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The Murder of Debbie Gama: Justice and Absolution in Erie
The murder that still haunts a Pennsylvania city
On the morning of August 8, 1975, sixteen-year-old Debbie Gama disappeared after leaving her home in Erie, only to be found dead days later in a creek nearly thirty miles from her home. What followed was an investigation that lacked suspects or even evidence pointing to a viable suspect. That is, until a private investigator named Dan Barber uncovered evidence leading directly to her her English teacher, Raymond Payne. After Payne’s arrest, Debbie’s mother, Betty Ferguson, embarked on her own quest for justice, which unexpectedly led her on an incredible journey of forgiveness.
Utilizing newspaper articles, court documents and investigative files never before revealed, Justin Dombrowski presents a gripping narrative of one investigator’s pursuit of justice and a mother’s search for the truth.
On the morning of August 8, 1975, sixteen-year-old Debbie Gama disappeared after leaving her home in Erie, only to be found dead days later in a creek nearly thirty miles from her home. What followed was an investigation that lacked suspects or even evidence pointing to a viable suspect. That is, until a private investigator named Dan Barber uncovered evidence leading directly to her her English teacher, Raymond Payne. After Payne’s arrest, Debbie’s mother, Betty Ferguson, embarked on her own quest for justice, which unexpectedly led her on an incredible journey of forgiveness.
Utilizing newspaper articles, court documents and investigative files never before revealed, Justin Dombrowski presents a gripping narrative of one investigator’s pursuit of justice and a mother’s search for the truth.
240 pages, Paperback
Published September 16, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review
December 22, 2025
This is a well written look at a crime and what it took to get justice and also how hard that can be to maintain.
It is the story of a life gone too soon because of someone she should have been able to trust, a teacher in the local school.
There is good detail without needing to get lost in them.
Well worth the read.
It is the story of a life gone too soon because of someone she should have been able to trust, a teacher in the local school.
There is good detail without needing to get lost in them.
Well worth the read.
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review