11:07 Speaker 3: but managed to solve fifteen cases in total, leading to

11:11 Speaker 3: an almost surreal clearance rate of two hundred and fourteen percent. Yet,

11:16 Speaker 3: as the clock struck midnight on December thirty first, nineteen

11:19 Speaker 3: eighty six, Sherry Rasmussen's murder remained unsolved. Her name became

11:23 Speaker 3: a haunting injury in the list of two hundred and

11:26 Speaker 3: ninety three unsolved cases that year, a chilling reminder that

11:29 Speaker 3: behind each statistic is a human life cut short, a

11:33 Speaker 3: family devastated, and a killer who eluded justice, Sherry became

11:37 Speaker 3: one of those cold cases. Her story relegated to a

11:40 Speaker 3: folder enough filing cabinet as detectives moved on to the

11:44 Speaker 3: next year's grim tally. The year nineteen eighty six, the

11:47 Speaker 3: same year Sherry Rasmussen's life was brutally snuffed out in

11:50 Speaker 3: her home, was a turning point for criminal investigations. A

11:54 Speaker 3: seismic shift was about to rock the world of forensics.

11:58 Speaker 3: And that seismic shift was something that we utterly take

12:01 Speaker 3: for granted now. But it was a crime solving tool

12:05 Speaker 3: that until quite recently had never been available to law enforcement.

12:10 Speaker 3: And what was it, well, DNA evidence. Until then, law

12:14 Speaker 3: enforcement had been limited in their ability to conclusively match

12:17 Speaker 3: biological evidence from crime scenes to particular individuals, and not

12:21 Speaker 3: since Scotland Yard validated fingerprinting in nineteen oh one had

12:25 Speaker 3: the detective's toolkit undergone such a transformative upgrade. Just seven

12:31 Speaker 3: months after Rasmusen's murder, this new science made its dramatic

12:34 Speaker 3: debut in a criminal case. The stage was set thousands

12:37 Speaker 3: of miles away from Los Angeles, in the quaint villages

12:40 Speaker 3: outside Leicester in the English Midlands. Two fifteen year old

12:44 Speaker 3: girls had been found dead, sexually assaulted, and strangled. It

12:47 Speaker 3: became painfully clear to both police and a petrified community

12:51 Speaker 3: that a serial predator was lurking among them. With a

12:54 Speaker 3: task force of two hundred officers, the police zeroed in

12:57 Speaker 3: on a seventeen year old boy with an unsettling interest

13:00 Speaker 3: in one of the crime scenes. After a round of

13:02 Speaker 3: intense interrogations, the boy offered contradictory accounts of his actions,

13:06 Speaker 3: leaving the police frustrated and unsure. Inter Alec Jeffries, a

13:11 Speaker 3: local geneticist who introduced investigators to a process he had developed,

13:15 Speaker 3: which he called genetic fingerprinting. Forensic DNA testing was carried

13:19 Speaker 3: out on samples from the crime scenes and from the suspect.

13:23 Speaker 3: The results were nothing short of revolutionary. The same person

13:27 Speaker 3: had committed both heinous crimes, but it wasn't the teenager

13:31 Speaker 3: they had in custody. That seventeen year old boy became

13:34 Speaker 3: the first criminal suspect to be exonerated through DNA testing,

13:38 Speaker 3: and eventually DNA evidence would lead to the conviction of

13:41 Speaker 3: a man named Colin Pitchfork in nineteen eighty eight. Back

13:45 Speaker 3: in Los Angeles, the impact of DNA technology began to

13:49 Speaker 3: ripple through the judicial system. In a nineteen eighty nine

13:52 Speaker 3: rape case featuring three defendants, two of them immediately pleaded

13:56 Speaker 3: guilty upon learning that DNA evidence would be used against them.

14:00 Speaker 3: The third defendant, an accused rapist named Henry Wilds, was

14:04 Speaker 3: prosecuted by Lisa Kahn, who would have handled the Rasmussen

14:08 Speaker 3: case had there been a suspect. DNA analysis confirmed Wilde's guilt.

14:12 Speaker 3: By the time OJ Simpson's high profile case rolled around

14:16 Speaker 3: in nineteen ninety four, DNA had already entrenched itself as

14:19 Speaker 3: an irrefutable form of evidence. In fact, the words DNA

14:23 Speaker 3: were spoken no less than ten thousand times in court

14:27 Speaker 3: during the OJ Simpson trial alone. While DNA didn't lead

14:30 Speaker 3: to a guilty verdict in Simpson's case, it wasn't because

14:33 Speaker 3: the science was on trial. Rather, issues like alleged racism

14:37 Speaker 3: and mishandling of evidence by the LAPD came into play.

14:40 Speaker 3: But OJ's case was the exception that proved the rule.

14:43 Speaker 3: And despite these leaps in forensic science, despite the central

14:47 Speaker 3: role that DNA evidence now played in the solving of

14:50 Speaker 3: homicide and other crimes, Sherry Rasmussen's case remained ice cold.

14:56 Speaker 3: The question loomed had DNA technology arrived too late for Sherry,

15:00 Speaker 3: Or was it possible that this groundbreaking science could breathe

15:04 Speaker 3: new life into her case so many years later. Could

15:08 Speaker 3: the microscopic clues that seemed so inconsequential back in nineteen

15:12 Speaker 3: eighty six finally bring justice to a family stuck in

15:16 Speaker 3: a heart wrenching limbo, Time, it seemed, would tell. As

15:20 Speaker 3: forensic science hurtled into the future, Sherry Raspusen's case languished

15:25 Speaker 3: in a pit of inertia. Her parents, Nells and Loretta Rasmussen,

15:29 Speaker 3: waged a ceaseless battle against time, but mostly against indifference.

15:33 Speaker 3: They held press conferences, renewed their offer of a ten

15:36 Speaker 3: thousand dollars reward in the desperate hope that money might

15:39 Speaker 3: loosen lips and stir memories. John Ruten, Sherry's widower, stood

15:43 Speaker 3: by them, the pain in his eyes palpable as he

15:46 Speaker 3: spoke to reporters about the living nightmare of not knowing

15:49 Speaker 3: who took Sherry away or why. But all of their

15:52 Speaker 3: efforts seemed futile. Nells wrote to then Chief of Police,

15:56 Speaker 3: Darrel Gates, imploring him to delve into the involvement of

15:59 Speaker 3: the ex girlfriend of Ruten's a police officer. No less,

16:02 Speaker 3: his letters echoed and avoid there was no response. When

16:06 Speaker 3: he mentioned his suspicion to the detectives, he was dismissed

16:09 Speaker 3: with a cynical retort, you watch too much television. Perhaps

16:13 Speaker 3: this was an example of the solidarity of the thin

16:16 Speaker 3: blue line, but more likely it was simply the instinct

16:20 Speaker 3: of professionals who did not yet have a gut level

16:23 Speaker 3: feeling for the efficacy of DNA evidence, but who also

16:27 Speaker 3: knew that cases as old as Sherry's, with as few

16:31 Speaker 3: obvious clues as hers had and no suspects, were unlikely

16:35 Speaker 3: to get solved. As the years rolled into the early nineties,

16:38 Speaker 3: the Rasmussen's hope waned, but never extinguished. Loretta phoned the

16:42 Speaker 3: Van Ey's homicide units so often she likely knew their

16:45 Speaker 3: hold music by heart. Finally, in nineteen ninety three, they

16:49 Speaker 3: secured a face to face meeting with a detective, one

16:51 Speaker 3: who had inherited Sherry's cold case, but their pilgrimage yielded

16:55 Speaker 3: nothing but frustration. The detective had revisited the original case

16:59 Speaker 3: notes and even attempted to push the investigation forward, but

17:03 Speaker 3: to no avail. Nells Scherry's father clutching at Straws, brought

17:07 Speaker 3: up an article on DNA forensics he'd read. He even

17:10 Speaker 3: offered to bear the cost of conducting DNA tests at

17:13 Speaker 3: a private lab. The detective's refusal was the final blow.

17:17 Speaker 3: Move on with your lives, he advised, and so, with

17:20 Speaker 3: heavy hearts, Loretta stopped calling. The calls had become feudile,

17:25 Speaker 3: but they'd also been her last tether to her daughter. Meanwhile,

17:28 Speaker 3: deep in the recesses of the La County Coroner's freezer,

17:31 Speaker 3: next to countless other relics from unsolved cases, lay the

17:35 Speaker 3: swab from the bitemark on Sherry's arm. It was a

17:38 Speaker 3: silent witness, an inanimate object perhaps, but maybe if it

17:41 Speaker 3: were sentience, it would have wanted to help. For who

17:45 Speaker 3: or what does not desperately wish to be relevant, to

17:48 Speaker 3: be needed. Still, all my anthropomorphizing aside. For now, Sheherry's

17:53 Speaker 3: family and that all important swab from the bitemark on

17:56 Speaker 3: Sherry's arm had no choice but to wait for the

17:59 Speaker 3: lap scrutiny to catch up to the crucial advances in

18:03 Speaker 3: DNA science. In the world of Los Angeles law enforcement, meanwhile,

18:08 Speaker 3: two figures emerged as the evangelists of DNA Technology District

18:12 Speaker 3: Attorney Lisa Kahan, and LPD Detective David Lambkin. Lampkin, a

18:17 Speaker 3: tech savvy cop who'd cut his teeth in the Automated

18:19 Speaker 3: Information Division, found himself in a unique position to understand

18:23 Speaker 3: the transformative power of DNA forensics in a realm dominated

18:27 Speaker 3: by shell casings and ballistic reports. He was a rare

18:30 Speaker 3: breed an investigator who appreciated the revelatory power of biological evidence.

18:35 Speaker 3: His fascination with technology dated back to his early days

18:39 Speaker 3: dealing with archaic IBM punch card databases. He carried this

18:43 Speaker 3: thirst for innovation through his rise in the force, from

18:46 Speaker 3: his assignment to a sex crimes unit all the way

18:48 Speaker 3: to homicide investigations. With the grim specter of cold cases

18:52 Speaker 3: casting a shadow over the lapde Lambkin saw the dawn

18:56 Speaker 3: of the DNA era as a watershed moment. Unlike many

18:59 Speaker 3: of his contemporary he understood that justice has no expiration

19:03 Speaker 3: date for these families. This stuff never goes away, you

19:06 Speaker 3: would often say. At a time when detectives could rarely

19:09 Speaker 3: afford the luxury to revisit cold cases due to the

19:12 Speaker 3: flood of new ones, Lambkin's investigative fervor proved invaluable, and

19:17 Speaker 3: the man had results to show for it, a staggering

19:20 Speaker 3: one hundred percent personal clearance rate every year from nineteen

19:24 Speaker 3: ninety one to nineteen ninety six. For him, DNA wasn't

19:27 Speaker 3: just a scientific term. It was a lifeline to justice

19:31 Speaker 3: for victims and their families. But the real game changer

19:34 Speaker 3: came on October nineteen ninety eight, when the FBI rolled

19:37 Speaker 3: out CODIS, the Combined DNA Index System. The DNA database

19:43 Speaker 3: was a marvel, granting detectives access to an invaluable archive

19:46 Speaker 3: of DNA profiles from an array of potential suspects. Two

19:50 Speaker 3: years later, a fifty million dollars state grant designed to

19:53 Speaker 3: fund DNA testing and unsolved murders surfaced. It was the

19:57 Speaker 3: break that Lambkin and Lisa Khan had been waiting for.

20:00 Speaker 3: They proposed a joint lapd DA task force to tackle

20:04 Speaker 3: the city's stockpile of cold cases. After navigating a maze

20:08 Speaker 3: of political red tape, their vision became reality. The LAPD's

20:12 Speaker 3: new Cold Case Homicide Unit was officially launched in November

20:16 Speaker 3: of two thousand and one. To say this was a

20:18 Speaker 3: pivotal moment would be an understatement. Technology had finally caught

20:22 Speaker 3: up with the urgency for justice, giving the LAPD not

20:25 Speaker 3: just a new tool, but a new frontier. It was

20:28 Speaker 3: as if the past had been pulled into the present,

20:30 Speaker 3: offering families a glimmer of hope and detectives a renewed

20:33 Speaker 3: sense of purpose. For people like Lambkin and Khan, this

20:36 Speaker 3: was not just a job. It was a moral imperative,

20:39 Speaker 3: a quiet revolution in the annals of policing. It held

20:42 Speaker 3: the promise that some of the city's oldest wounds might

20:45 Speaker 3: finally begin to heal. In the cramped quarters of a

20:48 Speaker 3: former janitorial closet that now served as the nerve center

20:52 Speaker 3: for the LAPD's Cold Case homicide unit, Detective David Lambkin

20:56 Speaker 3: and his team faced a monumental task. Seven detectives confined

21:00 Speaker 3: to a place so small they had to choreograph their

21:02 Speaker 3: movements just to leave the room began to sift through

21:06 Speaker 3: the sands of time. Their mission was audacious, tracing back

21:10 Speaker 3: to the city's earliest recorded homicide and unsolved murder, dating

21:13 Speaker 3: to eighteen ninety nine, but with biological evidence disintegrating over time,

21:18 Speaker 3: Lambkin recognized a hard truth. While I knew from experience

21:21 Speaker 3: that there was probably nothing left from earlier than nineteen sixty,

21:25 Speaker 3: he stated, setting the temporal boundaries of the unit's investigations

21:28 Speaker 3: from nineteen sixty to nineteen ninety eight. By Lambkin's calculations,

21:32 Speaker 3: during that thirty nine year span, twenty three thousand, seven

21:37 Speaker 3: hundred and thirteen murders had taken place in Los Angeles.

21:40 Speaker 3: The math was grim. Seven thousand, seven hundred and forty

21:43 Speaker 3: five cases had gone cold, and they needed a strategy

21:47 Speaker 3: to triage this backlog. Rick Jackson, a member of the

21:50 Speaker 3: original unit, revealed their approach, Well, we looked for sexually

21:53 Speaker 3: motivated murders there was a better chance for DNA. We

21:56 Speaker 3: also considered burglary murders crimes where the perpetrator had spent

22:00 Speaker 3: considerable time at the scene, thus increasing the chance of

22:03 Speaker 3: leaving behind good fingerprints. By the end of two thousand

22:06 Speaker 3: and two, after months of meticulous scrutiny, the team had

22:10 Speaker 3: flagged one thousand, four hundred cases with the highest forensic

22:13 Speaker 3: potential for reinvestigation. Among these was the haunting nineteen eighty

22:19 Speaker 3: six murder of Sherry Rasmussen. Fast forward to December nineteen,

22:23 Speaker 3: two thousand and three, the unit methodically working through its caseload,

22:27 Speaker 3: formally requested DNA analysis for the Rasmusen case, but the

22:30 Speaker 3: request languished lots in the shuffle of a criminally understaffed

22:34 Speaker 3: LAPD crime lab. More than a year passed until Jennifer Butterworth,

22:38 Speaker 3: a criminalist, stumbled upon the neglected file in December of

22:42 Speaker 3: two thousand and four. Her initial tests on crime scene

22:45 Speaker 3: items like a bloodstained towel and a piece of fingernail

22:48 Speaker 3: revealed nothing beyond the victim's DNA. Then she noticed a

22:51 Speaker 3: long forgotten item on the property sheet, a swab of

22:55 Speaker 3: a bite mark on Raspusen's arm. It took another week

22:58 Speaker 3: to locate this key piece of evidence. The once pristine

23:01 Speaker 3: envelope holding the swab was now worn and tattered, a

23:04 Speaker 3: silent testament to the passage of time. Despite the envelope's condition,

23:09 Speaker 3: the tube was intact. Butterworth's analysis revealed a seismic twist

23:14 Speaker 3: in the story so far, a mixture of two DNA profiles,

23:18 Speaker 3: one matched Rasmussence, the other presumably belonged to her killer.

23:22 Speaker 3: Yet when cross referenced with the FBI's CODEIS database, this

23:26 Speaker 3: second profile hit a dead end. Indicating that the individual

23:29 Speaker 3: was not in the database. But Butterworth noticed an anomaly.

23:33 Speaker 3: The DNA was marked XX, indicating the suspect was female,

23:38 Speaker 3: in a field dominated by x y markers signifying male suspects.

23:42 Speaker 3: This was a revelation. It was an unusual detail, and

23:46 Speaker 3: while Butterworth had no context about theories or potential suspects,

23:50 Speaker 3: she knew she had uncovered something significant. Her findings were

23:53 Speaker 3: compiled and sent to the cold case unit. On February eighth,

23:57 Speaker 3: two thousand and five, the sands of time had shifted,

24:00 Speaker 3: revealing an unexpected, mysterious clue. The Cold case Unit, crowded

24:05 Speaker 3: into their constrained former janitorial closet workspace, now had a

24:09 Speaker 3: tangible lead in a case that had stumped investigators for

24:12 Speaker 3: nearly two decades. Butterworth's revelation didn't just challenge the prevailing narrative,

24:17 Speaker 3: it blew it apart. Somewhere in this maze of unsolved

24:21 Speaker 3: cases and lost time, the key to Sherry Rasmusson's murder

24:24 Speaker 3: had been hiding in plain sight. The statistical truth is,

24:28 Speaker 3: violent homicides perpetrated against women are virtually always, not always,

24:34 Speaker 3: but virtually always committed by men. So the realization that

24:38 Speaker 3: the killer could be a female opened up a whole

24:41 Speaker 3: new avenue of inquiry, adding an intricate layer to a

24:44 Speaker 3: puzzle that had perplexed investigators for so many years. This

24:49 Speaker 3: wasn't just another cold case anymore. It was a long

24:52 Speaker 3: slumbering mystery suddenly awake and screaming to be solved with

24:57 Speaker 3: the approval of Proposition sixty nine, a ballot measure co

25:01 Speaker 3: authored by Lisa Khan. She was the DNA evidence early

25:04 Speaker 3: adopter in the Los Angeles DA's office who we mentioned

25:08 Speaker 3: earlier in the story. So she co authored a ballot measure,

25:11 Speaker 3: and when it was approved, there was a notable shift

25:13 Speaker 3: in the landscape of criminal investigations in California. The new

25:17 Speaker 3: legislation mandated the collection of DNA samples from all individuals

25:21 Speaker 3: arrested for a felony or a sex crime case, as

25:24 Speaker 3: well as from all state prison inmates convicted of such offenses.

25:28 Speaker 3: This unprecedented move resulted in the uploading of DNA profiles

25:32 Speaker 3: from tens of thousands of California inmates into the FBI's

25:37 Speaker 3: comprehensive database. Detective Lampkin's cold case unit at the LAPD

25:41 Speaker 3: found itself inundated with codist based quote cold hits unquote,

25:45 Speaker 3: generating reports that implicated suspects previously unknown to the detectives.

25:50 Speaker 3: The tide was turning and the unit was unlocking the

25:53 Speaker 3: secrets of numerous unsolved cases, bringing resolution and a measure

25:57 Speaker 3: of justice to countless victims and their faith. In the

26:00 Speaker 3: midst of this influx of new information, the DNA report

26:04 Speaker 3: from Jennifer Butterworth and the Scherry Rasmusen case emerged as

26:07 Speaker 3: a unique and tantalizing clue. The report suggested a potential

26:11 Speaker 3: paradigm shift in the case the murderer might be a woman.

26:15 Speaker 3: This was an anomaly in violent crimes and stood out

26:18 Speaker 3: from the usual pattern of male perpetrators. However, despite its

26:22 Speaker 3: intriguing nature, the report did not lead directly to a

26:25 Speaker 3: specific suspect, Unlike the plethora of cold hits that were

26:28 Speaker 3: directly pointing toward potential culprits. Due to proposition sixty nine,

26:32 Speaker 3: the Rasmusen case remained a mystery. The DNA clue, although significant,

26:37 Speaker 3: was like a lone piece of a complex puzzle, waiting

26:40 Speaker 3: for the other pieces to be found and assembled. Perhaps

26:43 Speaker 3: because of the lack of a direct connection to a suspect.

26:46 Speaker 3: Butterworth's report ended up being filed away in the Rasmusen

26:50 Speaker 3: case file. The case itself, carrying with it the silent

26:53 Speaker 3: plea for justice from Sherry Rasmussen, was placed back on

26:56 Speaker 3: the shelf and there it would remain in limbo for

26:59 Speaker 3: a few more years, its secrets yet to be fully uncovered,

27:02 Speaker 3: and its mystery is still waiting to be solved. And

27:06 Speaker 3: so the story continued, with the truth lurking just out

27:09 Speaker 3: of reach, and the quest for justice pressing on, undeterred

27:13 Speaker 3: by the passage of time. As the calendar turned to

27:16 Speaker 3: early two thousand and seven, Detective David Lampkin, the pioneering

27:20 Speaker 3: leader of the LAPD's Cold Case homicide unit, decided that

27:23 Speaker 3: it was time to retire. Under his leadership, the unit

27:27 Speaker 3: had achieved remarkable success, solving more than forty previously unsolvable

27:32 Speaker 3: old murder cases. Wow, more than forty, that is remarkable.

27:36 Speaker 3: When Detective David Lampkin departed, the mantle of responsibility for

27:40 Speaker 3: the cold case unit fell to Robert bubb another seasoned

27:44 Speaker 3: homicide detective. Detective bub inherited a team of ten detectives

27:48 Speaker 3: in approximately one hundred and twenty open cases. The cold

27:51 Speaker 3: case unit had been relocated to a marginally more spacious

27:55 Speaker 3: squad room on the fifth floor of Parker Center, the

27:57 Speaker 3: lapds infamously run down headquarters. Despite the move from a

28:02 Speaker 3: janitorial closet, no less space remained a precious commodity, and

28:06 Speaker 3: the unit found itself unable to accommodate the burgeoning number

28:09 Speaker 3: of murder books that it hit amassed. In an effort

28:12 Speaker 3: to manage this issue, detectives made the decision to box

28:15 Speaker 3: upcases that were not actively being investigated. These box files

28:19 Speaker 3: were then sent back to their respective divisions, provided there

28:22 Speaker 3: was sufficient space, or otherwise they were relegated to the

28:25 Speaker 3: archives of the LPD. The Sherry Rasmus and case file,

28:29 Speaker 3: with all its complexities and unresolved questions, found itself in

28:33 Speaker 3: one such cardboard box, making its way back to the

28:36 Speaker 3: Vanny's Division in two thousand and seven. In a twist

28:39 Speaker 3: of fate, Detective Bub would follow the trail of this case,

28:43 Speaker 3: accepting a transfer in March two thousand and eight to

28:46 Speaker 3: lead the Vanney's Homicide Unit, which had recently been depleted

28:49 Speaker 3: by the retirement of its supervising detective and two others.

28:53 Speaker 3: Bub alongside detectives Pete Barbara, Mark Martinez, and Jim Nuttle

28:58 Speaker 3: formed the new team. By two thousand nine, the landscape

29:01 Speaker 3: of crime and van Eyes had changed significantly. What used

29:04 Speaker 3: to be thirty to forty homicides a year had been

29:06 Speaker 3: reduced to an average of five to seven. Detective bubb

29:09 Speaker 3: found this to be quote a very manageable number of

29:12 Speaker 3: murders for three guys to work unquote. In February two

29:16 Speaker 3: thousand and nine, with their most recent case closed, the

29:18 Speaker 3: detective's Nuttle in Barba decided to delve into the cold cases,

29:22 Speaker 3: searching for a challenge. Their attention was drawn to the

29:25 Speaker 3: Sherry Rasmusen case. Detective Nuttle, upon receiving the case file,

29:29 Speaker 3: noted its considerable size. It was four books when it

29:32 Speaker 3: reached me four books deep. He recalled the case file,

29:36 Speaker 3: meticulously maintained over twenty three years, provided a comprehensive chronological

29:40 Speaker 3: record of the investigation. As Detective nut All scrutinized the

29:44 Speaker 3: contents of the file, he came upon the two thousand

29:46 Speaker 3: and five DNA analysis report. The gender marker stood out

29:50 Speaker 3: starkly and glaring contradiction to the original theory of the case.

29:53 Speaker 3: The DNA suggested a female perpetrator, not the two male

29:56 Speaker 3: burglars initially suspected. Quote that jumps off the page of

29:59 Speaker 3: U unquote not all reflects. Recognizing the pivotal nature of

30:03 Speaker 3: this discovery, you have to go back to square one,

30:06 Speaker 3: he said. Thus began a new chapter in the investigation

30:09 Speaker 3: of the Sherry Rasmussen murder as detectives prepared to unravel

30:12 Speaker 3: the mystery anew armed with the knowledge that they were

30:14 Speaker 3: possibly searching for a female assailant. The search for truth

30:18 Speaker 3: in justice was rekindled, and the quest to solve this

30:20 Speaker 3: decade's old case took on a renewed sense of urgency

30:24 Speaker 3: and determination. The detectives, armed with a new perspective and

30:27 Speaker 3: a resolute determination to uncover the truth, painstakingly revisited the

30:32 Speaker 3: entire investigation, this time with a fresh pair of eyes

30:35 Speaker 3: looking for a female suspect. Their thorough examination of the

30:38 Speaker 3: case file resulted in a list of five names potential

30:42 Speaker 3: suspects who might hold the key to solving the mysterious case.

30:45 Speaker 3: Among these names was Stephanie Lazarus, previously mentioned in the

30:49 Speaker 3: original police investigation as John Rutton's ex girlfriend, A small,

30:53 Speaker 3: seemingly innocuous notation was next to her name, and it

30:57 Speaker 3: read quote P dot O DOT. Detective Nuttall, initially oblivious

31:03 Speaker 3: to the significance of these initials, decided to reach out

31:06 Speaker 3: to John Ruten for clarification. Ruden's revelation was nothing short

31:10 Speaker 3: of staggering. Stephanie Lazarus was not just an ex girlfriend,

31:14 Speaker 3: she was a Los Angeles police officer. The enormity of

31:17 Speaker 3: this discovery was not lost on Nuttle. The idea that

31:19 Speaker 3: a fellow officer could be capable of such a heinous

31:22 Speaker 3: crime was jarring and an unsettling realization. Quote it was

31:26 Speaker 3: extremely difficult initially to process that possibility unquote. Nuttle admitted

31:32 Speaker 3: grappling with the implications of this new lead. Compelled to

31:35 Speaker 3: verify Lazarus's current status, the detective's turn to the LAPD's

31:39 Speaker 3: internal directory. There, to their astonishment, was Detective Stephanie Lazarus

31:43 Speaker 3: still actively serving on the force. Nut All wasted no

31:46 Speaker 3: time in contacting his superior, Detective Bubb to relay this

31:50 Speaker 3: critical piece of information. He recounted how Nells Rasmussen had

31:54 Speaker 3: raised suspicions about a police officer ex girlfriend years ago,

31:57 Speaker 3: suspicions that now resurfaced with renewed urgency. The list of

32:02 Speaker 3: suspects compiled by the detectives was numbered one through five.

32:05 Speaker 3: Despite the apparent connection and the looming shadow of suspicion,

32:08 Speaker 3: Stephanie Lazarus was placed at the bottom of the list,

32:11 Speaker 3: deemed the least likely suspect and designated as suspect number five.

32:16 Speaker 3: The irony of the situation was palpable. A member of

32:18 Speaker 3: their own rank, sworn to protect and serve, was now

32:21 Speaker 3: under the microscope, her past entanglements, impossible motives subject to scrutiny.

32:26 Speaker 3: The detectives stood at the precipice of a daunting and

32:28 Speaker 3: potentially groundbreaking phase in the investigation, as they prepared to

32:32 Speaker 3: delve deeper into the life and history of Stephanie Lazarus.

32:36 Speaker 3: Unsure of what secrets and revelations lay in wait, the

32:39 Speaker 3: detectives of the Vanny's Squad approached the Sherry Rasmus in

32:43 Speaker 3: case with an extraordinary level of discretion and determination, establishing

32:47 Speaker 3: two crucial agreements amongst themselves. Firstly, they pledged to maintain

32:51 Speaker 3: an impenetrable cloak of secrecy, ensuring that neither the name

32:54 Speaker 3: Stephanie Lazarus or any discussions surrounding her would be exposed

32:59 Speaker 3: to prying ears, or they were acutely aware of the

33:01 Speaker 3: potential repercussions. On the one hand, they risked tarnishing the

33:05 Speaker 3: reputation of a fellow officer, and on the other they

33:07 Speaker 3: risked alerting her in case she was actually involved in

33:11 Speaker 3: the crime. Secondly, they committed to an unflinching pursuit of

33:14 Speaker 3: the truth, vowing to let the evidence guide their investigation,

33:18 Speaker 3: regardless of where it might lead. Quote. This was not

33:21 Speaker 3: a random act of violence towards Sherry Rasmussen unquote, Nuttle reflected,

33:25 Speaker 3: emphasizing the gravity of their task. Somebody on that list

33:28 Speaker 3: committed this crime, he said. The investigation pressed on quickly,

33:33 Speaker 3: and the van eyed detectives ruled out three of the

33:35 Speaker 3: five women on their list, determining that they lacked sufficient

33:38 Speaker 3: motive to inflict harm upon Sharry rasmusen. This critical investigation

33:42 Speaker 3: left them with two remaining suspects, Stephanie Lazarus and another woman,

33:46 Speaker 3: a fellow nurse who had reportedly had sporadic confrontations with

33:50 Speaker 3: Cherry at the hospital. We were teetering, bub recalled, acknowledging

33:54 Speaker 3: the precarious nature of their investigation. The information at their

33:57 Speaker 3: disposals suggested that the relationship betwe Beween, Lazarus, and John

34:01 Speaker 3: Ruten had concluded the previous summer, leaving them without any

34:04 Speaker 3: concrete evidence of animosity the previous summer to Sherry's murder,

34:09 Speaker 3: that is, in their relentless quest for answers, the detectives

34:13 Speaker 3: chose to investigate the nurse first, aiming to either confirm

34:16 Speaker 3: or eliminate her as a potential suspect. They managed to

34:19 Speaker 3: trace her to northern California, and Bobb coordinated with the

34:22 Speaker 3: local law enforcement to discreetly collect the DNA sample from her.

34:25 Speaker 3: In mid April, a little over two months into the

34:28 Speaker 3: renewed investigation, the DNA report came back yielding a negative result.

34:32 Speaker 3: The list of suspects had now been whittled down to

34:35 Speaker 3: a single name, Stephanie Lazarus. The detectives found themselves at

34:39 Speaker 3: a critical juncture, the weight of the investigation now squarely

34:42 Speaker 3: resting on their shoulders as they prepared to navigate the

34:45 Speaker 3: delicate and complex task of investigating one of their own.

34:48 Speaker 3: The quest for justice for Sherry Rasmussen had led them

34:51 Speaker 3: to an unexpected and unprecedented crossroads and the path forward

34:55 Speaker 3: was fraught with challenges and uncertainties. Meticulously and systematically, the

35:00 Speaker 3: investigative team began to reconstruct the intricate web of connections

35:03 Speaker 3: between Stephanie Lazarus, John Ruton, and Sherri Rasmussen, delving deep

35:08 Speaker 3: into the past to unravel the tangled history of their relationships.

35:12 Speaker 3: Lazarus and Ruten's paths first crossed at the University of California,

35:15 Speaker 3: Los Angeles, where they both resided in the same dormitory

35:19 Speaker 3: and forged a close friendship. Their lives, it seemed, were

35:21 Speaker 3: on parallel tracks. Lazarus pursued a degree in political science,

35:25 Speaker 3: while Routin delved into the world of mechanical engineering. Both

35:28 Speaker 3: of them displayed a keen affinity for athletics and physical activity,

35:32 Speaker 3: an interest that likely played a key role in their

35:34 Speaker 3: initial bonding. Upon their graduation in the early nineteen eighties,

35:38 Speaker 3: their relationship took a more intimate turn, evolving into an

35:41 Speaker 3: on and off again romantic entanglement. In nineteen eighty five, however,

35:45 Speaker 3: the dynamics shifted dramatically as Ruton found love was Sherry Rasmussen,

35:49 Speaker 3: a rising star in the medical field who held the

35:51 Speaker 3: prestigious position of director of nursing at Glendale Adventist Medical Center.

35:55 Speaker 3: The couple's connection was undeniable, and they soon found themselves

35:58 Speaker 3: sharing an apartment in vans blissfully navigating the waters of

36:02 Speaker 3: their blossoming relationship. Lazarus, on the other hand, was grappling

36:06 Speaker 3: with the shift in her relationship with Ruten. Despite her

36:09 Speaker 3: transition into a promising career with the LAPD, she struggled

36:12 Speaker 3: to let go of the emotional ties that bound her

36:14 Speaker 3: to Rutin. Her presence became a constant in John and

36:17 Speaker 3: Sherry's lives, an uninvited third wheel that cast a shadow

36:21 Speaker 3: of discomfort over Rasmussen. During a birthday party thrown in

36:24 Speaker 3: Ruten's honor by Lazarus, he disclosed the seriousness of his

36:27 Speaker 3: relationship with Rasmussen. The revelation left Lazarus heartbroken, prompting her

36:32 Speaker 3: to pen a poignant letter to Ruten's mother at nineteen

36:34 Speaker 3: eighty five, saying, quote, I'm truly in love with John

36:38 Speaker 3: and the past year has really torn me up. I

36:40 Speaker 3: wish it didn't end the way it did, and I

36:42 Speaker 3: don't think I'll ever understand his decision unquote. In an

36:46 Speaker 3: astonishing twist, Rutin later testified that prior to his marriage

36:49 Speaker 3: to Rasmussen, he and Lazarus engaged in an intimate encounter,

36:53 Speaker 3: a misguided attempt to provide Lazarus with closure, Yeah whatever.

36:58 Speaker 3: Contrary to their hopes, this act only served to intensify

37:01 Speaker 3: lazarus His attachment, leading her to insert herself even more

37:05 Speaker 3: prominently in their lives. John Ruten thought he could get

37:08 Speaker 3: his stoker to leave him and his new girlfriend alone

37:10 Speaker 3: by sleeping with her. Yeah good plan, John, Good plan.

37:14 Speaker 3: As they sifted through the labyrinth of emotions and connections,

37:17 Speaker 3: the detectives could not help but feel the gravity, the

37:20 Speaker 3: emotional gravity of the situation, the palpable tension, and unresolved

37:24 Speaker 3: feelings that lingered in the air, painting a vivid picture

37:27 Speaker 3: of a love triangle marred by jealousy, unrequited love, and

37:31 Speaker 3: a growing sense of desperation. In the face of Stephanie

37:35 Speaker 3: Lazarus's escalating infatuation, Sherry Rasmussen could not help but feel

37:39 Speaker 3: uneasy and alarmed. John Ruton attempted to allay Shery's fears,

37:43 Speaker 3: emphasizing that his relationship with Lazarus was purely platonic. No,

37:47 Speaker 3: it wasn't, however, Lazarus's fixation only deepened, culminating in a

37:51 Speaker 3: chilling confrontation at Rasmussen's workplace, where Lazarus issued a stark

37:56 Speaker 3: warning quote, If I can't have John, no one else will. Rasmussen,

38:01 Speaker 3: grappling with her on ease, chose to trust Ruten's reassurances,

38:05 Speaker 3: and the couple proceeded to tie the knot. In November

38:07 Speaker 3: of nineteen eighty five. They enjoyed a brief, idyllic period

38:11 Speaker 3: of marital bliss, oblivious to the storm that was brewing

38:14 Speaker 3: on the horizon. February twenty fourth, nineteen eighty six marked

38:18 Speaker 3: a fateful, churning point in their lives. Rasmussen, contemplating her

38:22 Speaker 3: mundane class schedule and nursing a recent back injury, decided

38:25 Speaker 3: to take a sick day. Ruten, on the wiser, headed

38:28 Speaker 3: off the work, leaving his wife at home. Hours later,

38:31 Speaker 3: when Ruton's attempts to reach rasmusen when unanswered both at

38:34 Speaker 3: home and at her workplace, he couldn't shake the nagging

38:37 Speaker 3: feeling of concern, Yet he pressed on with his day,

38:39 Speaker 3: hoping that all was well. Upon his return home, Ruton

38:43 Speaker 3: met with a horrifying scene. The answering machine typically activated daily,

38:47 Speaker 3: laid dormant. A boody handprint struck against the wall near

38:50 Speaker 3: the panic button of the alarm told a story of

38:52 Speaker 3: desperation and struggle. The room was in disarray, littered with

38:56 Speaker 3: broken objects, a testament to the violence that had transpired Meanwhile,

39:00 Speaker 3: while Lazarus, a twenty six year old police officer in

39:02 Speaker 3: her third year with the LPD, remained seemingly unscathed by

39:06 Speaker 3: the tumult, in the ensuing years, her career flourished. By

39:09 Speaker 3: nineteen ninety three, she descended to the rank of detective,

39:11 Speaker 3: and in nineteen ninety six she found personal fulfillment in

39:14 Speaker 3: marriage to a fellow LPD officer. Together, they adopted a

39:18 Speaker 3: little girl, building a life and a family. By two

39:21 Speaker 3: thousand and six, Lazarus had secured a prestigious position in

39:24 Speaker 3: the department's art theft detail, a coveted post rare in

39:28 Speaker 3: the realm of Los Angeles police work. Throughout her lengthy

39:31 Speaker 3: and distinguished career, she maintained an unblemished record, free from

39:34 Speaker 3: any allegations of misconduct or involvement in any use of

39:38 Speaker 3: force incidents. As they delved into the narrative of Sherry

39:42 Speaker 3: Rasmussen's murder. Detectives were faced with the daunting task of

39:45 Speaker 3: reconciling the Stephanie Lazarus of the past, a woman driven

39:49 Speaker 3: by obsession and capable of issuing sinister threats with the

39:53 Speaker 3: respected officer and family woman she had become. The stark

39:57 Speaker 3: contrast between these two facets of her identity. Its a

40:00 Speaker 3: significant challenge as the team endeavored to uncover the truth

40:04 Speaker 3: and seek justice for Shrry Rasmussen. The detectives from Van Eyes,

40:08 Speaker 3: unwavering in their determination, continued to unravel the threads of

40:12 Speaker 3: the perplexing case, each detail seemingly aligned to create a

40:15 Speaker 3: picture that was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore. Mark Martinez,

40:20 Speaker 3: an officer with a wealth of experience, noted that in

40:22 Speaker 3: the mid nineteen eighties, a thirty eight caliber firearm was

40:25 Speaker 3: a common choice for LAPED officers, both as a backup

40:28 Speaker 3: and for off duty purposes. This was a significant truth,

40:32 Speaker 3: as the ballistics report from the Rasmussen murder indicated that

40:35 Speaker 3: a thirty eight caliber weapon had been used. Detectives decided

40:38 Speaker 3: to delve deeper, searching the California State Gun Registry for

40:42 Speaker 3: any firearms registered under Stephanie Lazarus's name. The search yielded results,

40:46 Speaker 3: including a thirty eight caliber firearm, which, in a spine

40:50 Speaker 3: tingling coincidence, had been reported stolen just thirteen days after

40:55 Speaker 3: Sharry Rasmussen's murder. Keen to gather more information, the detectives

40:59 Speaker 3: promptly obtained in a copy of the stolen gun report,

41:02 Speaker 3: Lazarus had walked into the Santa Monica Police Department, identified

41:05 Speaker 3: herself as an LAPD officer, and reported that her vehicle

41:08 Speaker 3: parked near the Santa Monica Pier had been burglarized. She

41:12 Speaker 3: detailed the incident, describing how the lock on the driver's

41:14 Speaker 3: side door had been compromised, in that a blue gym

41:17 Speaker 3: bag containing various items, including her Smith and Wesson five

41:20 Speaker 3: shot thirty eight revolver, had been taken. This stolen weapon

41:24 Speaker 3: posed a significant roadblock to the investigation. Without the firearm

41:27 Speaker 3: itself or a bullet confirmed to have been fired from it,

41:30 Speaker 3: proving or disproving that it was the weapon used in

41:33 Speaker 3: the Raspussen murder was an impossibility. Meanwhile, Detective Nuttall had

41:37 Speaker 3: established communication with Nells, Raspus, and Sherry's father, whose intelligence

41:41 Speaker 3: and tenacity left a lasting impression during their conversation, not

41:44 Speaker 3: All implored Nells to recount every detail, to walk him

41:47 Speaker 3: through the entirety of the events from A to Z.

41:50 Speaker 3: Nells complied revisiting the details he had shared with detectives

41:54 Speaker 3: back in nineteen eighty six, including the ominous interactions between

41:57 Speaker 3: Cherry and a police officer who had previous been involved

42:00 Speaker 3: with John Rutin. Given the precarious nature of the investigation,

42:04 Speaker 3: with its delicate and potentially explosive implications, not All treaded carefully,

42:09 Speaker 3: ensuring not to reveal too much. However, he assured, Neels,

42:13 Speaker 3: give me time to do what I have to do,

42:14 Speaker 3: and I think maybe I'll be able to have an

42:16 Speaker 3: answer for you. In this not All acknowledged the gravity

42:19 Speaker 3: of the situation and the imperative need for diligence, all

42:22 Speaker 3: the while understanding the profound responsibility he carried to bring

42:25 Speaker 3: resolution and justice to the Rasmusen family. The progression of

42:29 Speaker 3: the investigation into Stephanie Lazarus as a cold case murder

42:33 Speaker 3: suspect brought the detectives to a critical juncture. A potential

42:36 Speaker 3: case of this magnitude implicating an LAPD detective, would invariably

42:40 Speaker 3: find its way to the Robbery Homicide Division known as RhD,

42:44 Speaker 3: an elite unit tasked with handling the most sensitive and

42:47 Speaker 3: high profile murder investigations in the city. Bub, a seasoned

42:51 Speaker 3: investigator and a veteran of RhD, was acutely aware of

42:54 Speaker 3: the gravity of the situation. He was resolute in his

42:57 Speaker 3: commitment to presenting an impeccably prepared case to the day,

43:00 Speaker 3: leaving no room for error. A key element to building

43:03 Speaker 3: the case was obtaining a sample of Lazarus's DNA to

43:06 Speaker 3: compare with the swab taken from the bitemark found on

43:09 Speaker 3: the crime scene. The detectives had deliberated on the idea

43:12 Speaker 3: of acquiring the DNA sample surreptitiously. However, Bub noted, quote,

43:17 Speaker 3: we kicked around the idea of doing it ourselves, doing

43:19 Speaker 3: surreptitious DNA, but recognized the complexities and potential pitfalls of

43:24 Speaker 3: such an undertaking and the circumstances such as they were.

43:27 Speaker 3: There would have been too many variables involved and too

43:29 Speaker 3: much potential for a screw up. So ah, we felt

43:32 Speaker 3: it best that if we're going to do this in

43:33 Speaker 3: hand the package to RhD, we're going to hand it

43:35 Speaker 3: to them with everything done correctly unquote, with a clear

43:39 Speaker 3: course of action in mind. Bub took the next crucial step.

43:42 Speaker 3: He briefed his lieutenant in the Vanny's Division, effectively making

43:46 Speaker 3: him the first person outside of Bubb's immediate unit to

43:49 Speaker 3: be made aware that an LAPD detective was now a

43:52 Speaker 3: subject in a cold case murder investigation. Swiftly, the captain

43:56 Speaker 3: of the Vanney's Division and the chief of the Valley

43:58 Speaker 3: Bureau were also brought into the loop. Bub underscored the

44:01 Speaker 3: uncertainty of the situation to his superiors, noting, we explained

44:05 Speaker 3: that this could still turn out not to be her.

44:07 Speaker 3: There were some coincidences, sure, but there was nothing definitive

44:10 Speaker 3: for us at this point. Following this, a decision was made.

44:14 Speaker 3: Bub's unit would retain the case until Lazarus's DNA sample

44:17 Speaker 3: was obtained, and they started to plan just exactly how

44:21 Speaker 3: to do that. The ensuing days were fraught with an

44:24 Speaker 3: almost tangible tension as the crime lab technicians labored over

44:27 Speaker 3: their equipment conducting the delicate and complex task of DNA analysis.

44:32 Speaker 3: Their work was not just a matter of science, it

44:35 Speaker 3: was the critical juncture upon which the future of the

44:37 Speaker 3: investigation hinged. With meticulous care, they amplified the genetic markers

44:42 Speaker 3: cross referenced the loci, and slowly but surely, the genetic

44:45 Speaker 3: profile began to take shape, a ghostly blueprint emerging from

44:48 Speaker 3: the biological traces left behind so many years ago. The

44:52 Speaker 3: long awaited results coalesced, and the detectives found themselves in

44:56 Speaker 3: the grip of a profound anticipation. The prospect of finally

44:59 Speaker 3: putting a name to the elusive evidence from that brutal

45:01 Speaker 3: day in nineteen eighty six was on the horizon, and

45:04 Speaker 3: the atmosphere in the office was thick with the gravity

45:06 Speaker 3: of what that meant for Detective bubb His day off

45:10 Speaker 3: on May twenty ninth was abruptly interrupted by a call

45:12 Speaker 3: that would resonate through the annals of the case. It

45:15 Speaker 3: was the technician from the crime lab, and the message

45:18 Speaker 3: he conveyed was simple yet earth shattering. It's a match.

45:21 Speaker 3: The DNA was a match for Stephanie Lazarus. The affirmation

45:25 Speaker 3: came as a vindication of the detective's unwavering pursuit of

45:28 Speaker 3: the truth, and yet it also brought a sobering reality

45:31 Speaker 3: to light. It was a pivotal moment confirming a connection

45:34 Speaker 3: to one of their own. An LAPD detective. The knowledge

45:37 Speaker 3: bore heavy implications for the integrity of the department and

45:40 Speaker 3: the justice they stood for. The confirmation of the match

45:43 Speaker 3: propelled the case into a new phase, fraught with legal

45:45 Speaker 3: and moral complexities that would test the department's resolve and

45:49 Speaker 3: the detective's dedication to their oath. It was a moment

45:52 Speaker 3: that underscored the often unsung tenacity and meticulous nature of

45:55 Speaker 3: detective work. They had toiled away from the spotlight, relentlessly,

45:59 Speaker 3: pursuing leeps and piecing together evidence, often in the face

46:02 Speaker 3: of skepticism and the fading trails left by time. Now

46:06 Speaker 3: their steadfastness had paid off, as the narrative of the

46:09 Speaker 3: crime was rewritten, and they were poised on the cusp

46:11 Speaker 3: of a breakthrough that held the promise of closure for

46:14 Speaker 3: a grieving family haunted by decades of unanswered questions. With

46:18 Speaker 3: the DNA match now cementing Lazarus as a prime suspect,

46:22 Speaker 3: the detectives faced a new set of challenges. How would

46:24 Speaker 3: they proceed with the arrest, How could they ensure the

46:27 Speaker 3: integrity of the case against one of their own. These

46:29 Speaker 3: questions demanded answers, and the answers would shape the course

46:32 Speaker 3: of justice in a case that had long seemed destined

46:35 Speaker 3: to remain a mystery. The Los Angeles Police Department found

46:38 Speaker 3: itself in a maelstream of introspection and circumspection, as the

46:42 Speaker 3: case that had once seemed to wither in the cold

46:44 Speaker 3: shadow of the unsolved, now thrust one of their own

46:46 Speaker 3: into the glaring light of suspicion. The halls of Parker Center,

46:50 Speaker 3: once a symbol of law enforcement acumen, were now a

46:52 Speaker 3: backdrop of an internal paradox that no one had anticipated.

46:56 Speaker 3: Stephanie Lazarus, a respected member of the Art theft detail

46:59 Speaker 3: whose professional life was dedicated to the restoration of stolen beauty,

47:03 Speaker 3: was linked inextricably to an act that had violently stolen

47:06 Speaker 3: far more than artifacts, it had stolen a life, the

47:09 Speaker 3: life of Sherri Rasmussen. The detectives assigned to the case,

47:13 Speaker 3: acutely aware of the delicacy and gravity of their task,

47:16 Speaker 3: proceeded with a mix of dogged determination and conscientious precision.

47:20 Speaker 3: The close proximity of Lazarus's workstation to the RhD squad

47:23 Speaker 3: room was not merely a physical challenge, but a profound

47:26 Speaker 3: psychological one. The air within the division became heavy with

47:30 Speaker 3: an unspoken tention as colleagues who had once shared coffee

47:33 Speaker 3: and casework were now separated by a chasm of betrayal

47:36 Speaker 3: and incredulity. This complexity necessitated a discrete and strategic approach

47:41 Speaker 3: to the case. The robbery and homicide detectives, led by

47:44 Speaker 3: an unwavering sense of duty, were compelled to delve into

47:47 Speaker 3: a case that, by its very nature threatened to unravel

47:50 Speaker 3: the fabric of trust and camaraderie that held the department together.

47:53 Speaker 3: They were not just pursuing a suspect, They were navigating

47:56 Speaker 3: an intricate web of relationships, each with its own potential

47:59 Speaker 3: for con inflict of interest. The detectives found themselves at

48:02 Speaker 3: a crossroads of law enforcement and moral duty. They were

48:05 Speaker 3: to pursue one of their own with the same zeal

48:07 Speaker 3: and thoroughness that they would any other suspect. In doing so,

48:10 Speaker 3: they would have to strip away the fellowship that comes

48:13 Speaker 3: with the badge and look at the facts with dispassionate objectivity.

48:16 Speaker 3: This was not just a test of their investigative skills,

48:18 Speaker 3: but of their very ethosis guardians of the law. With

48:21 Speaker 3: the evidence in hand and the path forward clear yet

48:24 Speaker 3: fraught with challenges, the detectives prepared to execute their next move,

48:27 Speaker 3: a move that would bring them face to face with

48:29 Speaker 3: a colleague, a detective who was now the prime suspect

48:32 Speaker 3: in a case that had haunted them for over two decades.

48:35 Speaker 3: It was a moment that would redefine the meaning of

48:37 Speaker 3: justice within the walls of the LAPD and beyond the

48:41 Speaker 3: gravity of the information contained within those four binders could

48:44 Speaker 3: not be overstated. Each page, each report, each piece of evidence,

48:48 Speaker 3: was a testament to a narrative that had spanned decades,

48:50 Speaker 3: a saga that encapsulated grief, mystery, and an elusive search

48:53 Speaker 3: for justice that had long evaded the grasp of those

48:56 Speaker 3: who sought it. The transfer of this colossal case to

48:59 Speaker 3: detective Stir and Jeremio was more than a procedural handoff.

49:03 Speaker 3: It was a solemn passage of duty from one set

49:05 Speaker 3: of hands to another, both united by a commitment to

49:08 Speaker 3: the unwavering truth and the somber responsibility that came with it.

49:12 Speaker 3: The detective's unenviable task of breaking the news to the

49:15 Speaker 3: prosecutors was approached with both deference and urgency. Bub and

49:19 Speaker 3: Nuttall veterans of many such briefings understood the need to

49:22 Speaker 3: paint a comprehensive picture for the prosecutors, one that would

49:25 Speaker 3: enable them to grasp the full scope of a case

49:27 Speaker 3: mired in the complexities of time, emotion, and now departmental entanglement.

49:32 Speaker 3: As the prosecutors absorbed the enormity of the case before them,

49:35 Speaker 3: they were not just confronting a criminal act, but they

49:38 Speaker 3: were also facing the daunting task of navigating a legal

49:41 Speaker 3: battle that had implications reaching far beyond the court room.

49:44 Speaker 3: The case of Sherry Rasmussen was not merely about the

49:46 Speaker 3: act of murder. It was about the integrity of the

49:49 Speaker 3: institution that was now charged with prosecuting one of its

49:51 Speaker 3: own with meticulous care. Stearns and Jeremeo began their journey

49:55 Speaker 3: into the abyss of the case, cognizant that every step

49:58 Speaker 3: had to be calculated with precision. The the sanctity of

50:00 Speaker 3: the legal process and the public's trust and the justice

50:03 Speaker 3: system hinged on their ability to remain partial and thorough,

50:06 Speaker 3: irrespective of the ties that bound the LAPD community together.

50:11 Speaker 3: In the hallowt Halls of Justice, where prosecutors readied themselves

50:14 Speaker 3: for a case that no one had anticipated, the detective

50:16 Speaker 3: stood as the vanguard of a truth that would be

50:18 Speaker 3: scrutinized not only by the defense, but by the watchful

50:21 Speaker 3: eyes of a city that placed its trust in the badge.

50:24 Speaker 3: In the secluded confines of the conference room at the

50:27 Speaker 3: DA's office, the atmosphere was dense with a meticulous tension

50:30 Speaker 3: as Detective Stern and Jeremio engaged in a tactical discourse

50:34 Speaker 3: over their impending approach. Their strategy sessions were akin to

50:37 Speaker 3: plotting a delicate surgical strike. Every move, every word, every

50:41 Speaker 3: nuance was dissected and considered. They were acutely aware that

50:45 Speaker 3: the forthcoming interaction with Lazarus would be pivotal. It was

50:48 Speaker 3: not merely a matter of asking the right questions, but

50:50 Speaker 3: of orchestrating the conversation in such a way that it

50:53 Speaker 3: would prevent Lazarus from becoming defensive or evasive. Meanwhile, as

50:57 Speaker 3: not All in his colleague Sanchez prepared to meet with

50:59 Speaker 3: the rast Smusins, they carried the weight of the investigation

51:02 Speaker 3: with them, a weight made heavier by the years of

51:04 Speaker 3: longing for answers that had burdened the family. Not All

51:07 Speaker 3: understood that he was stepping into a space filled with

51:09 Speaker 3: decades of sorrow and expectation. The Rasmussens. Family's pain was

51:14 Speaker 3: a silent specter at the table, and not all felt

51:16 Speaker 3: the pressing need to honor that grief with integrity and empathy,

51:20 Speaker 3: even as he guarded the sensitive developments of the case.

51:23 Speaker 3: The journey was not just a physical one across state

51:25 Speaker 3: lines to Arizona. It was an emotional and ethical trek

51:28 Speaker 3: to the heart of a family's darkest moment. The detective's

51:31 Speaker 3: roles extended beyond that of investigators. They were bearers of hope,

51:35 Speaker 3: cautiously measured in their disclosures. Each word they spoke to

51:38 Speaker 3: the Rasmussens had to be weighed against the potential impact

51:41 Speaker 3: it might have on the family's emotions and the investigation's progress.

51:45 Speaker 3: Back in Los Angeles, the walls of the conference room

51:47 Speaker 3: were privy to the intricate planning of an interview that

51:50 Speaker 3: would need to maintain an equilibrium between investigative rigor and

51:53 Speaker 3: the caution due to interviewing a fellow officer. Every hypothetical

51:57 Speaker 3: scenario was played out, every possible response from Lazarus anticipated

52:01 Speaker 3: encountered with a strategy. The detectives were not just preparing

52:04 Speaker 3: to interview a colleague. They were preparing to confront a paradox,

52:08 Speaker 3: a guardian of the law who might in fact be

52:10 Speaker 3: its transgressor. Among these meticulous preparations, the threat of a

52:14 Speaker 3: leak loomed. The more people who knew of the impending arrest,

52:17 Speaker 3: the greater the risk became. It was a race against

52:19 Speaker 3: time and secrecy, with each participant in the case bearing

52:22 Speaker 3: a fragment of the truth, collectively holding their breath until

52:26 Speaker 3: justice could be safely pursued in the light of day.

52:29 Speaker 3: Detective Nuttall's mission to speak with the Rasmussen family was

52:32 Speaker 3: a delicate dance of revelation and concealment. As he stood

52:35 Speaker 3: before them, he had to embody the professionalism of the

52:38 Speaker 3: LPD while navigating the undercurrents of unspoken knowledge. He knew

52:42 Speaker 3: that Nells Rasmussen's acute perception and long standing engagement with

52:46 Speaker 3: the case would make it a formidable challenge to keep

52:48 Speaker 3: the critical information just beneath the surface, out of sight,

52:51 Speaker 3: but implicitly acknowledged in every assurance he gave. In the

52:55 Speaker 3: simmering desert heat of Arizona, the conversation with the ras

52:58 Speaker 3: Musans would unfold with the rehearsed cost while back in

53:01 Speaker 3: Los Angeles, in the cold sterility of the DA's office.

53:04 Speaker 3: Plans were laid with a precision that bespoke both the

53:06 Speaker 3: duty and the dread of what was to come. Each team,

53:10 Speaker 3: in their respective roles, moved closer to a moment of

53:12 Speaker 3: revelation that had been decades in the making, a moment

53:15 Speaker 3: when the past would collide with the present, and the

53:18 Speaker 3: silent prayers for justice would find their echo in the

53:21 Speaker 3: actions of those determined to deliver it. The scene at

53:24 Speaker 3: the Rasmusen residence was full of mixed emotions, anticipation, grief,

53:28 Speaker 3: and a quiet strength that had sustained the family through

53:31 Speaker 3: years of waiting. Detective Nutall, a seasoned officer of the

53:34 Speaker 3: law accustomed to the ebb and flow of criminal investigations,

53:37 Speaker 3: found himself momentarily adrift and the sea of sorrow and

53:40 Speaker 3: resilience that filled the Rasmusen home, it was a reminder

53:44 Speaker 3: that beneath the procedural aspects of his work lay the

53:47 Speaker 3: profoundly human element of loss and longing for resolution. When

53:51 Speaker 3: he entered, Sherry's mother, Loretta immediately gave Detective Nutall a hug.

53:56 Speaker 3: Her embrace was more than a mere physical gesture. It

53:58 Speaker 3: was a bridge built over years of pain, a silent

54:01 Speaker 3: communication of gratitude and trust in the midst of an

54:04 Speaker 3: ordeal that had stretched over two decades. It signified an

54:07 Speaker 3: unspoken understanding that the detectives were not just officers performing

54:10 Speaker 3: their duty, but allies in a quest for justice, not

54:14 Speaker 3: all pled for the Rasmussen's patience, and it was more

54:16 Speaker 3: than just a professional request. It was an acknowledgment of

54:19 Speaker 3: the shared journey they were on, a recognition of the

54:22 Speaker 3: arduous path that the family had walked thus far. He

54:24 Speaker 3: was asking for their trust, knowing full well the gravity

54:27 Speaker 3: of what was being asked of them. It was an

54:29 Speaker 3: appeal to hold on just a little longer, even as

54:32 Speaker 3: they stood on the precipice of potential closure. Upon leaving

54:35 Speaker 3: the Rasmussen household, the detectives carried with them not just

54:38 Speaker 3: the burden of their professional responsibility, but also the emotional

54:42 Speaker 3: charge of the family's hopes. The gravity of their commitment

54:45 Speaker 3: to the case was palpable. It was a solemn vow

54:47 Speaker 3: that they were unwaveringly set on fulfilling. As they made

54:50 Speaker 3: their way back to Los Angeles, they were acutely aware

54:53 Speaker 3: that the case that was unfolding was not just a

54:55 Speaker 3: series of events to be analyzed and understood. It was

54:57 Speaker 3: a narrative of a real life, a story of tra

55:00 Speaker 3: magy that had befallen a family, a family they knew.

55:03 Speaker 3: It was a story of tragedy that demanded to be

55:05 Speaker 3: brought to a just resolution. The decision to interview Stephanie

55:09 Speaker 3: Lazarus within the confines of the Parker Center's jail division

55:12 Speaker 3: was a calculated maneuver, steeped in both tactical prudence and

55:16 Speaker 3: psychological acumen. It ensured that the investigators could maintain control

55:20 Speaker 3: of the environment, minimizing the risk of an unpredictable confrontation.

55:24 Speaker 3: The setting would be official yet neutral, a space familiar

55:27 Speaker 3: to Lazarus, reducing the likelihood of her becoming immediately defensive

55:31 Speaker 3: or alarmed. It was a stark departure from the often

55:34 Speaker 3: cinematic portrayal of catching a suspect off guard in a

55:37 Speaker 3: dramatic public display. Here the objective was not spectacle but

55:41 Speaker 3: safety and efficacy. Chief Bratton's directive was clear. The apprehension

55:45 Speaker 3: of Stephanie Lazarus was to be handled with the utmost care,

55:49 Speaker 3: and she was to be taken when she did not

55:51 Speaker 3: have access to a firearm. This was not just for

55:54 Speaker 3: the sake of the detectives and the suspect herself, but

55:56 Speaker 3: for the integrity of the process and the respect due

55:59 Speaker 3: to the gravity of the charges at hand. The approach

56:01 Speaker 3: the detectives took reflected a profound sense of responsibility and

56:05 Speaker 3: a deep understanding of the potential implications of their actions.

56:08 Speaker 3: This was not merely an arrest. It was a moment

56:11 Speaker 3: that would resonate within the halls of the LPD for

56:13 Speaker 3: years to come, a moment when the department's ability to

56:16 Speaker 3: police its own would be scrutinized. Under the harshest of lights.

56:19 Speaker 3: On the day of the interview, the air in the

56:21 Speaker 3: Parker Center was thick with tension. The detectives were acutely

56:24 Speaker 3: aware of the fine line they tread, balancing the need

56:27 Speaker 3: for due process with the safety of all involved. There

56:30 Speaker 3: would be no room for error, no second chances. The

56:32 Speaker 3: planning that went into this moment was reflective of the

56:34 Speaker 3: magnitude of the situation. A fellow officer, a detective no Less,

56:38 Speaker 3: was about to be confronted with evidence linking her to

56:40 Speaker 3: a murder. The investigative team devised a strategic plan to

56:44 Speaker 3: conduct an interview with Stephanie Lazarus. Carefully considering the potential

56:48 Speaker 3: risks and sensitivities involved, they opted for a location within

56:51 Speaker 3: the Parker Center's jail Division, a floor directly beneath both

56:55 Speaker 3: the Robbery Homicide Division and the art theft detail, where

56:58 Speaker 3: Lazarus was stationed. The jailed vision's protocol prohibiting firearms provided

57:02 Speaker 3: a natural and unobtrusive pretext for all parties, including Sterns, Jeremo,

57:07 Speaker 3: and Lazarus, to relinquish their weapons before entering, insuring a

57:11 Speaker 3: safe environment for the interview, which, as Stns and Jeremio knew,

57:15 Speaker 3: was an explicit directive from Chief Bill Bratton. The ruse

57:18 Speaker 3: devise to engage Lazarus involved a faux request for her

57:21 Speaker 3: assistance in interviewing a jailed suspect purported to have information

57:25 Speaker 3: pertinent to an art theft case, a scenario well within

57:28 Speaker 3: the scope of her professional duties. Upon her arrival in

57:31 Speaker 3: the interrogation room, outfitted with recording equipment to meticulously document

57:35 Speaker 3: the proceedings, the detectives planned to subtly transition the discussion

57:39 Speaker 3: toward the Rasmussen case. Lazarus, with her extensive experience in

57:42 Speaker 3: law enforcement and numerous arrests made. Was undoubtedly well versed

57:46 Speaker 3: in her rights, including the right to remain silent and

57:48 Speaker 3: the right to legal counsel. The critical unknown was the

57:51 Speaker 3: duration she would choose to engage in the conversation before

57:54 Speaker 3: potentially invoking these rights. Everything I knew about Stephanie, she

57:58 Speaker 3: was sharp, not all observed, cognizant of the challenge they faced.

58:01 Speaker 3: The primary objective for Stearns and Jeremio was to sustain

58:04 Speaker 3: the dialogue for as long as possible, all the while

58:07 Speaker 3: reassuring Lazarus of her freedom to depart at any juncture. Technically,

58:11 Speaker 3: she was free to leave. However, the detectives harbored a

58:14 Speaker 3: crucial piece of information that Lazarus was likely unaware of.

58:17 Speaker 3: The moment she decided to conclude the interview and exit

58:19 Speaker 3: the room, she would be apprehended her statements. Notwithstanding, this

58:23 Speaker 3: critical interview was scheduled for the early hours of Friday,

58:27 Speaker 3: June fifth, two thousand and nine. In tandem with these developments,

58:30 Speaker 3: Chief Bratton emphasized the importance of personally informing the Rasmusen

58:34 Speaker 3: family of the arrest, preempting any potential exposure through media channels.

58:38 Speaker 3: Detective Nuttall was entrusted with this delicate task. He reached

58:42 Speaker 3: out to the Rasmusans, indicating the necessity of another meeting

58:45 Speaker 3: on Friday morning. When Nells mentioned a prior doctor's appointment,

58:48 Speaker 3: not all subtly underscored the significance of their meetings, suggesting Nells,

58:53 Speaker 3: if you can reschedule it, you may want to reschedule.

58:55 Speaker 3: The stage was set for a crucial moment in the investigation,

58:59 Speaker 3: with the detectives acutely aware of the gravity of the

59:01 Speaker 3: situation and the profound implications of their actions. At the

59:05 Speaker 3: dawn of June fifth, two thousand and nine, a day

59:08 Speaker 3: poised to become a significant chapter in the protracted investigation,

59:11 Speaker 3: Detective Dan Jeremo approached Stephanie Lazarus at her desk, discreetly

59:15 Speaker 3: equipped with a wire to capture every nuance of their interaction. Stephanie,

59:20 Speaker 3: he inquired with a tone of professional camaraderie, introducing himself

59:23 Speaker 3: and setting the stage for the critical conversation that was

59:25 Speaker 3: to follow. Jeremio, maintaining a guise of seeking assistants, explained

59:29 Speaker 3: that he was engrossed in a case involving a jailed

59:31 Speaker 3: suspect purportedly possessing information related to art theft, a domain

59:36 Speaker 3: presumed to be within Lazarus's expertise. I don't know much

59:39 Speaker 3: about this stuff, Jeremo conveyed, aiming to enlist Stephanie's cooperation.

59:43 Speaker 3: You can kind of talk to him, you can see

59:45 Speaker 3: if he's for real. Lazarus, unsuspecting of the true nature

59:49 Speaker 3: of the request, agreed to assist affirming sure thing, Dan

59:52 Speaker 3: just for like five minutes or something, Jeremo added, attempting

59:56 Speaker 3: to downplay the significance of the task. Upon her arrival

59:59 Speaker 3: in the interrogame room, Lazarus was met by both Jeremo

1:00:02 Speaker 3: and Detective Greg Stearns. Swiftly, they deviated from the fabricated

1:00:06 Speaker 3: narrative involving stolen art and instead transitioned to discussing her

1:00:09 Speaker 3: connection to John Ruten, an ex boyfriend. Aware of her

1:00:12 Speaker 3: current marital status, the detectives emphasized their intention to provide

1:00:16 Speaker 3: a private space away from the prying eyes and whispering

1:00:19 Speaker 3: voices of colleagues. For over an hour, Stearns and Jeremo

1:00:22 Speaker 3: engaged Lazarus in conversation that delicately navigated the boundaries between

1:00:26 Speaker 3: treating her as a potential witness and as a criminal suspect.

1:00:29 Speaker 3: The discourse was artfully managed, subtly weaving through various topics,

1:00:33 Speaker 3: yet always gravitating back towards the central subject, the murder

1:00:38 Speaker 3: of Sherri Rasmussen. It was only when Jeremo introduced the

1:00:41 Speaker 3: possibility of obtaining a DNA swab from Lazarus, coupled with

1:00:45 Speaker 3: the mention of potential DNA evidence at the crime scene,

1:00:48 Speaker 3: that the seasoned detective expressed her desire to consult with

1:00:50 Speaker 3: an attorney. Proclaiming her astonishment to the turn of events,

1:00:53 Speaker 3: Lazarus opted to exit the room sixty eight minutes after

1:00:56 Speaker 3: the conversation had commenced. However, her journey was to be

1:00:59 Speaker 3: a abruptly halted in the jail's hallway, where she was

1:01:02 Speaker 3: confronted by other detectives from the Robbery Homicide Division. Without

1:01:05 Speaker 3: further ado, they placed Lazarus in handcuffs, a climactic moment

1:01:09 Speaker 3: that had been over two decades in the making. From

1:01:12 Speaker 3: the stark confines of the interrogation room, Stephanie Lazarus was

1:01:16 Speaker 3: transported to Lynnwood, a jail facility exclusively housing female inmates

1:01:20 Speaker 3: in Los Angeles County, effectively insuring her separation from the

1:01:24 Speaker 3: freedom she once knew. Held on an imposing bail amount

1:01:27 Speaker 3: of ten million dollars. Lazarus's fate was sealed on June eighth,

1:01:31 Speaker 3: two thousand and nine, merely days after her surprising arrest,

1:01:34 Speaker 3: she found herself formerly charged with the heinous murder of

1:01:38 Speaker 3: Sherry Rasmussen. The ensuing legal battle was complex and intense,

1:01:42 Speaker 3: as one would expect given the nature of the crime

1:01:44 Speaker 3: and the perpetrator's background in law enforcement. Lazarus, once a

1:01:47 Speaker 3: respected detective of the Los Angeles Police Department, now stood

1:01:51 Speaker 3: accused of a crime most foul. In March of twenty twelve,

1:01:54 Speaker 3: the culmination of years of legal proceedings and investigations resulted

1:01:58 Speaker 3: in a verdict. Stephanie Lazar was convicted of first degree

1:02:02 Speaker 3: murder and sentenced to serve twenty seven years to life

1:02:05 Speaker 3: at the California Institution for Women. In the years that

1:02:08 Speaker 3: followed her conviction, Lazarus sought reprieve through various legal avenues,

1:02:12 Speaker 3: attempting to appeal her case multiple times. However, the lower

1:02:16 Speaker 3: courts have remained steadfast, upholding the conviction and ensuring that

1:02:19 Speaker 3: Lazarus serves the time deemed appropriate for her actions. Her

1:02:23 Speaker 3: potential eligibility for parole in twenty thirty four looms in

1:02:26 Speaker 3: the distance, but for now she remains a prisoner, her

1:02:29 Speaker 3: past actions dictating her present and her future. Sherry Rasmussen's

1:02:34 Speaker 3: life was cut short in a brutal act of violence,

1:02:37 Speaker 3: but her story and the relentless pursuit of justice on

1:02:40 Speaker 3: her behalf, will never be forgotten. I'm Zevan Odelberg and

1:02:44 Speaker 3: this has been kind of murdery. Oh.

1:02:48 Speaker 1: If you like the show, please subscribe, review and tell

1:02:51 Speaker 1: your friends. You can find us on social media at

1:02:54 Speaker 1: kinomurdery or email at kinomurdery at gmail dot com.