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A Death in White Bear Lake

The True Chronicle of an All-American Town

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A Death in White Bear Lake

Written by: Barry Siegel
Narrated by: Charles Constant
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About this listen

In 1962, Jerry Sherwood gave up her newborn son, Dennis, for adoption. Twenty years later, she set out to find him - only to discover he had died before his fourth birthday. The immediate cause was peritonitis, but the coroner had never decided the mode of death, writing "deferred" rather than indicate accident, natural causes, or homicide. This he did even though the autopsy photos showed Dennis covered from head to toe in ugly bruises, his clenched fists and twisted facial expression suggesting he had died writhing in pain.

Harold and Lois Jurgens, a middle-class, churchgoing couple in picturesque White Bear Lake, Minnesota, had adopted Dennis and five other foster children. To all appearances, they were a normal Midwestern family, but Jerry suspected that something sinister had happened in the Jurgens household. She demanded to know the truth about her son's death.

Why did authorities dismiss evidence that marked Dennis as an endangered child? Could Lois Jurgens' brother, a local police lieutenant, have interfered in the investigation? And most disturbing of all, why had so many people who'd witnessed Lois' brutal treatment of her children stay silent for so long? Determined to find answers, local detectives and prosecutors rebuilt the case brick by brick, finally exposing the shocking truth behind a nightmare in suburbia.

©1990 Barry Siegel (P)2019 Tantor Abuse Parenting & Families True Crime United States
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Profile Image for Tanya

Brilliantly written!

The author tells a sad story in a beautiful way, with lots of detail without glorification. He also incorporates historical events and decisions regarding the treatment of child abuse in the legal system, which was an interesting surprise!

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    4 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Langer MD

Tragic

I was prepared to be outraged and infuriated by the murderers after reading the Publisher's Summary for this exposé by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Barry Siegel.. but I really wasn't. To be sure, Lois and Harold Jurgens are horrible human beings and investigators let them get away with obvious child-battery/murder, but I was mainly left with a feeling of intense disappointment in my fellow man. A handful of incompetent officials plus some unscrupulous straight-up criminals plus one after another of "surely someone else will testify" non-witnesses (that make the Kitty Genovese case look routine) equals one toddler's horrific death ignored - by people who *knew* better.
This is less a story about awful criminals than it is about systems (adoption, medicolegal, justice) that can be so easily blinded, fooled, and co-opted. It filled me with dismay.

As to presentation: Charles Constant isn't perfectly cast for the book (his natural "storyteller" timbre isn't well suited to the subject matter), but Tantor Audio Inc. chose an "above-average" reader who is able to maintain a remarkable level of interest for a transcript-heavy documentary like this. Well done.

Altogether, I rate 'A Death In White Bear Lake' 8.5 stars out of 10. The author puts slightly too much emphasis on the history and "Small Town America" status of the community - understandably with the goal of telling readers that "this could happen in your neighborhood, too" - but it distracted me from the "True Crime" elements of the narrative. Still, I feel lucky to have found the audiobook on the 'Plus' menu. Even when they ask for your money, the opening of your eyes will warrant it. Spend the Credit.

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