The Vault

Donald Blom.  His name creeped into Minnesota households through newscasts when he was arrested and charged for the abduction and murder of 19-year-old Katie Poirer in 1999. Find out why investigators consider him a person of interest in the 1993 stabbing and murder of 19-year-old Holly Spangler -- and how new DNA technology could determine if Donald Blom was, in fact, involved.  Written, narrated...

Holly Spangler's body was discovered in a Minnesota park, with a single stab wound to the chest on July 20, 1993.  After five days of being exposed to the elements, her body was in a state of decomposition. Little evidence was discovered nearby – and, since that day, her case has gone cold.  Now, one detective is hoping she can crack the case, put an end to the mysterious death and deliver a sense...

On June 7 – a little over two months after Madeline "Maddi" Kingsbury went missing –  her body was found in a remote area near Mabel, Minnesota — her boyfriend's hometown. Inside a fitted sheet, enclosed with Gorilla tape, investigators discovered Madeline Kingsbury's body, with a knotted towel wrapped around her head and neck, according to court documents. An autopsy report later revealed she die...

In this episode, Tracy Briggs dives into the story of a man knonwn as the "Dakota Desperado," who left his mark on North Dakota through a life of crime and murder.  Written and narrated by Tracy Briggs Edited by Kris Kerzman Hosted by Trisha Taurinskas

In part two of this two-part series, learn what happens when a Minnesota father and husband is let off the hook for the death of his first wife. Does he remarry in Texas and repeat the pattern? Find out.    Written and produced by Trisha Taurinskas   

Hours before Helen Lundstrom's death, she and her husband sat at the dining room table, preparing Sunday school lessons for the weekend. It was a normal Saturday night — a weekend ritual for the church leaders. Yet what came next was anything but routine. Written, narrated and produced by Trisha Taurinskas  

Kate Richards O'Hare was sentenced to a five-year sentence of hard labor at the Missouri State Penitentiary in Jefferson City. Her crime? Violating the Espionage Act of 1917 for making an anti-war speech in Bowman, North Dakota, just two years earlier. Full story: https://www.inforum.com/news/the-vault/she-delivered-her-anti-war-speech-all-over-the-u-s-but-north-dakota-threw-her-in-prison-for-it  

This episode focuses on the book, "Vanished in Vermillion," written by award-winning journalist Lou Raguse.  "Vanished in Vermillion," peels back the layers of complexity that hide behind headlines. Through years of added research and interviews with those involved, Raguse tells the story in a way that captures the nuances of it all. True crime books often focus on the crime itself and the investi...

Court documents newly obtained by Forum News Service show the man who was acquitted in the 1981 brutal murder of his girlfriend, 18-year-old Karla Jo Nieland, at a farm party had first asked a judge to dismiss second-degree murder charges on the grounds that he did not intend to kill her. The newly obtained Minnesota Supreme Court documents relate to appeals the defense team filed prior to the tri...

In less than a week, 18 pipe bombs packed with lead shot and nails were either found or detonated in Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado and Texas. At least six people were injured in Iowa,  four of whom were mail carriers  . With a country still reeling from the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the FBI got involved and began the task of putting the pieces together. This time, the war on terror would lead...

The 1979 death of a young woman, Denise Daly, who fell from a moving grain truck in Carlton County, Minnesota, was initially thought to be a suicide or an accident. That was until an anonymous tip nearly 15 years later connected the incident to the 1983 fire that claimed the life of her sister, Mary Daly, and infant nephew, Christopher Daly, in Superior, Wisconsin. First-degree murder charges agai...

Walter Liggett was shot dead while holding a bag of groceries. In part 2 of "The Slaying of Walter Liggett," why a Minnesota governor and a former North Dakota governor were players in the tragedy.   Written by: Tracy Briggs Hosted by: Trisha Taurinskas Link to full story: https://www.inforum.com/news/the-vault/wife-of-former-fargo-newspaper-editor-swore-minnesotas-governor-ordered-the-1935-mob-hi...

Walter Liggett was beaten up, framed on rape charges and eventually murdered. In part 1 of this two-part report, Tracy Briggs explores the question: What was he writing about? Written by: Tracy Briggs  Hosted by: Trisha Taurinskas Full story: https://www.inforum.com/news/the-vault/what-lead-up-to-an-alleged-mob-hit-on-a-former-fargo-newspaper-editor-in-1935

*This episode contains disturbing descriptions of both strangulations and hangings. Please take care while listening.  In this episode, we examine the role of the medical examiner in suspicious death cases. Can a medical examiner determine whether a death was a suicide? The answer is complex. 

I have a bit of a treat for you folks who are fascinated with Al Capone. Forum journalist Tracy Briggs put together a three-part series on some incredibly fascinating — and definitely not well known — stories of Capone and his shocking connections to Minnesota and North Dakota. 

I have a bit of a treat for you folks who are fascinated with Al Capone. Forum journalist Tracy Briggs put together a three-part series on some incredibly fascinating — and definitely not well known — stories of Capone and his shocking connections to Minnesota and North Dakota. 

I have a bit of a treat for you folks who are fascinated with Al Capone. Forum journalist Tracy Briggs put together a three-part series on some incredibly fascinating — and definitely NOT well known — stories of Capone and his shocking connections to Minnesota and North Dakota. 

Expert insight into the death investigation of Refugio Rodriguez reveals critical errors in police procedure that compromised key evidence collected from the crime scene and failed to document critical details related to the hose found around Rodriguez's neck. The review by a retired crime scene investigator comes as police in Montevideo, Minnesota, have  referred the Rodriguez case  to the Minnes...

According to The Forum, the first person to notice the fire that night was Kathryn. She later told investigators she had gone downstairs just after midnight and when she flipped a light switch fire erupted. The Jenkins' son-in-law Dean Bienusa started trying to put it out. He said he told his family along with Kathryn to take refuge from the flames in a black 1961 Ford parked outside. Eventually,...

A Minnesota police investigator who closed the case on a possible murder after labeling it a suicide was simultaneously under fire for shoddy police work in another case, according to court records. The matter raises serious concerns for the family of Refugio Rodriguez. Montevideo, Minnesota, Police Department investigator Carmen Beninga closed the investigation into Rodriguez's September 2020 dea...

On this episode, Forum Digital Managing Editor Paula Qualm interviews Forum columnist Jim Shaw about the deadly Medina Shootout. Jim recently wrote a 3-column series on the infamous shootout that occurred four decades ago.   https://www.inforum.com/news/north-dakota/the-medina-shootout-40-years-after-the-tragedy-that-didnt-need-to-happen

Sharon Hensley left her home in Bismarck, North Dakota, in the summer of 1970 with peace and love on her mind. She wanted to experience life in a way that she hadn't before, alongside fellow free spirits etching their existence into the aftermath of the now famous "Summer of Love." San Francisco was Hensley's ultimate destination. She succeeded in her journey, yet the life that unfolded looked not...

Sheltered, wealthy and enamored with alternative medicine, Dorothea and Claire Williamson were the perfect marks for Linda Hazzard, an osteopath-turned-fasting fanatic. The British sisters, both in their 30s, had wealth and a life of leisure, which made it possible to travel whenever they wanted. Orphaned at a young age, the siblings had grown especially close and came to view themselves as their...

Linda Hazzard was a force of nature. She stood nearly as tall as her 6-foot husband, although some wondered if her personality was so imposing that she simply seemed larger than she actually was. A formidable figure with sharp cheekbones, a resolute chin and an unflinching gaze, everything about Hazzard exuded authority. She spoke with unwavering assurance — as if she were absolutely right and any...

Every Thursday for 11 years, from 1982 to 1993, millions of Americans settled into their sofas as the notes started playing: "Making your world in the world today takes everything you've got…" The theme song to the sitcom "Cheers" was recently ranked by "Rolling Stone" magazine as the 13th best. Writers praised the song for its initial "somber" lyrics about life's challenges to its "rousing" concl...