A Death in White Bear Lake: The True Chronicle of an All-American Town

by Barry Siegel

A mother’s search for the son she gave up uncovers terrifying secrets in a Minnesota town in this “masterfully depicted true-crime tale” ( Publishers Weekly ).

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’s brother, a local police lieutenant, have interfered in the investigation? And most disturbing of all, why had so many people who’d witnessed Lois’s 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.
 
A finalist for the Edgar Award, A Death in White Bear Lake is “a distinguished entry in the annals of crime documentary,” and a vivid portrait of the all-American town that harbored a sadistic killer ( The Washington Post ).

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Crime, History, Mystery, Biography, Audiobook

530 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1990

About the author

Barry Siegel is a former national correspondent for the Los Angeles Times who won the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing in 2002 for his piece "A Father's Pain, a Judge's Duty, and a Justice Beyond Their Reach". He is an expert on literary journalism and was recruited by the University of California, Irvine to chair that school's new English program in Literary Journalism. Siegel is the author of the influential true crime novel A Death in White Bear Lake, which is considered by many to be a seminal document regarding child abuse. Siegel lives in Sherman Oaks and Irvine, California.

Reviews

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is on the top 100 non fiction books in the modern library list. I am interested in true crime; it is a guilty pleasure because I feel a little uncomfortable being entertained by other people's misfortune and tragedy. This book is an excellent example of the genre. It is the story of child abuse and murder of an adopted baby which was overlooked, even hidden, by the all American city of White Bear Lake, Minnesota (pop 140,000). Siegel tells us that in 1965 the concept of parental child abuse was not yet recognised, which meant that it was not recognised by the medical and legal professions. This seems barely credible, and a better explanation is that the concept of interfering with parental rights and the fact that the perpetrator was closely related to the deputy police chief were more to blame for a cover up that lasted for 20 years, and allowed the perpetrator to adopt 4 more children despite the unease about the death of her second adopted son. Siegel writes well and the story is dramatic. If you are interested in high quality true crime this is for you.

[Katherine Addison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Siegel is much more enamored than I am of the irony of the fact that in 1965, when three-year-old Dennis Jurgens died as the result of brutal and sustained abuse and the community failed to do a damn thing about it, White Bear Lake was named an "All-America City." Yes, yes, very ironic. But remarking on the irony would have been sufficient; the lengthy history of White Bear Lake and the chronicling of the campaign in the All-America City competition added unnecessary length to an already very long book. That part bored me.

The rest of the book was fascinating: the appalling train wreck of how Harold and Lois Jurgens were ever allowed to adopt a child in the first place, much less achieve their grand total of six (one died, the other five ran away); the way the system failed to protect children from Lois Jurgens over and over again; the revolution in the understanding of child abuse in the late 1960s; the cold case investigation (before "cold case" was a term in common usage) in 1986 that eventually led to Lois Jurgens' conviction on charges of third-degree murder (homicide committed in the course of a felony (aggravated assault in this case) but without the intent to kill; the jury was sure she was responsible for Dennis' death, but not sure beyond a reasonable doubt that she had intended to kill him). Siegel keeps control of his large cast of characters and his sprawling narrative; he's as nonjudgmental as he can be about bad decisions made by a large number of people while still pointing out that these were, hey, bad decisions.

Dennis Jurgens' death is kind of like Kitty Genovese in slow motion. Neighbors and family members knew that Lois was abusing him in all kinds of ways; they could provide eyewitness testimony to investigators both in 1965 and in 1986. But nobody thought it was their place to interfere. Everybody was waiting for somebody else to step up. And nobody did, either before or after he died--not until his birth mother discovered what had happened to him and started yelling.

[The Pfaeffle Journal (Diane) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book that encapsulates a national tragedy, child abuse was pretty well neglected by both the medical profession and law enforcement up until the 1960's.  The attitude was who would do something like that and it's really none of our business.  Once the scope of the abuse of children began to come to light both the medical profession and law enforcement stepped up to face the challenge.

What is so very sad about this book is that it is not about an isolated instance but rather it is just an example of what was going on through out the country.  Even in today's world abuse of children continues, unabated.  The year Dennis Jurgen died, White Bear Lake became the All-American city of 1965.  The irony of this, is what makes this story so compelling.

  This review was originally posted on The Pfaeffle Journal

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was okay. I am from Minnesota and like reading local authors and about local places.

This book took me a few days to read, partly because it wasn't all that interesting.

[Lynda Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, this was a slog to wade through !! A long book but a true story, so requires proper concentration, hence the time it's taken me. The research he's clearly undertaken is staggering. It's very well told indeed though terribly sad and harrowing. Poor Dennis died the year I was born and it seems staggering that only then were laws coming into being regarding child abuse and baby battering !!
Dennis' birth mum Jerry didn't feature too much in the telling, really. I found it pretty strange she named her next son Dennis, too. It was horribly sad she was compelled to give him over for adoption but that happened loads back then. Just not with the godawful consequences that occurred herein. In some ways, it should still happen in the case of "parents" you can see are totally unfit for purpose these days. Sadly, they let them keep their babies, giving them rights that in my opinion too many of them shouldn't be afforded cos' they're just not up to the job.
His adoptive mother, Lois, was a proper bitch. The way she treated all the kids that had the misfortune to be placed with them was atrocious and Harold was no better in letting her get away with it when he was the one person who should've ensured she didn't. I was starting to panic as I read as the case was taking soooooo long to come to fruition and I worried she'd expire before she was prosecuted !!
Many, many people bore witness to the ill-treatment and did nothing. Of course, some regret that now but that ship sailed. No use bleating about what you should have done after the kid's dead. He looked such a smashing little lad as well.....and hearing about how happy and sparkly he was described as only made it all the more heartbreaking to read when you're aware of his outcome.
We come to Robert. Now Robert was the first child placed with the Jurgens couple. How he came out of his childhood as well as he appeared to is a shocker. If it wasn't bad enough that he saw his own fair share of mistreatment, he was also passed from pillar to post and back again for way too much of his life. Yet he's a rounded adult and a policeman, a decent husband and father !! He has to be the hero of this story for sure. Only one line made me cry in the book (although a lot is really sad) and it was "In a corner near the elevators, Robert Jurgens stood alone, crying".....that really upset me. But I have THE utmost respect for this guy and what he achieved. The heroine was June. The poor lady always picking up after the messes living with Lois had made of the poor kids she took in. Always showing them there is an alternative, even when it was hurled back in her face. She didn't let them down. They were lucky to have her around.
Another devil in the details is Lois' brother Jerome. Seems every utterance from him was a lie....he was well aware of how Dennis died yet ensured he looked after his sister's interests. Not enough for me was made of the fact that he was there on the morning Dennis died.
The history of the area it's set in was quite interesting at first but then I think there was too much. He spent chapters on it, not just for some background. It got a bit tiresome for me. I ploughed through it but wasn't enjoying it.
There were hardly any mistakes throughout which was highly gratifying. One name was written as both Partridge and Pattridge and another surname used was Balck, which I imagine is probably Black. The Image Gallery repeated one photo and left the photo of the house out and the Zerwas family photos were labelled in the wrong order but that was it. To be commended and just goes to show it CAN be done in a digital format. It's just too many prefer to sling e-books out for public consumption and don't care whether they're full of errors or not.

[Lynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would give this 2.5 stars since it was more than just okay, but I didn't like it... the author obviously did A LOT of research, but it seemed like his editor allowed him to use every fact he found about the history of White Bear Lake, even when there were huge chunks that had nothing to do with the death that's the focus of the book. Overall, the author turns this tragedy into a dry story with an overwhelming amount of unnecessary detail with way too many 'main' characters. There were also a few areas where I did not care for how the author describes women (ex: the author expresses genuine confusion how a woman in the 1950's and 60's who doesn't want/like children could possibly have seven of them... plus it seemed that he went out of his way to paint the female lawyer as "irrational") and neglects to edit sexist dialogue from men that doesn't add to the plot. I know the events took place in the 60's, but again, I found it so unnecessary to include such content so often. Wouldn't recommend reading since you can glean all you need from the summary.

[Patricia (Irishcharmer) Yarian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my. This one took me some time before I could finish it. If you are prone to be triggered by something in your background history, take your time with this one. Give yourself that break to collect your thoughts and try to refile them back into your "memory file cabinet"! I know I had to take that moment, hour, day or two for my own wellness.
This true story covers child abuse, the "system" and it isn't pretty. It also deals in a "behind close doors in the law enforcement obstruction" when it deals with investigations . And cover up...Lordy, the cover up. And how one person can wreak havoc on not just her own family, but a community too afraid to ruffle feathers!
I did manage to finish the story, found it riveting! But also found myself really leaning on not just my husband, but also calling my pastor for some counsel.I'm not saying not to read it, but please be aware of some stumbling areas. It was a good book and Mr Siegel did a great job telling the story of a little boy, his brother and even the 3 other kids he never got to meet. --P/

[♥ Marlene♥ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Went to bed and could not find the book I was reading so I began this book. That night was a night of pain but even when it seems all is negative there was one positive. I did manage to read a lot. I managed to read 191 pages something I normally take 4 days for.


-----------------------------

Update March 30. Finished this book this morning. it seems to me I took ages to read this book but it has such small letter type and was quite big (and good)

What a story.
What players!

This is such a sad story but with a happy end although happy? Very well written and very detailed and I highly recommend. 4.5

[Donna Humble · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very interesting look into a "cold case" that was reopened through a mother's perseverance. A backward look at police cover ups, and failure to recognize the signs of child abuse.

[Karen Atwood · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a heartbreaking look at the painful realities of child abuse. In White Bear MN in 1965 3 year old Dennis Jurgens died a horrific death at the hands of his parents. Despite that, these parents continued to be able to adopt other children. The system failed these kids as well as neighbors, friends and family.

The book is getting 3 stars because it got a little slow in the middle.

[Catten · Rating 4 out of 5]

Minnesota isn't really a very interesting place to live as far as current crime goes. Sure, there's some gangster history. But even the woodchipper murder featured in the movie Fargo, which was partially set in Brainerd, really came from Connecticut.

But Siegel's book, A Death in White Bear Lake: The True Chronicle of an All-American Town, explores more than just another killing. This is the case of Dennis Jurgens, a 3 ½-year-old boy who was brutally abused to death by his adoptive mother.

Here's the story in a nutshell:

Jerry Sherwood, a 17-year-old living in a juvenile home, was convinced to give up her newborn son for adoption in December 1961. She regretted that decision and waited until he was an adult to track him down. She discovered that the boy had died in April 1965 of peritonitis from a ruptured bowel - and that the cause of death had been marked "deferred."

Suspicious and angry, Sherwood badgered investigators to look into her son's death. What they found was disturbing.

Harold and Lois Jurgens wanted a baby desperately. They adopted a quiet little boy named Robert and soon longed for another boy so Robert could have a brother. They got Dennis.

The book details the atrocities Dennis suffered at Lois's hands. It also describes the social mentality towards child abuse in the mid-'60s. People looked the other way; it was a private, family matter. This case rocked that attitude when pediatricians and psychiatrists put their heads together to identify battered child syndrome. The chapter titled "Revolution" looks into how doctors began recognizing distinct signs of child abuse. In 1965, Minnesota was the first state to enact legislation requiring certain caregivers to report signs of abuse to police.

In the time between Dennis's death and Sherwood's demands for justice, the Jurgens adopted four more children, who also experienced abuse from Lois.

It took 21 years for the medical examiner to come up with the cause of Dennis Jurgens's death. It was ruled a homicide in the end. Lois Jurgens went to trial under the laws governing homicide in 1965 and was convicted of third-degree murder, an unintentional killing. She received a 25-year sentence of which she would serve eight years.

Unfortunately, Siegel worked in a complete history of White Bear Lake, a township located northeast of the Twin Cities. It seems out of place and unimportant in contrast to the truly horrifying treatment of a little boy and the slow response by lawmakers to protect children.

Still, this book is worth reading and Siegel is a decent writer who clearly does his research.

[Kathi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I chose this book for several reasons; one was the attorney who defended the evil woman who committed the crime who also defended Marjorie Caldwell (the woman who had her second husband kill her adoptive mother in Duluth MN at the Glensheen mansion and I highly recommend that book "A will to Murder) and the author who wrote another book I liked.

The crime was heinous but what was even worse is that "everybody" knew she killed her adopted son but no one wanted to go on the record for fear of retaliation. It just fell through the cracks for 22 years until the birth mother wanted to find her son.

I totally understand the mindset of the times, mid 1960's, because domestic abuse was pretty much ignored by police departments nationwide, whether it was husband on wife, father/mother on children etc. Even so, when she was tried in the 80's she was only convicted of 3rd degree murder and only spent 8 of her 25 year sentence in jail; paroled on "good behavior". It is clear by the author's research that social workers responsible for adoptions in MN at the time KNEW she was a poor risk for an adoptive mother. Yet still she got kids.

Fortunately for a group of docs in Colorado who finally defined "child battering" as a syndrome and it was successfully used against abusers more and more often after the 80's.

It brings up an interesting question: If you live on the same block as someone you suspect of being an abuser of children would you do something about it or "mind your own business". It's still as tough a question to ask in 2015 as it was in the 60's. Time after time these people hide behindfacade of "good neighbor", "generous and affectionate" in public towards children, etc yet we still have people like John Wayne Gacy, Ariel Castro, Warren Jeffs. The list goes on and on. I would highly recommend reading this book so the reader can decide if they would be an enabler or a voice of protest.

[Kelley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a tough one for a number of reasons. First is the subject matter. Just typing this I ache for this child and everything he (and the others) went through. So sad, so tragic. And so many years before anyone paid attention. This is a terrible story to read, but I'm glad I did. One more person seeing his face and knowing his story.
The second reason this is tough is because of the writing. This book is over 500 pages long and this story could have been told in 1/2 that. There is SO much unnecessary information here. This book is so overly verbose I literally skipped pages and pages. I don't need a history of White Bear Lake from the beginning of time. I don't need to know what the commissioners voted for and spent money on. I don't need to know where the cops stopped and how they ordered their eggs. If it weren't for this little boy this would have gone into the donation pile before I was 20 pages in. I will not be seeking out any additional books by this author.

[Doug Phillips · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, let me start by saying this book has aged well since its first publication in 1990. Since most of the historical content occurs pre-1986, the story is relatively timeless.

When I progressed to roughly the first half of the book, I was not sure that there was a natural transition to a larger account. "Wait, wait... there's more" went through my mind as I sat back and returned to the digital pages. Mr. Siegel does an excellent job of setting the place, the time, and the facts. He fully discloses that the book is built on personal interviews, but also on second-hand research from newspapers local to the area, and court records.

Having lived in St. Paul, Minnesota for a period just after Lois Jurgens was tried (no trial outcome here). I don't recall ever hearing about this precedent-setting case in nearby White Bear Lake. It is really interesting to see how something like child abuse has only been in the common understanding for 50 years. This book takes the reader to the sometimes off-putting scenes that are built upon first-hand accounts and testimony.

This book is sobering and dark. But it reflects what purportedly occurred in this quiet little town during the era of the Vietnam war and family business avoided by most neighbors and relatives. Adopting children and then treating them abusively is a situation that thankfully would likely not happen in today's society. As noted in the book, it makes one wonder what is tolerated today that will seem abhorrent in the year 2068.

[Elena · Rating 5 out of 5]

It took me some days to write down a review for this book and I feel is not the usual review I would normally leave about a book. I don't want to judge the writing, the plot, the charachters development and so on. Let's be clear, all those parameters are excellent. The book is in fact very well written and paintstakingly researched. But for me, this time, this is totally secondary. Because this book tells a story that must be never forgotten, the story of a beautiful, sweet, loving baby boy, Dennis Jurgens, who suffered every single day of his short life and died at the hands of a beast (that woman doesn't even deserve the title of 'mother' to me), while the entire system failed him, and everyone who could have saved him just chose to look the other way. The day he died what his murderer said to the police who came in questioning was "All that training down the drain". These words will be forever impressed in my mind. How can a human being be like this? How can someone - an adoptive mother - be so evil? I was shocked (and mind it well, this woman was also allowed to adopt four more children after Dennis; luckily those ones were older and managed to flee from Lois' abuses).
By contrast his birth mother never stopped searching for him and loving him, and in the end she fought to obtain some justice for Dennis twenty one years later.
This book is emotional, is a punch in the stomach; and there were times, while reading it, when I just had to stop and cry, or when I felt breathless and phisically ill. Probably the thoughest book I've ever read in my entire life. But a book that everyone should read. To never forget.

[Red Denver · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although I've only just started this book, right now, my initial reaction is: "Now THIS is the way to write a true crime novel!" Due to the (so far) minimal details about the town history and other extraneous, boring details, this book grabs you from the very first page. Because of that, I am really having a hard time putting it down. Although I generally only read once I am in bed for the night, and am generally falling asleep after only reading maybe 10 or 12 pages, I have a feeling this book will not only have me reading into the wee hours of the morning, but also will have me postponing daily chores in order to continue reading the compelling story. Having said that, I know this book will also be painful to read, as it deals with the horrific death of a 3-year old adopted boy, clearly from the physical abuse he suffered at the hands of one or both of his adoptive parents.

[Angie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was interesting but way too wordy. The story could have been told in half the pages. The history of the battered child syndrome was fascinating. The way society ignored the physical abuse of our children for so many years is appalling. As a social worker, I felt the weight/responsibility of making accurate assessments of adoptive parents.

[Pamela Merritt · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well-written and highly chilling tale.

This is also an indictment of adoption practices of the time, where well-off people with good facades were valued more as prospective parents than people who did not conform to rigid societal standards like income, marital status; even how they dressed.

Must be tracked down because there isn't an ebook version, but well worth it.

[Bridgette Sharp · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed the story, but there was so much unnecessary information. This book could have been written in about half the amount of pages.. or less.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about the death of three year old Dennis Jurgens at the hands of his adoptive mother, Lois, by prolonged child abuse. This book may set off some triggers for you if you are upset by child abuse. There are multiple descriptions of the abuse Dennis, and other children, suffered scattered throughout this book. I did not enjoy reading this book, but it was informative, and at times it was downright infuriating. This is a true-crime book about the murder of Dennis Jurgens who died in 1965, but whose death wasn't prosecuted until 1987 when his biological mother found out about it. The author covered the case pretty well. Arguably too well.

This book needed an editor, and badly. The author went off on a tangent about the city of White Bear Lake, Minnesota (where all of this took place) being named an All American City in 1965. And he didn't just write one or two sentences about this, but a whole chapter and then some. He wrote about the townspeople gearing up for the contest to get their town in the All American City running. He wrote about their flight to San Francisco to participate in the contest, and jokes they told on the flight and who ate what. All of this has exactly nothing to do with the murder of little Dennis Jurgens. I couldn't handle it anymore and just started skimming this stuff. I would recommend you do the same if you are interested in the criminal case and not so much the All American City nonsense. I am giving this book three stars, which is the most I can give this book.

Lois Jurgens has a Wikipedia page, just FYI. It's rather unsurprising that she also tried to kill her husband. Or maybe she did succeed in killing her husband. Just as she probably killed her mother in law (this is covered in the book). She's an evil woman.

[Valerie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was originally published in 1990; it became available on Kindle in 2017. This book should be required reading for all people who are in the field of social work. This story takes place in the 1960s; an unwed teenager got pregnant and decided to give her baby up for adoption. Her heart was just about broken when in her search for her son Dennis 20 years later, she found he died in 1965. The cause of death was listed as peritonitis; this is the dangerous infection a person may get if their appendix ruptures. It is an extremely painful way to die, although there are many antibiotics which will cure it if given in time. When Billie Sherwood (the birth mom) sought details of her son's death, she was horrified to learn that her child had died in the home of his adoptive parents, Harold and Lois Jerwass. The couple also had another adopted son, Robert, but where Robert was quiet and an introvert, Dennis was quite simply the opposite. He was full of humor, mischief and energy. The medical examiner at the time of the tot's death listed 'deferred' under manner; thus saying he did not know if it was a homicide or a natural death. Apparently, this was the practice in this particular county in Minnesota for many years. Back in the 1960s, the fact that children can and are horribly abused by some of their own parents, was very rarely spoken of. Domestic violence was treated more or less the same way. This particular town represented "the good life" in Minnesota, and very few of its residents could even imagine a parent, especially in a middle class family, hurting their own kids. Thus, the subject was rarely spoken of except in adoption agencies and social welfare offices. Because Billie Sherwood persevered in her quest to do right by her son, the adoptive mother, Lois Jurgens, was found guilty of third degree murder, and two other related charges, which carried a minimum eight year sentence. Harold and Lois kept to themselves except for visiting Harold's parents and Lois' family (the Jerwass clan with 16 children), so no one knew them very well at all, and assumed they were law abiding, church going people. Some of them even wrote references for Lois (including her Catholic priest) so that she and Harold could adopt. In total, there were seven children who were either adopted or going through the process of being adopted by the Jurgenses. The last five kids were all from the same family, and were older, so when they became aware of Lois' abusive ways, they moved in with other people. When they adopted the first boy, Robert, they did it through private means, which the social services agency frowned upon. So they contacted social services when they applied to adopt Dennis. One of the social workers intuitively 'knew' this couple was one which shouldn't be around children, but she talked herself out of it, thinking that she was overreacting about something, or had been working at the department too long. Why did it take 22 years to bring the adoptive mother to justice? One reason was what was written in the 'manner of death' box on the death certificate. Police and social workers interviewed neighbors and family members also, and learned that Lois, indeed, was guilty of extreme child abuse. Yet despite all of this, it still took the birth mother to set the wheels in motion. Lois had a brother, Jerome Jerwass, who was a lieutenant in the police department and basically ran the day to day operations. He stated more than once in front of witnesses that he would protect Lois. The Jerwass family would be called extremely dysfunctional at present. With 16 children to support, the father rarely had a job, and when he did, the money all went to alcohol. He and his wife were also physically abusive to their kids. Lois was expected to watch five of the ones younger than her (she was somewhere in the middle) and had to quit school in the eighth grade. Yet, she honestly loved children. However, there was a psychiatrist who deemed her bipolar with schizoid tendencies; but none of this fits the legal definition of 'insane'. It seems that most of the Jerwass family married and had kids and jobs with no abuse mentioned; however, that subject was never addressed. Lois' husband Harold, is quite an unknown character. He stuck up for his wife through thick and thin, knew the abuse was going on yet did nothing. I myself have a hard time understanding that. Dennis regularly had deep bruising on his body from head to toe (Harold and Lois claimed he had an abnormal response to feeling pain) along with gouges in his scalp, and a lesion and huge scab on his penis. Lois had forced the two boys to memorize the Catholic rosary for a funeral, and that is difficult enough for an adult to do, much less a small child. To punish Dennis, she forced him to kneel on a broomstick and put a spring clothes pin on his penis, and would not remove these things until he got the words right. One would have thought the Catholic priest would have thought something was amiss, yet he was one of the people who wrote references for the Jurgenses to adopt children. Although very little of the book went into details of Lois' childhood (she very rarely spoke of it, or if she did, it sounded like a small child's fantasy). I would guess that Lois herself was abused by her parents also. She had to do an inordinate amount of the housework. Neither parent did any of that. Yet, that may explain the why of the abuse, but it certainly does not excuse it. Time after time it has been shown that children brought up around child abuse or domestic violence often grow up to exhibit these behaviors themselves. This is one reason why, regardless of what some people say (that it is none of their business), abused children and domestic partners are all of society's business and should be reported. That is why doctors, teachers, social workers, police, etc. are all mandated reporters. They break the law if they do NOT report known abuse. Young children have no one else to speak for them generally. All of us must be aware of this ugliness, and report it if we see or hear it. That is the only way the cycle will be broken.

[Daphne Vogel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Difficult but fascinating book. The concept of a "battered child" was first put forth in the '60s after doctors couldn't fail to notice that certain children's injuries they were treating matched certain psychological builds in the children's caretakers. From this point, the notion of an abused child becoming an abuser was also born. The author uses the case of Dennis Jurgens to chart the course of this breakthrough in both medical and judicial communities. This era, from the mid-'60s to the early '70s, would make the leap from a need for direct evidence in these cases to using medical reports, expert opinion, and circumstantial evidence - understanding there are rarely witnesses to child abuse. If you can stomach the heartbreaking descriptions of child torture and death, it's well worth a read. Dennis Jurgens became the death that set a whole new world of child protective policies in motion in Minnesota, and set an important legal precedent for others to follow.

[Stefanie Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dennis Craig Jurgens was born on December 06, 1961 in Minnesota. His biological mother, Jerry Sherwood, placed him for adoption. He was adopted by Harold and Lois Jurgens, a Minnesota couple. The couple had previously adopted one other child, Robert, and adopted four other children after Dennis. Lois was an abusive parent, which was observed by her own family members. Dennis died on April 11, 1965, and the investigation into his death went a whole bunch of nowhere. I strongly believe that had a lot to do with the fact that her brother was a police officer. Years later, the biological mother wanted to find out information about her son, as he would be of legal age. She found out about his death and was determined to see justice done for what she knew was murder. This book details the abuse that was dished out by Lois, the failure of the justice system and the adoption services, and the inquiry into the death of Dennis. This book contained a lot of details that are a bit graphic, so if child abuse isn't something you care to read about, skip this book.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I finally got around to reading this true crime that had been in one of my bookcases for years. Although an engrossing story, I almost gave up several times because it was truly disturbing and painful to read about the torture and death of a precious 3 1/2 year-old boy. I was shocked and angry that so many people did nothing to protect him. The frequently stated excuse that it was a different time (1960s) when child abuse wasn't discussed is ridiculous. I remember the 1960s well and cannot imagine how anyone could look the other way. Another excuse was that people chose to "mind their own business"? It is EVERYONE'S business when a child is being abused.

[Ronnie Cramer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The stuff of nightmares. A young adopted boy turns up dead, and despite obvious signs pointing to homicide, town officials are reluctant to act. The presumed perpetrator (the mother) is the sister of a well-connected local police lieutenant who virtually rules the department. Incredibly detailed (though some might say overly long) and fascinating.

[Paula DeBoard]

TW: child abuse.

I didn't know the topic when I picked up this book, just that I'm always a sucker for true crime. I got more than I bargained for here, which made it both a heartbreaking and compelling read. This is the case of Dennis Jurgens, a toddler who suffered extreme abuse before he died--which was before the term "child abuse" was used by the medical and legal communities.

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Parts of the book were fascinating and horrific re the child abuse and the blind eye turned by the community. Too much detail about the town and other things. Happy that Justice was finally served. Book should have been half the length.

[Jesse Valente · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great look into our nation's acknowledgment (or lack thereof) of child abuse as a crime pre- and post-1960/70.

[Stacie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sad but true account of child abuse that led to murder.

[Sarah - All The Book Blog Names Are Taken · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a tough book to rate. There is ample enough information on the case that the additional information (such as the history of the town) was not needed and those bits were a bit much to slog through. But, I am from MN and know my state history pretty well, so I can let that go. There were some typos, some repetitiveness - almost always the "Zerwas clan".

In reality, however, it is hard to like a book about such tragedy and horror. That poor baby, I can not even imagine what it must have been like for him, and to not understand why this horrible woman was hurting him and that horrible man was doing nothing to stop it. I can't decide who the bigger monster was: Lois, who abused and murdered this sweet little boy, or Harold, the man who genuinely seemed to love the boys but would not stop her. FFS, he would take the kids down to the basement when Lois ordered him to, to punish the kids. He'd slap his leg and tell the kids to holler, so it sounded like he was whooping them. That's so fucked up.

Review to come.