1
00:00:27,006 --> 00:00:28,841
The mind is a crazy thing.
2
00:00:31,927 --> 00:00:34,180
Hello.
Step over here, please.
3
00:00:34,180 --> 00:00:35,890
All I know
is it happened.
4
00:00:35,890 --> 00:00:38,768
Stand right here.
Dizzy?
5
00:00:39,351 --> 00:00:39,977
Okay.
6
00:00:41,771 --> 00:00:43,856
Okay. Go this way.
7
00:00:46,817 --> 00:00:48,611
I wish I could change it.
8
00:00:50,654 --> 00:00:51,489
But I can't.
9
00:00:51,489 --> 00:00:52,990
We're gonna walk
this way
10
00:00:52,990 --> 00:00:54,617
towards the elevator.
11
00:00:56,452 --> 00:00:59,413
I wasn't getting any
praise, or love, or attention.
12
00:00:59,413 --> 00:01:01,791
I was just giving it all out.
13
00:01:04,460 --> 00:01:08,506
I was just in and out
of real life, you know?
14
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It was a puzzle
I still don't know
15
00:01:11,926 --> 00:01:13,636
how to put together yet.
16
00:01:17,973 --> 00:01:19,392
You know,
look what happened to me.
17
00:01:19,392 --> 00:01:22,728
Never have I been a criminal
or anything.
18
00:01:22,728 --> 00:01:24,230
Follow me.
19
00:01:25,731 --> 00:01:28,109
This door.
It breaks you down
20
00:01:28,109 --> 00:01:30,361
and you think
you don't have any value.
21
00:01:30,361 --> 00:01:31,946
This way, ma'am.
22
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But you do.
23
00:01:34,573 --> 00:01:36,325
Go into that room
over there.
24
00:01:36,325 --> 00:01:39,453
Can have a whole life
ahead of you.
25
00:01:39,453 --> 00:01:43,249
But you have to pay
for what you did.
26
00:01:48,504 --> 00:01:50,756
I've never given an interview.
27
00:01:53,134 --> 00:01:56,053
I hope
this is the right thing to do.
28
00:01:56,053 --> 00:01:57,304
Say it again?
29
00:01:57,304 --> 00:02:00,266
I hope this is
the right thing to do.
30
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The murder of David Riess
31
00:02:46,604 --> 00:02:49,023
in this town
32
00:02:49,023 --> 00:02:51,984
could be likened
to people remembering
33
00:02:51,984 --> 00:02:54,528
where they were when
the shuttle disaster occurred.
34
00:02:54,528 --> 00:02:58,366
I mean, this is a lifetime
memory for these people.
35
00:03:00,785 --> 00:03:04,497
I think the last murder
was maybe 30 years before.
36
00:03:04,497 --> 00:03:06,999
I mean,
it had been a lifetime ago,
37
00:03:06,999 --> 00:03:10,419
and certainly wasn't this
nationwide, um,
38
00:03:10,836 --> 00:03:12,671
event that this became.
39
00:03:12,671 --> 00:03:16,967
It is a wide-reaching story
for Blooming Prairie.
40
00:03:16,967 --> 00:03:20,638
It really was, even if it had
just been the murder of David.
41
00:03:38,739 --> 00:03:41,742
I can't tell you
the first time I met Dave.
42
00:03:41,742 --> 00:03:43,494
I really don't recall.
43
00:03:48,416 --> 00:03:50,835
He just turned up probably
sitting at the local bar,
44
00:03:50,835 --> 00:03:55,339
having a beer, got to talking,
and that was that, you know?
45
00:03:59,719 --> 00:04:00,720
I liked him.
46
00:04:01,053 --> 00:04:02,513
Everybody liked Dave.
47
00:04:02,805 --> 00:04:04,014
Dave was fun.
48
00:04:04,014 --> 00:04:07,601
Lois was great too, I mean,
they were a fun couple.
49
00:04:08,769 --> 00:04:10,688
Rod and I
met Lois and Dave
50
00:04:10,688 --> 00:04:13,357
the year they came to town,
I believe that was 2004,
51
00:04:13,357 --> 00:04:16,861
maybe 2005,
at the Servicemen's Club.
52
00:04:18,154 --> 00:04:20,281
They just sat down
at the bar near us,
53
00:04:20,281 --> 00:04:22,199
and we started chatting,
got introduced
54
00:04:22,199 --> 00:04:24,618
as they were
the new people in town.
55
00:04:25,786 --> 00:04:28,372
Got to know them well enough
that we invited them
56
00:04:28,372 --> 00:04:30,750
to our lake home for a weekend.
57
00:04:31,459 --> 00:04:33,419
We had a great time
that weekend.
58
00:04:33,878 --> 00:04:35,463
Lois was very gracious.
59
00:04:35,463 --> 00:04:37,506
She brought steaks for everyone.
60
00:04:37,506 --> 00:04:40,593
She was one to jump up
and help do dishes and clean up.
61
00:04:40,593 --> 00:04:43,763
We went pontooning and fishing.
62
00:04:45,890 --> 00:04:48,059
He was all business
when it came to fishing.
63
00:04:49,518 --> 00:04:52,480
We did a couple,
three tournaments together.
64
00:04:53,064 --> 00:04:55,900
We're at Big Stone
Lake in Ortonville, Minnesota
65
00:04:55,900 --> 00:04:58,903
for the Cabela's Masters
Walleye Circuit.
66
00:04:59,362 --> 00:05:02,073
Well, we just started doing
a little trolling here,
67
00:05:02,073 --> 00:05:06,577
uh, pitched the area here
all day,
68
00:05:06,577 --> 00:05:08,996
or all morning till right now,
69
00:05:08,996 --> 00:05:10,581
which is 1:00.
70
00:05:10,581 --> 00:05:13,626
So, we just decided
to do some trolling
71
00:05:13,626 --> 00:05:15,836
and we just caught
our first fish.
72
00:05:16,295 --> 00:05:17,963
Dave fished for fun.
73
00:05:18,714 --> 00:05:20,341
Dave fished for social life,
74
00:05:20,341 --> 00:05:24,053
Dave fished to create bonds
with his grandkids,
75
00:05:24,053 --> 00:05:25,304
his kids.
76
00:05:25,638 --> 00:05:28,474
Fishing and his kids
and grandkids were his world.
77
00:05:29,725 --> 00:05:31,477
When Dave and Lois
lived in Rochester,
78
00:05:31,477 --> 00:05:33,270
he had a bait shop.
79
00:05:33,270 --> 00:05:36,482
And then his dream was to open
this worm farm.
80
00:05:37,566 --> 00:05:41,153
And so they moved
to Blooming Prairie in 2005.
81
00:05:42,071 --> 00:05:46,492
And he opened this worm farm
about 50 paces from the house.
82
00:05:47,535 --> 00:05:49,995
And they would harvest
these worms
83
00:05:49,995 --> 00:05:53,666
that they sold as bait,
and anglers loved them.
84
00:05:54,208 --> 00:05:55,960
I've bought wax worms.
85
00:05:55,960 --> 00:05:58,212
I've fished with wax worms.
86
00:05:58,796 --> 00:06:01,048
They help you catch
what you're looking for.
87
00:06:02,550 --> 00:06:05,010
They're easy
to put on a fish hook.
88
00:06:05,553 --> 00:06:07,471
Three quarters of an inch long.
89
00:06:07,471 --> 00:06:10,057
Nice and fat and juicy.
90
00:06:11,100 --> 00:06:14,103
And that's what Dave was into
and it was a good gig for him.
91
00:06:15,312 --> 00:06:16,772
They had a thriving business,
92
00:06:16,772 --> 00:06:18,899
breeding these worms
and selling them
93
00:06:18,899 --> 00:06:21,277
to fishermen and women.
94
00:06:21,736 --> 00:06:24,321
The wax worm farm
was very successful.
95
00:06:24,780 --> 00:06:28,200
Yeah, they seemed to be
sitting just fine money-wise.
96
00:06:30,453 --> 00:06:33,873
Loving family, mother, grandma.
97
00:06:34,498 --> 00:06:36,667
I just know
that everybody loved her.
98
00:06:38,002 --> 00:06:41,088
Lois always gave
the biggest hugs, kisses.
99
00:06:41,630 --> 00:06:44,216
Dave had the biggest squeeze.
100
00:06:44,216 --> 00:06:46,969
The most contagious smile
and laughter.
101
00:06:49,346 --> 00:06:52,475
You know how it is
if I start laughing,
102
00:06:52,475 --> 00:06:54,018
and it makes you laugh,
103
00:06:54,018 --> 00:06:55,561
and that makes me laugh harder,
104
00:06:55,561 --> 00:06:57,188
and now you're laughing harder.
105
00:06:57,188 --> 00:07:01,192
And pretty soon, you got those
giggles that you can't stop.
106
00:07:01,567 --> 00:07:03,527
And all I gotta do
is look at you
107
00:07:03,527 --> 00:07:05,905
and now we're both
frigging laughing again.
108
00:07:05,905 --> 00:07:08,324
Yup, that's the way it was
with Dave.
109
00:07:08,324 --> 00:07:10,451
I mean, he got on a roll and...
110
00:07:10,451 --> 00:07:12,453
Bingo. It was over.
111
00:07:15,122 --> 00:07:18,584
Lois and Dave
had the same routine.
112
00:07:20,044 --> 00:07:21,754
They both went down
to the bar to drink.
113
00:07:21,754 --> 00:07:23,589
They both went to the bowling.
114
00:07:24,256 --> 00:07:27,468
They were who I wanted to be
when I found my husband,
115
00:07:27,468 --> 00:07:30,096
and get married,
I wanted that relationship.
116
00:07:37,645 --> 00:07:41,232
My buddies sent me
some pictures of Dave.
117
00:07:42,358 --> 00:07:44,068
Uh, let's see,
this first one-- Oh!
118
00:07:44,068 --> 00:07:46,570
- There's Dave.
- What are you guys holding?
119
00:07:46,570 --> 00:07:48,989
That's just a stinking ashtray.
120
00:07:49,573 --> 00:07:50,825
Oh, it's full of beer cans.
121
00:07:50,825 --> 00:07:52,785
That's why we were
showing it off.
122
00:07:52,785 --> 00:07:54,745
How many beers we had
that afternoon.
123
00:07:54,745 --> 00:07:56,414
We were having a good time.
124
00:07:57,164 --> 00:08:00,459
Next one. Oh, that was
a good game. That was...
125
00:08:00,459 --> 00:08:01,752
a picture of me and Dave
126
00:08:01,752 --> 00:08:04,088
and I think that was
the Minneapolis Miracle.
127
00:08:04,088 --> 00:08:05,631
When we beat the Saints.
128
00:08:05,965 --> 00:08:08,426
And, let's see.
The last picture is,
129
00:08:08,426 --> 00:08:10,594
well, we call it the stadium,
130
00:08:10,803 --> 00:08:14,849
and we just got all our friends,
somebody made a metal sign and--
131
00:08:21,981 --> 00:08:24,817
Some of them
aren't around anymore.
132
00:08:33,909 --> 00:08:36,120
I don't pay a lot of attention
to that sign,
133
00:08:36,120 --> 00:08:37,913
but now that I took the time...
134
00:08:37,913 --> 00:08:40,666
It just gets to me
a little bit.
135
00:08:49,008 --> 00:08:51,218
You strike me
as somebody that doesn't get
136
00:08:51,218 --> 00:08:52,762
very emotional a lot.
137
00:08:53,429 --> 00:08:56,849
I'm a man. I'm not supposed
to be emotional, you know?
138
00:09:02,688 --> 00:09:06,650
Monday the 12th was payroll day,
139
00:09:06,650 --> 00:09:08,944
and Dave handled the payroll,
140
00:09:08,944 --> 00:09:10,654
but Lois came down
141
00:09:10,654 --> 00:09:13,449
and told one
of the head workers there,
142
00:09:13,449 --> 00:09:16,035
"You take care of it,
Dave's sick."
143
00:09:16,619 --> 00:09:19,663
Also, Lois did not seem
her usual chipper self.
144
00:09:19,663 --> 00:09:22,625
Didn't really ask people
how their weekends were,
145
00:09:22,625 --> 00:09:24,835
like she often did,
or give hugs to them
146
00:09:24,835 --> 00:09:26,837
as she frequently did.
She seemed more
147
00:09:26,837 --> 00:09:29,382
standoffish and distracted.
148
00:09:30,132 --> 00:09:32,968
And so, then,
Thursday she came back.
149
00:09:32,968 --> 00:09:35,012
And she kept up the story
that Dave was sick,
150
00:09:35,012 --> 00:09:38,516
said she was gonna take him
to the doctor on Friday.
151
00:09:38,516 --> 00:09:40,893
We were getting
little rumors about,
152
00:09:40,893 --> 00:09:43,187
"Something weird is going on.
153
00:09:43,187 --> 00:09:44,855
Dave's not showing up to work."
154
00:09:44,855 --> 00:09:46,774
So everybody starts talking.
155
00:09:46,774 --> 00:09:49,026
People said
they'd been texting him,
156
00:09:49,026 --> 00:09:51,195
and he'd been responding
to their texts,
157
00:09:51,195 --> 00:09:52,571
but they were different.
158
00:09:52,571 --> 00:09:54,198
The texts were
different than usual.
159
00:09:55,866 --> 00:09:59,286
Dave wouldn't type,
he would talk-text.
160
00:10:00,329 --> 00:10:02,665
So when you got his messages,
161
00:10:02,665 --> 00:10:04,709
they were a bit scrambly.
162
00:10:05,084 --> 00:10:07,712
His text messages weren't
matching up
163
00:10:07,712 --> 00:10:10,965
to what he normally talk-text.
164
00:10:11,298 --> 00:10:14,385
There were emojis and different
things in his text messages.
165
00:10:14,385 --> 00:10:16,929
Like, what's going on?
166
00:10:18,889 --> 00:10:20,433
The next week
came around
167
00:10:20,433 --> 00:10:22,560
and Dave was supposed
to go to a fishing tournament
168
00:10:22,560 --> 00:10:24,103
on that Tuesday.
169
00:10:25,563 --> 00:10:27,398
And then on Thursday,
170
00:10:27,398 --> 00:10:30,234
two workers at the worm farm
171
00:10:30,234 --> 00:10:32,862
saw Dave's Cadillac Escalade
172
00:10:32,862 --> 00:10:35,448
pull out of the driveway
with Lois in it.
173
00:10:36,282 --> 00:10:38,743
And that's the car
that Dave would've taken
174
00:10:38,743 --> 00:10:40,745
to the fishing tournament
'cause it's the car he used
175
00:10:40,745 --> 00:10:42,371
to tow his boat.
176
00:10:42,371 --> 00:10:43,664
That's when they knew...
177
00:10:43,664 --> 00:10:45,166
Dave's not okay.
178
00:10:45,166 --> 00:10:47,251
Dave's not
at the fishing tournament.
179
00:10:47,251 --> 00:10:50,171
Lois is leaving in the Escalade.
What's going on?
180
00:10:50,171 --> 00:10:52,089
And that's when
the business partner
181
00:10:52,089 --> 00:10:54,258
reported to
the Dodge County sheriff.
182
00:10:58,637 --> 00:11:01,307
Two officers rang the bell,
nobody came.
183
00:11:02,016 --> 00:11:06,312
And so,
they walked around the house.
184
00:11:07,188 --> 00:11:10,983
What stood out right away was
the bathroom window was open
185
00:11:10,983 --> 00:11:13,944
when it was so cold outside.
186
00:11:13,944 --> 00:11:15,613
One of them hoisted
the other up
187
00:11:15,613 --> 00:11:18,324
so he could look in the window,
and he saw
188
00:11:18,324 --> 00:11:21,243
what looked like it might be
a body under a blanket or towel.
189
00:11:27,166 --> 00:11:32,338
So my wife Pam and I were
on our way home from Austin.
190
00:11:32,338 --> 00:11:37,093
And as I drove by, I noticed
a cop car sitting there.
191
00:11:38,052 --> 00:11:40,096
Something ain't right here,
you know?
192
00:11:40,096 --> 00:11:42,056
Deputies went
into the house.
193
00:11:42,056 --> 00:11:43,849
The PD went into the house.
194
00:11:50,690 --> 00:11:53,651
They found Dave
in the bathroom.
195
00:11:54,110 --> 00:11:57,154
Dead. His body had
already started to decompose.
196
00:11:57,154 --> 00:11:58,656
It was bloated.
197
00:11:59,115 --> 00:12:01,367
So, he'd been there
for some time.
198
00:12:02,076 --> 00:12:03,869
Turns out he'd been there
12 days.
199
00:12:04,453 --> 00:12:06,539
The door was shut,
window was open,
200
00:12:06,539 --> 00:12:08,249
and the vent fan was on.
201
00:12:11,377 --> 00:12:12,670
What happens then is
202
00:12:12,670 --> 00:12:14,505
the Minnesota Bureau
of Criminal Apprehension,
203
00:12:14,505 --> 00:12:16,298
or BCA, is called in
204
00:12:16,298 --> 00:12:20,052
to assist the agencies
with their investigations.
205
00:12:20,594 --> 00:12:22,763
I first heard that
something happened to David
206
00:12:22,763 --> 00:12:25,349
by a phone call
I got from my mom,
207
00:12:25,349 --> 00:12:29,145
and the phone call came
really early in the morning.
208
00:12:30,229 --> 00:12:32,982
Me and my mom don't communicate
early in the morning.
209
00:12:32,982 --> 00:12:34,608
We hardly talk on the phone,
210
00:12:34,608 --> 00:12:36,610
so I knew
something was going on.
211
00:12:36,610 --> 00:12:40,197
And my mom told me
David was found
212
00:12:40,197 --> 00:12:42,158
deceased at home.
213
00:12:43,117 --> 00:12:45,911
He'd been shot two times,
214
00:12:45,911 --> 00:12:49,790
once in the chest, at the heart,
and once in the back.
215
00:12:49,790 --> 00:12:51,375
He also had a wound
in his wrist.
216
00:12:51,375 --> 00:12:54,045
I'm imagining that he saw
that first shot coming
217
00:12:54,045 --> 00:12:55,713
and tried to protect himself.
218
00:12:56,130 --> 00:12:59,091
There was a shell casing
from a .22 handgun
219
00:12:59,091 --> 00:13:01,177
that they found underneath him.
220
00:13:02,011 --> 00:13:04,388
But otherwise,
there were no shell casings.
221
00:13:04,388 --> 00:13:06,974
Whoever shot him
had picked up that casing
222
00:13:06,974 --> 00:13:10,227
and cleaned up, and covered him
with a blanket, perhaps,
223
00:13:10,227 --> 00:13:13,898
to keep the smell
from drafting out and
224
00:13:13,898 --> 00:13:17,443
opened the window so that
it wouldn't smell as bad.
225
00:13:20,154 --> 00:13:23,240
There wasn't much there
in the way of disorganization
226
00:13:23,240 --> 00:13:25,368
that would indicate
someone left
227
00:13:25,368 --> 00:13:26,994
in an extreme hurry.
228
00:13:29,622 --> 00:13:30,998
Big news.
229
00:13:31,832 --> 00:13:33,084
Big news, you know?
230
00:13:33,084 --> 00:13:35,378
Everybody's talking about it.
231
00:13:38,589 --> 00:13:41,926
At that point, I wasn't gonna
point fingers quite yet,
232
00:13:41,926 --> 00:13:46,013
but pretty easy case here
to solve, you know.
233
00:13:46,013 --> 00:13:48,474
Lois is nowhere to be found.
234
00:13:49,475 --> 00:13:52,770
My God. This woman
has shot her husband
235
00:13:52,770 --> 00:13:55,106
is the conclusion and gossip.
236
00:13:55,106 --> 00:13:58,150
It's all people can talk about.
It's foremost in their minds.
237
00:13:58,150 --> 00:14:01,153
What's going on?
What happened, and why?
238
00:14:01,153 --> 00:14:03,239
There was no history
with this family at all
239
00:14:03,239 --> 00:14:05,157
from a law enforcement
standpoint,
240
00:14:05,157 --> 00:14:10,538
so, no, I don't think anybody
saw this coming at all.
241
00:14:12,623 --> 00:14:15,626
Thank you for calling Steele
County Times. This is Sharon.
242
00:14:15,626 --> 00:14:17,128
People really
looked to us
243
00:14:17,128 --> 00:14:20,589
for clarity on what happened,
what are the facts,
244
00:14:20,589 --> 00:14:22,299
and in this case,
245
00:14:22,299 --> 00:14:24,969
we didn't have a lot of facts
that we could give them.
246
00:14:27,096 --> 00:14:29,557
Dodge County Sheriff's Office
is led by
247
00:14:29,557 --> 00:14:31,100
Sheriff Scott Rose,
248
00:14:31,100 --> 00:14:36,480
who was our contact throughout
the whole investigation.
249
00:14:36,480 --> 00:14:38,232
And it was very limited
250
00:14:38,232 --> 00:14:40,651
as far as the information
that we were getting.
251
00:14:42,486 --> 00:14:44,363
Dodge County
Sheriff Scott Rose
252
00:14:44,363 --> 00:14:47,992
has made a practice
out of making things difficult
253
00:14:47,992 --> 00:14:51,620
for media, other people.
254
00:14:52,204 --> 00:14:54,915
Dave's body was found
255
00:14:54,915 --> 00:14:59,503
on March 23rd,
and there was no doubt
256
00:14:59,503 --> 00:15:03,299
that Dave had been killed
by someone else's hand.
257
00:15:04,467 --> 00:15:07,303
It was three days
after his body was found
258
00:15:07,303 --> 00:15:11,140
before Dodge County
put out any information.
259
00:15:13,601 --> 00:15:15,061
I don't think he needed to run,
260
00:15:15,061 --> 00:15:17,605
screaming with his hair on fire
that there'd been a murder
261
00:15:17,605 --> 00:15:18,939
and everybody look
for Lois Riess.
262
00:15:18,939 --> 00:15:21,776
I don't think
that was the answer either,
263
00:15:21,776 --> 00:15:23,569
but to say nothing?
264
00:15:24,195 --> 00:15:26,072
What did that accomplish?
265
00:15:26,655 --> 00:15:27,656
Nothing.
266
00:15:29,784 --> 00:15:32,244
Lois came into the picture,
267
00:15:32,244 --> 00:15:34,205
I believe, the following week
268
00:15:34,205 --> 00:15:38,292
when the BCA had put out
a crime alert
269
00:15:39,085 --> 00:15:42,046
looking for her
and her vehicle
270
00:15:42,046 --> 00:15:45,132
as a person of interest
in this murder.
271
00:15:46,133 --> 00:15:48,052
I'd worked
at the bar that night.
272
00:15:48,052 --> 00:15:49,220
I had just gotten home,
273
00:15:49,220 --> 00:15:51,055
the ten o'clock news
had come on,
274
00:15:51,055 --> 00:15:53,682
and the news had said
something about
275
00:15:53,682 --> 00:15:56,143
a Blooming Prairie woman,
276
00:15:56,143 --> 00:15:59,772
and I nonchalantly joked that,
277
00:15:59,772 --> 00:16:01,565
"Wouldn't that be crazy
if it was Lois?"
278
00:16:01,565 --> 00:16:04,735
And I looked up and it was her
driver's license picture on TV.
279
00:16:04,735 --> 00:16:06,737
...presence
at Prairie Wax Worm Farm.
280
00:16:06,737 --> 00:16:09,782
I immediately burst
into tears, shaking.
281
00:16:10,950 --> 00:16:12,618
I was-- I was mad.
282
00:16:12,993 --> 00:16:15,621
I was-- I was pissed off.
283
00:16:20,710 --> 00:16:22,586
So Lois is on the run,
284
00:16:22,586 --> 00:16:24,922
she's at large,
no one knows where she is,
285
00:16:24,922 --> 00:16:28,217
and at this point,
she's not wanted for murder.
286
00:16:30,219 --> 00:16:32,847
She's simply wanted for theft.
287
00:16:32,847 --> 00:16:35,266
The investigation
took a dramatic turn
288
00:16:35,266 --> 00:16:38,060
after Lois was charged
with felony theft
289
00:16:38,060 --> 00:16:41,105
for cashing around $10,000
in checks
290
00:16:41,105 --> 00:16:43,983
from David's personal
and business accounts.
291
00:16:43,983 --> 00:16:46,152
What had happened,
one of the workers has just gone
292
00:16:46,152 --> 00:16:48,863
and made the rounds,
and collected payment,
293
00:16:48,863 --> 00:16:51,407
and so he had
this stack of checks,
294
00:16:51,407 --> 00:16:53,200
and he noticed
a couple were missing.
295
00:16:53,200 --> 00:16:54,744
Lois had taken those,
296
00:16:54,744 --> 00:16:56,328
went to deposit them
at the bank,
297
00:16:56,328 --> 00:16:57,955
and then she withdrew funds
298
00:16:57,955 --> 00:17:01,292
from the business account
and then left.
299
00:17:01,792 --> 00:17:05,171
When I learned that
she was writing herself checks
300
00:17:05,171 --> 00:17:07,256
from David's business account,
301
00:17:07,256 --> 00:17:09,425
I mean,
that right there told me that
302
00:17:09,425 --> 00:17:12,928
she's not doing that to go
shopping at the grocery store.
303
00:17:13,804 --> 00:17:18,225
So she had become suspect
number one at that point.
304
00:17:20,686 --> 00:17:24,106
We knew she'd be looking
for either a family member
305
00:17:24,106 --> 00:17:26,734
or a friend
for a place to stay.
306
00:17:26,734 --> 00:17:28,527
Where is she gonna go for that?
307
00:17:29,403 --> 00:17:31,447
How I got involved
with the Lois Riess case
308
00:17:31,447 --> 00:17:33,449
was I saw it on the news
and my wife's like,
309
00:17:33,449 --> 00:17:36,035
"Hey, that's down
in Dodge County."
310
00:17:36,035 --> 00:17:38,162
So I kind of volunteered
to assist them
311
00:17:38,162 --> 00:17:40,915
and help them with the case,
and that's how I got involved.
312
00:17:41,665 --> 00:17:45,503
So, the first thing we'll always
get is a copy of the warrant.
313
00:17:46,212 --> 00:17:48,339
Come to find out
there was no warrant in place
314
00:17:48,339 --> 00:17:50,549
for the homicide,
but there were warrants
315
00:17:50,549 --> 00:17:52,551
in place for the felony
316
00:17:52,551 --> 00:17:55,012
fraud charges for Lois.
317
00:17:58,557 --> 00:18:01,602
A lot of times,
jurisdictions won't
318
00:18:01,602 --> 00:18:04,397
seek a warrant right away
in homicide cases 'cause
319
00:18:04,397 --> 00:18:07,525
once a warrant comes out
and somebody's apprehended,
320
00:18:07,525 --> 00:18:10,069
there's a speedy trial clock
that starts.
321
00:18:10,069 --> 00:18:12,363
And prosecutors,
322
00:18:12,363 --> 00:18:15,199
and-and agencies are afraid
of these warrants
323
00:18:15,199 --> 00:18:17,493
and these charges
being dismissed
324
00:18:17,493 --> 00:18:21,330
for lack of prosecution
because the evidence
325
00:18:21,330 --> 00:18:23,040
and the crime scene
and everything
326
00:18:23,040 --> 00:18:25,167
hasn't been fully processed.
327
00:18:26,961 --> 00:18:30,172
People in Blooming Prairie
are thinking back and saying,
328
00:18:30,172 --> 00:18:32,591
"I guess they weren't
getting along very well.
329
00:18:32,591 --> 00:18:35,469
I remember a time
when they were fighting," or,
330
00:18:35,469 --> 00:18:38,556
"When Dave came up to the bar
and said
331
00:18:38,556 --> 00:18:40,099
he was mad at Lois."
332
00:18:40,099 --> 00:18:42,143
So there was
a lot of things going on
333
00:18:42,143 --> 00:18:45,187
that people now are
thinking back, remembering.
334
00:18:46,814 --> 00:18:49,191
I think everybody knew
she was a click-off.
335
00:18:49,692 --> 00:18:51,652
What does a click-off mean?
336
00:18:51,652 --> 00:18:53,571
I don't know, just, uh...
337
00:18:55,197 --> 00:18:59,493
I just--
You knew something was there.
338
00:19:00,286 --> 00:19:02,747
You know, you couldn't put
your finger on it.
339
00:19:03,748 --> 00:19:06,542
Yeah, we were sitting at
a buddy's place one afternoon
340
00:19:06,542 --> 00:19:09,128
and she comes, I think--
I forget what it was.
341
00:19:09,128 --> 00:19:12,173
Maybe she had to go help
the Cub Scouts or something.
342
00:19:12,590 --> 00:19:15,634
She came in dressed
like a mermaid, I mean, like...
343
00:19:17,261 --> 00:19:20,890
like a mermaid
with big starflowers on her,
344
00:19:20,890 --> 00:19:23,184
and, you know, this weird dress.
345
00:19:23,184 --> 00:19:25,019
That's the kind of stuff
Lois would do.
346
00:19:25,019 --> 00:19:28,481
That wasn't--
that wasn't thought of as...
347
00:19:29,398 --> 00:19:32,318
being really crazy, it was just
Lois doing her thing.
348
00:19:32,735 --> 00:19:34,820
What would Dave
have to say about it?
349
00:19:34,820 --> 00:19:38,157
He'd just roll his eyes
and just, you know,
350
00:19:38,157 --> 00:19:39,784
play right along with it.
351
00:19:40,993 --> 00:19:44,205
I think there was a lot that
went on in that household.
352
00:19:44,205 --> 00:19:47,249
Let's say not as serious
of stuff.
353
00:19:47,249 --> 00:19:50,461
I think she crowned him
with a frying pan one time
354
00:19:50,461 --> 00:19:53,464
when they were young,
and things like that, but...
355
00:19:54,090 --> 00:19:56,425
not-- never going this far,
356
00:19:56,425 --> 00:19:58,552
never this far, you know?
357
00:19:59,845 --> 00:20:03,516
She shot her husband,
he's lying dead in the house,
358
00:20:03,516 --> 00:20:08,354
and she's there
going about her daily business.
359
00:20:12,191 --> 00:20:15,277
She's eating, she's sleeping.
360
00:20:17,363 --> 00:20:19,490
For eleven days, she's there
361
00:20:19,490 --> 00:20:22,326
with this decomposing body
of her husband.
362
00:20:22,326 --> 00:20:26,580
That to me seems beyond
the angry spouse.
363
00:20:26,580 --> 00:20:28,833
There's something else wrong,
I think.
364
00:20:30,042 --> 00:20:31,335
What happened?
365
00:20:31,335 --> 00:20:34,171
Because these things
don't happen in a vacuum.
366
00:20:34,171 --> 00:20:35,506
Something happened to her.
367
00:20:35,506 --> 00:20:37,550
That's not a forgiveness
of what she did,
368
00:20:37,550 --> 00:20:39,510
or a condoning of what she did,
369
00:20:39,510 --> 00:20:42,722
but there has to be an answer
to that.
370
00:20:43,597 --> 00:20:46,517
She did not
just wake up on day and say,
371
00:20:46,517 --> 00:20:48,853
"Feels like a good day
to kill my husband."
372
00:20:48,853 --> 00:20:50,354
There's no way.
373
00:20:53,983 --> 00:20:56,360
At that point, I realized that
374
00:20:56,360 --> 00:20:58,821
there had to be more
to the story.
375
00:21:15,588 --> 00:21:16,881
Lois?
376
00:21:18,215 --> 00:21:21,677
Yes, this is me.
How's it going today?
377
00:21:31,187 --> 00:21:33,939
I think we might be able
to see each other next week.
378
00:21:50,831 --> 00:21:54,710
You're going to head over
to that chair right there.
379
00:21:54,710 --> 00:21:56,003
All right.
380
00:21:57,129 --> 00:22:00,007
I was the strong one
of my family. I think,
381
00:22:00,007 --> 00:22:03,177
if you look in society,
the youngest of the children
382
00:22:03,177 --> 00:22:05,429
generally end up being
the caregivers.
383
00:22:05,763 --> 00:22:08,349
And that's true to form with me.
384
00:22:08,349 --> 00:22:11,769
Now, with nothing
but time on my hands,
385
00:22:12,144 --> 00:22:13,145
um,
386
00:22:14,105 --> 00:22:16,273
I think about that.
387
00:22:16,273 --> 00:22:18,609
How my childhood really affected
388
00:22:18,609 --> 00:22:21,362
how I handle myself,
my thoughts.
389
00:22:21,987 --> 00:22:24,907
And in my marriage,
I mean, my mother...
390
00:22:26,075 --> 00:22:27,660
It wasn't a normal household.
391
00:22:27,660 --> 00:22:30,079
My mother had
mental health issues.
392
00:22:30,621 --> 00:22:33,124
I'm the youngest
of five children,
393
00:22:33,124 --> 00:22:35,376
so by the time I was in school,
394
00:22:35,376 --> 00:22:37,753
it got real bad in the house.
395
00:22:38,421 --> 00:22:41,549
That's when I started leaving,
running away.
396
00:22:42,633 --> 00:22:45,302
And so, I hung out
with my girlfriend Kari.
397
00:22:57,898 --> 00:22:59,734
How are you feeling today?
398
00:22:59,734 --> 00:23:02,820
Pretty good.
I feel a little anxious
399
00:23:02,820 --> 00:23:06,657
about what I'm going to say
about Lois.
400
00:23:06,657 --> 00:23:08,367
But, yeah, I feel pretty good.
401
00:23:08,993 --> 00:23:10,703
Let's go back
to the beginning.
402
00:23:10,703 --> 00:23:13,873
How did the two of you
become friends, you and Lois?
403
00:23:14,373 --> 00:23:16,500
We were both equally
troublemakers,
404
00:23:16,500 --> 00:23:19,336
but I didn't get in trouble
as much as she did.
405
00:23:19,336 --> 00:23:22,798
I got out of a lot of trouble
because I was very studious
406
00:23:22,798 --> 00:23:25,384
and I was also studying piano
all the time,
407
00:23:25,384 --> 00:23:27,970
so people pretty much
left me alone.
408
00:23:29,138 --> 00:23:32,933
I first met Lois,
Witte was her maiden name,
409
00:23:32,933 --> 00:23:35,102
in Rochester, Minnesota
410
00:23:35,102 --> 00:23:39,023
in seventh grade in junior high
at Kellogg Junior High.
411
00:23:39,690 --> 00:23:44,487
Okay, so here's
Kellogg Junior High, 1974-75.
412
00:23:44,487 --> 00:23:46,530
Here's Lois right here.
413
00:23:46,530 --> 00:23:48,157
She looks like a baby.
414
00:23:48,741 --> 00:23:52,953
And then in ninth grade,
which was 1977,
415
00:23:52,953 --> 00:23:56,040
this is Lois right here.
416
00:23:56,040 --> 00:23:57,541
And then I'm here.
417
00:23:57,541 --> 00:24:01,045
Somebody defaced my picture.
418
00:24:02,797 --> 00:24:04,298
Bobby Rice.
419
00:24:04,298 --> 00:24:06,509
He was trying to make me laugh,
I think.
420
00:24:08,677 --> 00:24:11,097
Her oldest brother
is named Butch,
421
00:24:11,597 --> 00:24:15,142
then Kim, then Cindee,
422
00:24:15,643 --> 00:24:19,313
Bob and Lois. There were five.
423
00:24:19,772 --> 00:24:21,482
She had to kind of survive.
424
00:24:21,482 --> 00:24:23,359
She was kind of the survivor.
425
00:24:23,359 --> 00:24:28,197
And, you know,
she had to rely on her own wits.
426
00:24:29,699 --> 00:24:32,159
My mother, she was
professionally diagnosed
427
00:24:32,159 --> 00:24:36,122
as being bipolar
and schizophrenic behavior.
428
00:24:37,415 --> 00:24:39,792
It was a hoarding house.
429
00:24:40,167 --> 00:24:41,836
Never had a room of my own.
430
00:24:41,836 --> 00:24:44,630
I never had any
birthday parties or friends.
431
00:24:44,630 --> 00:24:46,048
No one came to the house
432
00:24:46,048 --> 00:24:48,551
because it was just like you see
on those programs.
433
00:24:48,551 --> 00:24:51,929
It was a path
through everywhere.
434
00:24:51,929 --> 00:24:55,516
Lois gave me a tour
of their house once.
435
00:24:57,017 --> 00:24:59,603
To get up to the stairs,
you had to kind of crawl
436
00:24:59,603 --> 00:25:02,314
on top of all kinds of clothes.
437
00:25:03,107 --> 00:25:05,776
Brand-new clothes
still on the hangers,
438
00:25:05,776 --> 00:25:07,528
and still with their tags on.
439
00:25:07,528 --> 00:25:11,240
And there'd be like,
the same item, multiple colors.
440
00:25:14,827 --> 00:25:17,747
My father was a very
successful engineer with IBM,
441
00:25:17,747 --> 00:25:21,959
but to avoid the real-life
issues with his wife,
442
00:25:21,959 --> 00:25:23,419
he was rarely home.
443
00:25:24,003 --> 00:25:27,798
I mean, it was so bad that,
in his own bed,
444
00:25:27,798 --> 00:25:29,967
my parents didn't sleep together
the whole time I grew up.
445
00:25:29,967 --> 00:25:33,554
I never had seen them be
intimate, or kiss, or anything.
446
00:25:33,554 --> 00:25:35,848
He would sleep
in a very small space,
447
00:25:35,848 --> 00:25:37,725
piled with
my mother's belongings,
448
00:25:37,725 --> 00:25:40,227
so he was in denial of it.
449
00:25:40,936 --> 00:25:44,023
Her father was
an engineer at IBM,
450
00:25:44,023 --> 00:25:45,649
which in addition
to the Mayo Clinic,
451
00:25:45,649 --> 00:25:48,527
is the big employer
in Rochester, Minnesota.
452
00:25:48,527 --> 00:25:51,030
People who worked at IBM
were big shots.
453
00:25:51,030 --> 00:25:54,825
Mother Mayo is queen now
but IBM was...
454
00:25:55,201 --> 00:25:56,243
was king.
455
00:25:56,243 --> 00:25:58,245
Her dad was an IBM-er,
456
00:25:58,245 --> 00:25:59,872
so he always had
a lot of money,
457
00:25:59,872 --> 00:26:02,249
but he was stingy with it.
458
00:26:02,792 --> 00:26:06,003
They grew up
kind of without money.
459
00:26:06,003 --> 00:26:10,466
I think that kind of
affected her or shaped her,
460
00:26:10,466 --> 00:26:13,427
'cause a bunch of doctors' kids
461
00:26:13,427 --> 00:26:15,388
went to that school,
462
00:26:15,846 --> 00:26:21,394
and she seemed
to want to be higher class.
463
00:26:21,894 --> 00:26:24,605
Like, I think she wanted
to be famous somehow.
464
00:26:24,605 --> 00:26:27,525
I don't know that she wanted
this kind of fame.
465
00:26:27,525 --> 00:26:29,151
I'm sure she didn't, but...
466
00:26:30,528 --> 00:26:32,613
She didn't really have
a home life.
467
00:26:33,072 --> 00:26:35,741
She would stay
with different people.
468
00:26:36,701 --> 00:26:41,747
My sister and Lois and I
hung out a lot at our house.
469
00:26:41,747 --> 00:26:45,501
I tagged along and that
should've never happened.
470
00:26:45,501 --> 00:26:47,920
I got-- I got in trouble
because of it.
471
00:26:49,630 --> 00:26:53,718
I remember we listened to Heart,
Dreamboat Annie all the time,
472
00:26:53,718 --> 00:26:56,554
and that was brand-new then.
473
00:26:56,846 --> 00:26:59,390
One time we were
on the phone with her
474
00:26:59,765 --> 00:27:02,810
and I was playing that album,
and she wanted to hear it,
475
00:27:02,810 --> 00:27:04,729
so she told us
to turn the stereo up,
476
00:27:04,729 --> 00:27:07,523
and I left the phone
on the living room floor,
477
00:27:07,523 --> 00:27:08,816
so she could listen.
478
00:27:08,816 --> 00:27:10,776
I thought, "This has got
to sound horrible."
479
00:27:10,776 --> 00:27:14,739
♪ No one knows the lonely one ♪
480
00:27:14,739 --> 00:27:19,910
♪ Whose head's in the clouds ♪
481
00:27:19,910 --> 00:27:23,497
Then my brother got home
and got really mad at us.
482
00:27:23,497 --> 00:27:25,958
- Do you remember that?
No.
483
00:27:25,958 --> 00:27:27,334
Yeah.
484
00:27:27,918 --> 00:27:31,756
Then I started
running away, skipping school.
485
00:27:31,756 --> 00:27:35,134
It was hard for me. You can't
study in that environment
486
00:27:35,134 --> 00:27:36,177
that I lived in anyway,
487
00:27:36,177 --> 00:27:38,763
so I just blew it off
and I started--
488
00:27:38,763 --> 00:27:41,849
by the time I was eleven,
I started drinking,
489
00:27:41,849 --> 00:27:43,976
and smoking marijuana,
490
00:27:43,976 --> 00:27:46,937
and trying to avoid
my real-life issues.
491
00:27:46,937 --> 00:27:49,857
And trying to get out
of that environment,
492
00:27:49,857 --> 00:27:52,193
'cause she was
a little bit abusive.
493
00:27:52,818 --> 00:27:55,363
This is March 20th, 1978.
494
00:27:55,363 --> 00:27:59,075
"Dear Kari, guess what
happened this last weekend.
495
00:28:00,201 --> 00:28:04,080
Cindee got into a little spat
with my mom Sunday afternoon.
496
00:28:05,081 --> 00:28:08,125
Mom slapped her across the face
497
00:28:08,626 --> 00:28:11,128
and Cindee
got really pissed off.
498
00:28:12,421 --> 00:28:16,801
So she goes into her bizarre,
wild, maniac state, right.
499
00:28:16,801 --> 00:28:18,844
And she grits her teeth,
500
00:28:20,388 --> 00:28:23,849
flares her nasty little nostrils
501
00:28:23,849 --> 00:28:28,479
and starts blurting out
every gross word she knows.
502
00:28:30,231 --> 00:28:32,692
Cindee looking meanly
at my mom goes,
503
00:28:32,692 --> 00:28:35,361
'What ya gonna do to me now?
I'm pregnant.'"
504
00:28:38,155 --> 00:28:40,241
Then it says,
"Too late for an abortion,
505
00:28:40,241 --> 00:28:42,660
she's already three
and a half months along."
506
00:28:42,660 --> 00:28:44,370
Oh, God.
507
00:28:45,287 --> 00:28:48,207
"I wonder what's going to happen
to our family now."
508
00:28:50,167 --> 00:28:54,463
I always had a real
self-confidence about myself.
509
00:28:54,463 --> 00:28:59,176
I think it's because
I worked so hard at it to hide
510
00:29:00,302 --> 00:29:02,263
what was really going on
in my life.
511
00:29:02,263 --> 00:29:06,058
So I always was an extrovert,
funny.
512
00:29:06,058 --> 00:29:09,562
I had a big genre of friends,
I hung out with everybody.
513
00:29:10,896 --> 00:29:12,940
But I did end up
quitting school,
514
00:29:13,357 --> 00:29:16,902
and just becoming a worker bee
when I was 16.
515
00:29:18,112 --> 00:29:19,488
She had a lot
of different jobs,
516
00:29:19,488 --> 00:29:22,366
but she worked at Dayton's
out at Apache Mall
517
00:29:22,366 --> 00:29:23,993
in Rochester.
518
00:29:25,077 --> 00:29:27,496
She met Dave at Dayton's.
519
00:29:28,164 --> 00:29:30,374
And he worked there too,
as a custodian,
520
00:29:30,374 --> 00:29:33,461
and she said he would come
and empty my garbage
521
00:29:33,461 --> 00:29:35,129
like 17 times.
522
00:29:35,129 --> 00:29:38,466
We only dated for two months
and then I moved to San Diego.
523
00:29:38,466 --> 00:29:40,134
He was in the Navy.
524
00:29:40,134 --> 00:29:42,595
Three months later, we eloped,
525
00:29:42,595 --> 00:29:44,263
and then three months
after that,
526
00:29:44,263 --> 00:29:46,223
I was pregnant
with our first child.
527
00:29:46,599 --> 00:29:47,808
And then, after that,
528
00:29:47,808 --> 00:29:49,060
baby was three months old,
529
00:29:49,060 --> 00:29:51,145
I got pregnant
with our second child.
530
00:29:52,229 --> 00:29:53,689
If you didn't go to college,
531
00:29:53,689 --> 00:29:55,316
then yeah, you got married.
532
00:29:55,316 --> 00:29:57,401
Seems like a rough trade-off.
533
00:29:57,401 --> 00:29:58,986
Right?
534
00:29:58,986 --> 00:30:01,864
Yeah, "Here you go.
Here's your option."
535
00:30:01,864 --> 00:30:03,949
And, just speaking
from my own experience,
536
00:30:03,949 --> 00:30:06,994
all of my high school friends
were married before I was.
537
00:30:06,994 --> 00:30:09,455
I didn't get married
till I was 25, and that was old.
538
00:30:09,455 --> 00:30:12,083
I know. Good Lord.
539
00:30:12,083 --> 00:30:15,252
These are some letters
from 1983
540
00:30:15,711 --> 00:30:19,215
when Lois was living out
in California.
541
00:30:20,049 --> 00:30:22,259
She says, "I can feel the baby
kicking and rolling around
542
00:30:22,259 --> 00:30:24,053
every minute of the day,
it seems."
543
00:30:24,053 --> 00:30:27,139
She was pregnant
with her daughter Briana.
544
00:30:28,307 --> 00:30:31,018
"He and I are having
a wonderful time together.
545
00:30:32,019 --> 00:30:34,105
We have gotten
some new furniture
546
00:30:34,105 --> 00:30:36,649
and picking things out
for the baby is great.
547
00:30:37,191 --> 00:30:40,820
It really makes two people
so much closer,
548
00:30:40,820 --> 00:30:42,905
having a baby, I mean.
549
00:30:43,739 --> 00:30:45,991
So life is great with me.
550
00:30:47,785 --> 00:30:49,995
Take care. I love you! Lois."
551
00:30:52,289 --> 00:30:55,459
It's at that point I realized
he wasn't really
552
00:30:55,459 --> 00:30:57,920
ready to settle down.
553
00:30:57,920 --> 00:30:59,213
I always had
to handle the money,
554
00:30:59,213 --> 00:31:01,048
and the chores, and the kids.
555
00:31:01,048 --> 00:31:04,051
And he just went to work
and would come home.
556
00:31:04,844 --> 00:31:06,470
He was a big thrower.
557
00:31:06,470 --> 00:31:09,056
In the beginning,
he didn't touch me physically,
558
00:31:09,056 --> 00:31:12,017
or hurt me physically.
He would throw things,
559
00:31:12,017 --> 00:31:15,855
and break things that were
important to me like pictures.
560
00:31:16,272 --> 00:31:20,151
I never really liked Dave
from the get-go.
561
00:31:21,068 --> 00:31:23,404
When I went out to visit her
in Oxnard,
562
00:31:23,404 --> 00:31:26,615
she'd asked me to come out
to help her with the babies
563
00:31:26,615 --> 00:31:29,201
while he was in Guam,
'cause he was in the Navy,
564
00:31:29,201 --> 00:31:31,495
but then the trip got canceled.
565
00:31:31,495 --> 00:31:34,457
Then it was Lois, me, Dave,
566
00:31:35,124 --> 00:31:38,502
a baby, all packed
into this little, like,
567
00:31:38,502 --> 00:31:41,547
one-bedroom townhome.
568
00:31:42,048 --> 00:31:43,841
It was Thanksgiving.
569
00:31:44,175 --> 00:31:46,177
He said I needed to leave,
570
00:31:46,177 --> 00:31:48,679
'cause his relatives
were coming over.
571
00:31:48,679 --> 00:31:51,182
And Lois didn't want
to kick me out.
572
00:31:51,182 --> 00:31:52,683
She would never have done that.
573
00:31:53,392 --> 00:31:55,770
But she would protest
up to a point,
574
00:31:55,770 --> 00:31:57,229
and then she would just stop.
575
00:31:57,605 --> 00:32:01,692
She wasn't like a brawler type.
She would just give in.
576
00:32:02,234 --> 00:32:04,487
He was just a hothead,
577
00:32:04,487 --> 00:32:07,573
kind of a bully.
He was a bully, he took over.
578
00:32:09,075 --> 00:32:12,995
But he insisted that I leave,
so I did.
579
00:32:15,081 --> 00:32:17,833
And it was pouring rain,
it wasn't just lightly raining.
580
00:32:17,833 --> 00:32:19,210
It was pouring rain.
581
00:32:19,960 --> 00:32:23,756
So they gave me a bike
and I just rode my bike
582
00:32:23,756 --> 00:32:26,550
looking for shelter.
583
00:32:26,550 --> 00:32:29,428
That was one of the worst days
of my life.
584
00:32:29,428 --> 00:32:33,265
So I only lasted about
two weeks there and then I left.
585
00:32:34,642 --> 00:32:37,395
Divorce just didn't ever seem
to be an option.
586
00:32:37,395 --> 00:32:39,355
I mean,
my parents were miserable
587
00:32:39,355 --> 00:32:42,108
my whole life growing up,
but yet they never...
588
00:32:42,608 --> 00:32:44,694
never changed anything.
589
00:32:44,694 --> 00:32:46,070
I was scared. I was alone.
590
00:32:46,070 --> 00:32:48,739
I didn't have a support system
in California.
591
00:32:48,739 --> 00:32:50,616
But when I got to Minnesota,
592
00:32:50,616 --> 00:32:52,993
it just got worse.
593
00:32:54,537 --> 00:32:58,124
Dave and the family
moved back to Rochester.
594
00:32:58,791 --> 00:33:00,209
That's when they moved
into that house
595
00:33:00,209 --> 00:33:02,294
where she had the day care.
596
00:33:03,379 --> 00:33:05,631
He had a good job
with benefits,
597
00:33:05,631 --> 00:33:07,591
and after nursing school,
598
00:33:07,591 --> 00:33:11,053
I opened up a licensed day care
and we bought our first house.
599
00:33:11,512 --> 00:33:14,390
It was very lucrative
and I found my niche.
600
00:33:18,769 --> 00:33:21,731
We're going to
the house that Dave and Lois
601
00:33:21,731 --> 00:33:24,108
lived in here in Rochester.
602
00:33:25,901 --> 00:33:28,070
This home to me
is very sentimental
603
00:33:28,070 --> 00:33:29,947
because I was
in Lois's day care
604
00:33:29,947 --> 00:33:32,241
since probably even
six weeks of age.
605
00:33:32,241 --> 00:33:35,494
She was my aunt, so there was
never a hesitation as to
606
00:33:35,494 --> 00:33:38,914
who my childcare provider
was going to be and where.
607
00:33:38,914 --> 00:33:40,499
It was my starting point
608
00:33:40,499 --> 00:33:44,170
and actually allowed my mom
to feel a lot more comfortable
609
00:33:44,170 --> 00:33:48,049
going to work knowing that she
was sending me to Lois's house.
610
00:33:48,466 --> 00:33:52,344
Just a lot of good memories made
at this house.
611
00:33:56,098 --> 00:33:57,683
When I first went to day care,
612
00:33:57,683 --> 00:33:59,018
I was about six weeks old.
613
00:33:59,643 --> 00:34:03,314
Lois took care of me
Monday through Friday, 7 to 5.
614
00:34:04,065 --> 00:34:05,649
My mom did hair, so,
615
00:34:05,649 --> 00:34:09,653
even if I had to stay
until 6 or 7, Lois accepted it.
616
00:34:09,653 --> 00:34:10,905
She didn't care.
617
00:34:10,905 --> 00:34:12,406
She just wanted
to make sure that
618
00:34:12,406 --> 00:34:15,534
everybody was taken care of
and felt like family.
619
00:34:15,910 --> 00:34:17,995
And Dave, he worked a lot.
620
00:34:17,995 --> 00:34:19,705
But he was there.
621
00:34:20,164 --> 00:34:22,541
Dave was a pretty
phenomenal man.
622
00:34:23,042 --> 00:34:25,002
And he cared about everybody.
623
00:34:25,002 --> 00:34:27,004
He had the most
contagious smile
624
00:34:27,004 --> 00:34:29,006
and you could just see
the happiness.
625
00:34:29,006 --> 00:34:30,508
You could.
626
00:34:32,343 --> 00:34:35,054
So, we are in front
of Lois and Dave's.
627
00:34:35,054 --> 00:34:38,641
This is where I personally
was born and raised
628
00:34:38,641 --> 00:34:40,476
outside of my home.
629
00:34:40,476 --> 00:34:44,063
The house looks absolutely
nothing like it did in the past.
630
00:34:44,063 --> 00:34:46,273
It looked as if
there was a day care,
631
00:34:46,273 --> 00:34:48,150
you know, a day care here.
632
00:34:50,069 --> 00:34:52,530
She always had
the meals planned.
633
00:34:52,530 --> 00:34:54,740
The second you walked
in the door,
634
00:34:54,740 --> 00:34:56,992
you knew what we were
having for lunch.
635
00:34:56,992 --> 00:34:58,828
You smelled
the blueberry muffins.
636
00:34:59,370 --> 00:35:03,541
She hand-cooked
and hand-made everything.
637
00:35:03,541 --> 00:35:06,335
So we had goulash for lunch,
we had hot dish.
638
00:35:06,335 --> 00:35:08,087
We had, you know,
not chicken nuggets
639
00:35:08,087 --> 00:35:10,256
and French fries,
like a lot of places.
640
00:35:10,256 --> 00:35:13,092
She wasn't just a typical
day care lady.
641
00:35:13,092 --> 00:35:17,388
She was a day care mom
to everybody.
642
00:35:17,388 --> 00:35:19,432
It was wonderful.
I got a lot out of it.
643
00:35:19,432 --> 00:35:20,850
I loved it. I was good at it.
644
00:35:20,850 --> 00:35:23,519
It was so great. Plus,
I was raising my own kids.
645
00:35:24,103 --> 00:35:25,354
Lois had three children,
646
00:35:25,354 --> 00:35:26,731
Bill being the oldest,
647
00:35:26,731 --> 00:35:28,190
Bria being the middle,
648
00:35:28,190 --> 00:35:30,276
and Braden being the youngest.
649
00:35:30,651 --> 00:35:34,363
Those were her pride and joy.
They were her everything.
650
00:35:36,198 --> 00:35:39,243
She loved having
all those kids around,
651
00:35:39,243 --> 00:35:41,871
babysitting and running
a day care.
652
00:35:41,871 --> 00:35:43,456
Yeah.
- Pack everybody up
653
00:35:43,456 --> 00:35:47,126
in that vehicle
and take them camping, and...
654
00:35:47,126 --> 00:35:50,463
You know,
it's the kind of thing that I--
655
00:35:50,463 --> 00:35:53,007
It's-- you try to squeeze it in
656
00:35:53,007 --> 00:35:55,092
between work
and everything else.
657
00:35:55,092 --> 00:35:57,636
And to her, I see her just as--
658
00:35:57,636 --> 00:36:00,723
"Well, yeah, let's go.
That sounds like fun."
659
00:36:00,723 --> 00:36:02,266
I'd get all hung up on,
660
00:36:02,266 --> 00:36:05,603
"Do I have the house clean?
Do I have the laundry done?"
661
00:36:06,979 --> 00:36:11,108
Knowing her as such
a really kind, loving person,
662
00:36:11,108 --> 00:36:13,027
- I mean...
- Yeah.
663
00:36:13,027 --> 00:36:15,488
- So out of character.
- Yeah.
664
00:36:15,488 --> 00:36:19,950
Norma, why do you think
that she killed her husband?
665
00:36:19,950 --> 00:36:21,285
Oh.
666
00:36:23,829 --> 00:36:24,872
Yeah.
667
00:36:26,290 --> 00:36:28,376
I'd rather bake cookies...
668
00:36:28,793 --> 00:36:32,213
...than try to figure it out.
669
00:36:33,381 --> 00:36:34,882
By the early '90s,
670
00:36:34,882 --> 00:36:37,385
David got to the point
where he couldn't hide
671
00:36:37,385 --> 00:36:39,178
his temperaments anymore.
672
00:36:39,178 --> 00:36:41,555
And then he started doing it
in front of the kids,
673
00:36:41,555 --> 00:36:45,351
and then pretty soon
it got to be pushing.
674
00:36:45,768 --> 00:36:47,019
And...
675
00:36:47,728 --> 00:36:48,729
hitting.
676
00:36:49,730 --> 00:36:52,274
I have never heard
677
00:36:52,274 --> 00:36:56,320
of physical abuse happening
in the home.
678
00:36:56,320 --> 00:36:59,573
Nobody was ever told
anything about
679
00:37:00,157 --> 00:37:01,992
domestic violence as far as
680
00:37:01,992 --> 00:37:04,745
hands-on physical abuse
in the home.
681
00:37:08,749 --> 00:37:12,002
Lois and Dave came to
Blooming Prairie from Rochester
682
00:37:12,002 --> 00:37:14,088
in 2005.
683
00:37:14,839 --> 00:37:17,883
It was about 20 years they spent
in Rochester,
684
00:37:17,883 --> 00:37:20,177
which is a long enough time
685
00:37:20,177 --> 00:37:21,512
to feel like you're home
686
00:37:21,512 --> 00:37:23,639
and that's probably
where you're gonna stay.
687
00:37:24,932 --> 00:37:27,518
Well, we had
the opportunity to buy a farm
688
00:37:27,518 --> 00:37:30,855
in Blooming Prairie
and grow wax worms.
689
00:37:31,647 --> 00:37:34,108
There was only two growers in
the United States at that point,
690
00:37:34,108 --> 00:37:35,776
so it was very lucrative.
691
00:37:36,110 --> 00:37:38,738
And, um, we moved
to Blooming Prairie.
692
00:37:39,572 --> 00:37:42,199
I knew it would be hard,
and I told all my friends,
693
00:37:42,199 --> 00:37:45,161
"It's a beautiful big house,
come on out,"
694
00:37:45,161 --> 00:37:47,288
but nobody wants
to drive that 50 minutes
695
00:37:47,288 --> 00:37:49,206
to come out and see it
because you have to drive
696
00:37:49,206 --> 00:37:52,084
that 50 minutes back,
and that's what happened.
697
00:37:52,585 --> 00:37:55,337
You know, it was very isolating
being out there.
698
00:37:56,047 --> 00:37:58,632
She restarted doing
day care in Blooming Prairie.
699
00:37:58,632 --> 00:38:01,761
And I know that she
did day care out there
700
00:38:01,761 --> 00:38:04,513
for a while,
as long as she could.
701
00:38:44,845 --> 00:38:46,764
She had then stopped
doing day care
702
00:38:46,764 --> 00:38:50,726
and then became financially
dependent upon Dave,
703
00:38:50,726 --> 00:38:53,145
and David was the breadwinner.
704
00:38:53,521 --> 00:38:55,356
He made the money.
705
00:38:56,315 --> 00:38:58,734
Having her own finances
for so long,
706
00:38:58,734 --> 00:39:01,195
and then going to being under
the control of David
707
00:39:01,195 --> 00:39:03,489
I'm sure caused some issues.
708
00:39:03,489 --> 00:39:07,618
I think taking day care
away from her was a big thing.
709
00:39:07,618 --> 00:39:09,704
That really made Lois happy.
710
00:39:11,247 --> 00:39:13,916
I was very intimidated by him.
711
00:39:15,543 --> 00:39:18,879
I didn't think I had a way out
or could defy him,
712
00:39:18,879 --> 00:39:21,048
because he was a big man,
713
00:39:21,048 --> 00:39:24,468
and he was
very, very aggressive.
714
00:39:24,468 --> 00:39:25,803
Lots of verbal abuse,
715
00:39:25,803 --> 00:39:28,639
which I feel is worse
than the physical abuse.
716
00:39:30,808 --> 00:39:33,728
Dave, he wouldn't
hold back on things.
717
00:39:33,728 --> 00:39:36,772
You know, if you took his
barstool, he'd say something.
718
00:39:36,772 --> 00:39:39,108
"Get the fuck
out of my barstool."
719
00:39:39,108 --> 00:39:41,193
He wasn't afraid.
720
00:39:41,777 --> 00:39:44,613
He'd say stuff to Lois.
He wasn't--
721
00:39:44,613 --> 00:39:47,950
In my eyes, he wasn't
really mean or anything,
722
00:39:47,950 --> 00:39:51,203
but he wasn't afraid
to stand up for himself.
723
00:39:51,954 --> 00:39:55,583
I've just heard
Dave's control was more,
724
00:39:55,583 --> 00:39:59,253
not about where she went
or what she did per se,
725
00:39:59,253 --> 00:40:02,673
but about what she spent,
or what, um,
726
00:40:02,673 --> 00:40:05,176
what she was bringing home,
things like that.
727
00:40:05,634 --> 00:40:08,721
"How much did that cost?
Where did that come from?"
728
00:40:09,346 --> 00:40:12,058
She told me recently she spent
729
00:40:12,058 --> 00:40:15,394
$3,000 on Christmas one year.
730
00:40:15,394 --> 00:40:18,773
She's so big on holidays
and the lights,
731
00:40:18,773 --> 00:40:21,901
and I can see that being
something that
732
00:40:21,901 --> 00:40:23,861
they would fight over,
you know.
733
00:40:23,861 --> 00:40:27,782
Whereas, in her mind,
it would be totally justified.
734
00:40:30,576 --> 00:40:34,121
What did you love
about the holidays
735
00:40:34,121 --> 00:40:36,457
and what did it mean to you?
736
00:41:04,360 --> 00:41:06,487
There's obviously
a strong strain
737
00:41:06,487 --> 00:41:08,114
of mental illness
in this family.
738
00:41:08,114 --> 00:41:10,658
I don't know what it is,
I can't diagnose it.
739
00:41:10,658 --> 00:41:14,412
I'm not a psychologist,
but there's something amiss
740
00:41:14,412 --> 00:41:17,415
in this family, clearly.
741
00:41:17,415 --> 00:41:21,460
Donna, the mother,
was committed in 1998
742
00:41:21,460 --> 00:41:24,714
to the state
psychiatric hospital.
743
00:41:24,714 --> 00:41:29,093
The second sister, Cindee,
had a history of violence,
744
00:41:29,760 --> 00:41:33,013
getting into fights in public
where police had to be called.
745
00:41:33,723 --> 00:41:35,975
Kim, Lois's older sister,
746
00:41:35,975 --> 00:41:39,437
she also was diagnosed
with schizophrenia
747
00:41:39,437 --> 00:41:41,063
and bipolar.
748
00:41:42,481 --> 00:41:46,152
Kimberly didn't start
to show her illness until
749
00:41:46,152 --> 00:41:47,778
late thirties,
750
00:41:47,778 --> 00:41:50,614
and, um, she was having
a hard time with it.
751
00:41:50,614 --> 00:41:53,325
And she had needed
her second kidney transplant.
752
00:41:53,325 --> 00:41:55,619
And my sister Cindee,
bless her soul,
753
00:41:55,619 --> 00:41:57,329
she gave Kim her kidney.
754
00:41:57,830 --> 00:41:59,040
And she stayed with me
755
00:41:59,040 --> 00:42:00,624
and I took care of her
for two months
756
00:42:00,624 --> 00:42:01,751
after her transplant,
757
00:42:01,751 --> 00:42:03,127
but then when she healed
from that,
758
00:42:03,127 --> 00:42:05,254
her marriage really started
to stress out.
759
00:42:05,713 --> 00:42:08,132
And she wanted
to get a divorce.
760
00:42:08,132 --> 00:42:09,759
And then to do the divorce,
761
00:42:09,759 --> 00:42:11,343
they found and they realized
762
00:42:11,343 --> 00:42:13,387
that she wasn't
competent mentally.
763
00:42:13,846 --> 00:42:16,015
How was she
not competent mentally?
764
00:42:16,015 --> 00:42:19,602
She was losing train of thought,
um...
765
00:42:20,603 --> 00:42:23,689
having problems
with her motor skills, even.
766
00:42:23,689 --> 00:42:26,901
So I became
her legal guardian.
767
00:42:28,194 --> 00:42:29,362
She was my big sister.
768
00:42:29,362 --> 00:42:31,238
She used to protect me
and Cindee
769
00:42:31,238 --> 00:42:33,366
from our mother
when she would be,
770
00:42:33,366 --> 00:42:35,576
um, we were slapped around
quite a bit,
771
00:42:35,576 --> 00:42:37,953
and Kimberly was our hero then.
772
00:42:38,245 --> 00:42:40,790
She protected us
from our mother.
773
00:42:40,790 --> 00:42:43,834
And this was my turn
to give back to her.
774
00:42:49,840 --> 00:42:52,843
What was Lois's
relationship like with Kim?
775
00:42:52,843 --> 00:42:54,887
Uh, well, when we were young,
776
00:42:54,887 --> 00:42:57,723
we would party together
and go to concerts together.
777
00:42:57,723 --> 00:43:00,017
It was very friendly and fun.
778
00:43:00,017 --> 00:43:02,978
Kim was older
and she could buy beer.
779
00:43:06,023 --> 00:43:09,527
Kim had to have a couple kidney
transplants over the years,
780
00:43:09,527 --> 00:43:12,863
and Lois would get involved
in the care.
781
00:43:12,863 --> 00:43:16,242
And then, I don't know,
Kim just started going downhill,
782
00:43:16,242 --> 00:43:20,246
and so then Lois had her living
at her house with her.
783
00:43:21,872 --> 00:43:24,417
Kimberly lived with us.
She had her own room.
784
00:43:24,417 --> 00:43:27,712
And I was able to pay myself
785
00:43:27,712 --> 00:43:29,130
to be her guardian.
786
00:43:29,130 --> 00:43:31,549
Lois told me she was
787
00:43:31,549 --> 00:43:34,051
spending $1,200
a month of Kim's money.
788
00:43:34,051 --> 00:43:37,138
She was giving it to herself
to cover her expenses,
789
00:43:37,138 --> 00:43:40,933
because she was driving up
to the cities a lot
790
00:43:40,933 --> 00:43:44,103
for doctor's appointments
and she was using a lot of gas.
791
00:43:44,103 --> 00:43:45,896
And whatever else.
792
00:43:47,023 --> 00:43:49,608
It was a lot to have
someone under
793
00:43:49,608 --> 00:43:51,819
your feet every single day.
794
00:43:51,819 --> 00:43:53,654
I remember,
in our brand-new house,
795
00:43:53,654 --> 00:43:56,824
I'd let her take a bath,
and I was downstairs,
796
00:43:56,824 --> 00:43:59,493
'cause they were remodeling
and doing our basement.
797
00:43:59,493 --> 00:44:01,245
And water was leaking
through the ceiling.
798
00:44:01,245 --> 00:44:04,415
She was sitting in the bathtub
with the water running
799
00:44:04,415 --> 00:44:07,501
all over the main level,
seeping through.
800
00:44:07,501 --> 00:44:09,795
That's how out of it she was.
801
00:44:11,547 --> 00:44:13,049
And it was just like
having a child,
802
00:44:13,049 --> 00:44:15,092
because I'd have to prepare
her meals,
803
00:44:15,092 --> 00:44:17,845
and help her
with her hygiene, even.
804
00:44:19,138 --> 00:44:20,931
I don't think she
liked it that much.
805
00:44:20,931 --> 00:44:23,517
It was-it was okay,
but it was a burden.
806
00:44:23,517 --> 00:44:26,395
Lois told me
that Kim wasn't very nice,
807
00:44:26,395 --> 00:44:29,398
and she doesn't feel
like she got much credit for it.
808
00:44:32,234 --> 00:44:35,946
Kim would call David
out here and there,
809
00:44:35,946 --> 00:44:39,075
on his mood or his attitude,
or his demeanor towards Lois.
810
00:44:39,075 --> 00:44:43,662
And I don't think
he was very happy about that.
811
00:44:44,413 --> 00:44:47,792
Lois told me that he wanted Lois
to cater to him,
812
00:44:47,792 --> 00:44:50,628
so she was spending time
taking care of Kim.
813
00:44:50,628 --> 00:44:53,798
That took away
from the time she was
814
00:44:53,798 --> 00:44:55,758
taking care of him, so...
815
00:44:56,342 --> 00:44:59,762
Kimberly had things fly
right in front of her face
816
00:44:59,762 --> 00:45:01,597
that he was throwing at me.
817
00:45:02,139 --> 00:45:06,143
And she-she just said "You
just-- You should leave.
818
00:45:06,143 --> 00:45:08,938
This is just not like you
to put up with that crap."
819
00:45:09,438 --> 00:45:11,899
But you know what?
You look strong for everybody,
820
00:45:11,899 --> 00:45:15,319
because it's what
I was taught to do.
821
00:45:15,319 --> 00:45:17,738
David put his foot down one day.
822
00:45:17,738 --> 00:45:20,449
We were in our bedroom getting
ready for bed,
823
00:45:20,449 --> 00:45:23,077
and he had been out,
and he was giggling, laughing,
824
00:45:23,077 --> 00:45:25,037
and it was--
we were just talking loudly,
825
00:45:25,037 --> 00:45:27,331
and she had, like,
she was really mad
826
00:45:27,331 --> 00:45:28,958
that we were laughing loudly.
827
00:45:28,958 --> 00:45:31,043
And he said that's...
"Enough's enough."
828
00:45:31,043 --> 00:45:34,797
So I found a really nice
assisted living place for her,
829
00:45:34,797 --> 00:45:37,299
and helped get her
put into that.
830
00:45:38,092 --> 00:45:39,760
She had a lot
on her plate.
831
00:45:39,760 --> 00:45:41,846
She was taking care of Kim,
832
00:45:41,846 --> 00:45:44,724
she cared for her dad,
and she checked up on him,
833
00:45:44,724 --> 00:45:47,309
and made sure
he was in a proper home.
834
00:45:47,309 --> 00:45:51,480
Her brother Bob had
had a bad motorcycle accident
835
00:45:51,480 --> 00:45:55,192
and broke his back, and Lois
had to help take care of him.
836
00:45:55,192 --> 00:45:57,445
Bobby,
one of my older brothers,
837
00:45:57,445 --> 00:46:00,239
he's been paralyzed
since he was a young man.
838
00:46:00,698 --> 00:46:03,200
He also was having
mental health issues
839
00:46:03,200 --> 00:46:05,036
and a lot of depression,
840
00:46:05,036 --> 00:46:08,539
and so I helped sell his house,
841
00:46:08,539 --> 00:46:12,043
and moved him into an assisted
living very close to Kimberly's.
842
00:46:12,043 --> 00:46:15,421
And it was both in a town called
Owatonna, close to me,
843
00:46:15,421 --> 00:46:16,964
so I could take care of him.
844
00:46:16,964 --> 00:46:19,884
Lois definitely forgot
what it was like
845
00:46:19,884 --> 00:46:21,594
to take care of herself.
846
00:46:22,094 --> 00:46:25,014
She didn't think about herself
in anything.
847
00:46:26,098 --> 00:46:28,476
She was the most selfless
person.
848
00:46:29,643 --> 00:46:32,813
I think I was going
into my own depression
849
00:46:32,813 --> 00:46:34,565
at that point.
850
00:46:34,565 --> 00:46:36,233
Menopause was hitting.
851
00:46:36,233 --> 00:46:39,862
I had all these people
I was taking care of,
852
00:46:39,862 --> 00:46:41,906
and I wasn't getting
any support,
853
00:46:41,906 --> 00:46:45,242
and the only thing
that made me feel good was...
854
00:46:45,785 --> 00:46:46,744
gambling.
855
00:47:18,609 --> 00:47:22,029
She played a lot of slot
machines, from what I heard.
856
00:47:22,029 --> 00:47:26,450
I don't gamble, so,
wasn't involved in any of that.
857
00:47:27,243 --> 00:47:30,121
I think their casino of choice
was Diamond Jo's
858
00:47:30,121 --> 00:47:32,623
right across the Iowa border.
859
00:47:32,623 --> 00:47:34,625
I've only driven by it.
860
00:47:34,625 --> 00:47:36,293
They've got a silo there
861
00:47:36,293 --> 00:47:38,796
and it kind of looks
like a barn.
862
00:47:39,171 --> 00:47:40,923
Inside, I hear it's very nice.
863
00:47:40,923 --> 00:47:43,050
Never been in there myself,
but...
864
00:47:43,342 --> 00:47:45,845
Did you ever go
to Diamond Jo's with them?
865
00:47:45,845 --> 00:47:48,764
- Yeah. Mm-hmm.
What was it like?
866
00:47:48,764 --> 00:47:50,015
Normal.
867
00:47:50,015 --> 00:47:52,393
Uh, Dave wasn't a big gambler.
868
00:47:52,393 --> 00:47:54,395
Uh, Lois was.
869
00:47:54,979 --> 00:47:57,606
What do you think
Lois loved about gambling?
870
00:47:57,606 --> 00:48:00,443
Kind of the high
you got from it.
871
00:48:00,443 --> 00:48:04,405
The high you got when you won
and you were successful.
872
00:48:04,405 --> 00:48:09,035
That self-security of being
able to know that...
873
00:48:09,702 --> 00:48:11,704
"If I win, I have my own money."
874
00:48:12,663 --> 00:48:14,540
And so all of this was just,
875
00:48:14,540 --> 00:48:17,334
I don't know if in her eyes,
her self-care.
876
00:48:17,334 --> 00:48:20,254
"This is what I do for me.
This is what I like."
877
00:48:22,673 --> 00:48:26,802
I once heard a gambler
describe it like this.
878
00:48:27,261 --> 00:48:31,265
Walking into that casino
and hearing those sounds
879
00:48:31,265 --> 00:48:35,519
is very much like
watching your child
880
00:48:35,519 --> 00:48:39,315
on Christmas Day morning
being so excited,
881
00:48:39,315 --> 00:48:42,026
and everything around them
is wonderful.
882
00:48:42,026 --> 00:48:44,070
And there are no problems,
883
00:48:44,070 --> 00:48:47,031
and all of my cares go away.
884
00:48:47,698 --> 00:48:49,575
And that's what hooks them.
885
00:48:50,409 --> 00:48:53,454
The unhappy marriage,
the financial problems.
886
00:48:53,454 --> 00:48:55,373
Everything else
kind of disappears,
887
00:48:55,373 --> 00:48:57,208
all the stress
and worry of the world
888
00:48:57,208 --> 00:48:59,293
because you're
in this trance-like state.
889
00:48:59,794 --> 00:49:03,381
Some people turn to alcohol,
some people turn to other drugs.
890
00:49:03,381 --> 00:49:05,049
Some people turn to sex,
891
00:49:05,049 --> 00:49:07,718
some people
go to play the slots
892
00:49:07,718 --> 00:49:09,595
to find that escape.
893
00:49:11,639 --> 00:49:14,433
She would be
in the high stakes room.
894
00:49:14,767 --> 00:49:16,268
That was her thing.
895
00:49:17,228 --> 00:49:18,896
We're playing for pennies,
896
00:49:18,896 --> 00:49:21,065
and nickels
and dollars out here,
897
00:49:21,065 --> 00:49:23,401
but they'll have
kind of a special room where
898
00:49:23,401 --> 00:49:26,779
there are higher currency
machines.
899
00:49:27,196 --> 00:49:31,075
$10, $20, $50, $100.
900
00:49:32,118 --> 00:49:34,453
I think Lois spent
a lot of time there.
901
00:49:36,205 --> 00:49:40,084
Yeah, real easy to get
in trouble in those rooms.
902
00:49:42,586 --> 00:49:45,756
When a gambler
gets into action,
903
00:49:45,756 --> 00:49:47,883
it is very much like
904
00:49:47,883 --> 00:49:51,262
a heroin addict
shooting up heroin.
905
00:49:51,262 --> 00:49:54,014
It's that initial
dopamine drive.
906
00:49:54,014 --> 00:49:58,561
And they will continue
to chase that win
907
00:49:58,561 --> 00:50:01,022
until there's no more left.
908
00:50:06,193 --> 00:50:08,738
My dad had got sick.
909
00:50:09,530 --> 00:50:13,826
And so I was taking care
of Kim, Bob, and then my dad,
910
00:50:13,826 --> 00:50:16,620
and became his healthcare
directive,
911
00:50:16,620 --> 00:50:20,833
and his power of attorney,
and I was by his bedside when
912
00:50:20,833 --> 00:50:22,585
he said, "Loie, do your job.
913
00:50:22,585 --> 00:50:25,129
Enough's enough. I don't want
any more surgeries."
914
00:50:25,129 --> 00:50:28,090
And he died shortly after that.
915
00:50:28,090 --> 00:50:29,425
Then I had to go to the bank
916
00:50:29,425 --> 00:50:31,552
and talk with
his trust officers.
917
00:50:32,136 --> 00:50:33,971
And my father had
918
00:50:33,971 --> 00:50:36,307
set up everything
by percentages.
919
00:50:36,307 --> 00:50:39,143
Each child
got a different percentage,
920
00:50:40,978 --> 00:50:43,356
in his eyes,
how he valued them.
921
00:50:50,863 --> 00:50:54,325
This is the Last Will
and Testament
922
00:50:54,325 --> 00:50:56,786
of William Witte,
who was Lois's dad.
923
00:50:56,786 --> 00:50:59,121
And it outlines
924
00:50:59,121 --> 00:51:04,001
everything that he is hoping
to give to them.
925
00:51:04,001 --> 00:51:06,796
There are some
handwritten notes here
926
00:51:06,796 --> 00:51:10,174
for Kim to get 25%
of his estate.
927
00:51:10,174 --> 00:51:13,010
Bob gets 25% as well.
928
00:51:13,010 --> 00:51:15,721
Cindee gets 25%, plus a house.
929
00:51:15,721 --> 00:51:19,350
And then 15% to Lois.
930
00:51:19,350 --> 00:51:23,187
Lois often talked about
her upcoming inheritance
931
00:51:23,187 --> 00:51:25,398
in the last ten or 20 years
when I would talk to her
932
00:51:25,398 --> 00:51:27,608
on the phone,
she would talk about it.
933
00:51:28,067 --> 00:51:29,860
That it was coming
and she didn't know
934
00:51:29,860 --> 00:51:33,030
how much she was gonna get,
but I think it was like,
935
00:51:33,030 --> 00:51:34,907
she's like,
"I'm gonna be rich."
936
00:51:34,907 --> 00:51:37,326
Or, like,
"I'm gonna finally have
937
00:51:37,326 --> 00:51:41,622
what I deserved for all
the work I did for my family."
938
00:51:42,540 --> 00:51:47,753
And then, in the end,
she found out she got 15%.
939
00:51:49,338 --> 00:51:51,424
I know she was stunned.
940
00:51:52,675 --> 00:51:56,095
It hurts to say
someone got, you know,
941
00:51:56,554 --> 00:51:59,890
a couple of houses
and I got a garage.
942
00:51:59,890 --> 00:52:04,937
It hurts when you're doing all
the caring and the nurturing,
943
00:52:05,563 --> 00:52:07,189
and it kind of hurt, it hurt.
944
00:52:07,189 --> 00:52:08,858
How much was it?
945
00:52:08,858 --> 00:52:11,277
Oh, it was a few
hundred thousand.
946
00:52:11,736 --> 00:52:13,070
It wasn't, you know,
947
00:52:13,070 --> 00:52:16,574
that's a lot
to some people, but...
948
00:52:17,074 --> 00:52:19,243
I bought David a car with that,
949
00:52:19,243 --> 00:52:23,372
I bought a skid loader.
I bought...
950
00:52:23,706 --> 00:52:26,959
I gifted my children
some money and...
951
00:52:27,835 --> 00:52:30,838
got lots of fancy things
for my fancy house.
952
00:52:31,505 --> 00:52:34,467
Lois got some money
from her father, whatever.
953
00:52:35,009 --> 00:52:37,303
I remember one time
954
00:52:38,429 --> 00:52:41,015
Dave wanted to buy a trailer
or something I had,
955
00:52:41,015 --> 00:52:43,601
and I said, "Yeah,
here's what you owe me."
956
00:52:43,601 --> 00:52:45,394
He said,
"I gotta go to the bank."
957
00:52:45,394 --> 00:52:48,314
"How long is that gonna be?"
He says, "No, the bank of Lois."
958
00:53:07,750 --> 00:53:11,629
Dave got one of those
big, fancy fishing boats.
959
00:53:12,338 --> 00:53:15,007
Dave had
a really nice boat.
960
00:53:15,007 --> 00:53:17,218
It was like metal flake,
961
00:53:17,218 --> 00:53:19,261
red and white.
962
00:53:19,261 --> 00:53:20,846
It was a beautiful boat.
963
00:53:20,846 --> 00:53:25,017
You know, it was, I don't know,
$40,000 or something like that.
964
00:53:25,017 --> 00:53:26,727
And then all the toys
that they had.
965
00:53:26,727 --> 00:53:30,189
You know, the snowmobiles
and the four-wheelers.
966
00:53:30,189 --> 00:53:31,482
She was very proud
967
00:53:31,482 --> 00:53:34,860
of the Cadillac Escalade
that they had.
968
00:53:36,153 --> 00:53:37,988
Dad never gave us
much money
969
00:53:37,988 --> 00:53:39,740
when we were young,
970
00:53:40,116 --> 00:53:41,575
which gave us a good work ethic.
971
00:53:41,575 --> 00:53:44,495
I have a very good work ethic,
thanks to my father.
972
00:53:44,870 --> 00:53:46,414
But it was...
973
00:53:47,581 --> 00:53:49,917
I wanted to get rid of it.
It felt like dirty money.
974
00:53:49,917 --> 00:53:53,295
I don't know whether that was
because I was angry or...
975
00:53:53,879 --> 00:53:55,339
or what, but,
976
00:53:55,339 --> 00:53:59,343
it's just that it was held
over our heads our entire life.
977
00:53:59,343 --> 00:54:01,303
If you're giving
somebody who is severely
978
00:54:01,303 --> 00:54:03,013
addicted to methamphetamine
979
00:54:03,013 --> 00:54:05,599
or heroin thousands of dollars,
980
00:54:05,599 --> 00:54:07,810
chances are they're not gonna
put it in the bank and save it.
981
00:54:07,810 --> 00:54:11,147
They're gonna spend it on
what feeds their high.
982
00:54:11,147 --> 00:54:13,858
And that's what Lois did.
983
00:54:14,900 --> 00:54:18,446
When a gambler sits down
at a slot machine,
984
00:54:18,779 --> 00:54:22,158
their focus is 100%
985
00:54:22,158 --> 00:54:23,659
on "Will I win?"
986
00:54:23,659 --> 00:54:26,037
"Can I win?"
"How can I win?"
987
00:54:26,037 --> 00:54:29,999
They don't feel, they don't
see anything around them.
988
00:54:29,999 --> 00:54:31,792
They are 100% focused
989
00:54:31,792 --> 00:54:35,379
to the degree,
that at some point,
990
00:54:35,379 --> 00:54:38,299
they may not even get up
to go to the bathroom.
991
00:55:12,124 --> 00:55:13,417
Do you have any idea
992
00:55:13,417 --> 00:55:15,628
how much you think
she gambled away?
993
00:55:15,628 --> 00:55:17,338
I have no idea.
994
00:55:17,338 --> 00:55:19,465
But let's just say thousands.
995
00:55:19,465 --> 00:55:23,094
Let's say more than tens
of thousands.
996
00:55:24,387 --> 00:55:28,682
Lois went through
all of her inheritance
997
00:55:28,682 --> 00:55:31,602
through spending
and mostly through gambling.
998
00:55:31,602 --> 00:55:35,606
When she eliminated all of hers,
999
00:55:35,606 --> 00:55:37,400
she needed to look around,
1000
00:55:37,400 --> 00:55:39,777
and once again,
develop that plan.
1001
00:55:40,611 --> 00:55:43,114
And now she's got access
1002
00:55:43,114 --> 00:55:44,782
to all of Kim's inheritance
1003
00:55:44,782 --> 00:55:46,909
and anything else
she might have.
1004
00:55:47,993 --> 00:55:52,707
I think she may have
resented Kim.
1005
00:55:53,165 --> 00:55:56,293
She knew how much Kim got.
I think Kim got, like,
1006
00:55:56,293 --> 00:55:59,130
way more money than Lois did.
1007
00:55:59,130 --> 00:56:01,465
Kim had about $200,000
1008
00:56:01,465 --> 00:56:03,968
from their father
when he passed away.
1009
00:56:03,968 --> 00:56:05,261
There was social security.
1010
00:56:05,261 --> 00:56:08,180
There was alimony
from her divorce.
1011
00:56:08,639 --> 00:56:11,475
And it took about a year
and a half to two years
1012
00:56:11,475 --> 00:56:13,144
for them to say, "Wait a minute,
1013
00:56:13,144 --> 00:56:14,729
there's something
going on here."
1014
00:56:14,729 --> 00:56:18,983
And then for them to find out
that she was actually
1015
00:56:18,983 --> 00:56:21,569
stealing funds from her sister.
1016
00:56:22,403 --> 00:56:24,572
What was it like
when the court told you
1017
00:56:24,572 --> 00:56:26,240
that they were investigating
missing funds
1018
00:56:26,240 --> 00:56:27,783
from Kim's account?
1019
00:56:28,284 --> 00:56:30,995
Well, that was difficult because
1020
00:56:31,370 --> 00:56:34,165
Kim started to complain a lot,
1021
00:56:34,165 --> 00:56:38,377
and the doctor said
"That's natural, it's normal.
1022
00:56:38,377 --> 00:56:39,962
And with this illness,
1023
00:56:39,962 --> 00:56:43,883
you're her only person,
and she's going to defy you."
1024
00:56:43,883 --> 00:56:46,510
And so,
I was investigated constantly,
1025
00:56:46,510 --> 00:56:48,220
and they were all
null and void.
1026
00:56:48,220 --> 00:56:51,891
The state doesn't mess around.
They check you out thoroughly.
1027
00:56:55,978 --> 00:56:59,315
This is an affidavit of
1028
00:56:59,315 --> 00:57:01,692
an adult protection
social worker,
1029
00:57:01,692 --> 00:57:03,569
and these were the folks who,
1030
00:57:03,569 --> 00:57:06,364
when there are concerns
or thoughts
1031
00:57:06,364 --> 00:57:09,325
about vulnerable adult
financial exploitation,
1032
00:57:09,325 --> 00:57:12,370
they step in
and start the case.
1033
00:57:16,123 --> 00:57:20,628
This woman is looking
at Lois's activity
1034
00:57:20,628 --> 00:57:23,714
in regards to
her sister Kim's account,
1035
00:57:23,714 --> 00:57:26,926
and it talks about
a withdrawal of $20,000
1036
00:57:26,926 --> 00:57:30,554
from her sister Kim's account
into Lois's own account.
1037
00:57:30,554 --> 00:57:33,015
And then Lois wrote a check
1038
00:57:33,015 --> 00:57:38,104
for $20,000 to someone
who is "thought to be her son."
1039
00:57:38,604 --> 00:57:41,023
Kim got to be too much,
1040
00:57:41,023 --> 00:57:44,402
but, like I said,
I got paid for doing that.
1041
00:57:44,985 --> 00:57:48,656
So I started paying myself
not correctly.
1042
00:57:49,407 --> 00:57:52,034
Like if I was going
to the casino,
1043
00:57:52,034 --> 00:57:53,411
instead of sitting down
1044
00:57:53,411 --> 00:57:55,329
and going to the bank
and taking it out,
1045
00:57:55,329 --> 00:57:57,039
I'd just take it out there,
1046
00:57:57,039 --> 00:57:58,916
but I would turn it all in
1047
00:57:58,916 --> 00:58:00,584
to the lawyer,
and the lawyer said,
1048
00:58:00,584 --> 00:58:02,628
"You probably shouldn't be
paying yourself
1049
00:58:02,628 --> 00:58:05,089
at the casino
with the cash card."
1050
00:58:05,089 --> 00:58:07,967
And so, it was still legitimate.
1051
00:58:08,968 --> 00:58:10,428
This part
of the affidavit says,
1052
00:58:10,428 --> 00:58:12,138
"Kimberly Sanchez reports
1053
00:58:12,138 --> 00:58:13,389
that she did not
give permission
1054
00:58:13,389 --> 00:58:15,141
for her money to be spent
1055
00:58:15,141 --> 00:58:16,934
at the Diamond Jo Casino
1056
00:58:16,934 --> 00:58:19,103
on April 13th, 2015,
1057
00:58:19,103 --> 00:58:23,149
in the amount of $3,087.99."
1058
00:58:23,566 --> 00:58:26,569
She also stated
that on June 22nd, 2015,
1059
00:58:26,569 --> 00:58:30,281
there was a check written
for $8,000 that was moved.
1060
00:58:30,865 --> 00:58:33,325
Kimberly Sanchez
did not approve of that.
1061
00:58:34,952 --> 00:58:38,748
I did gift each child,
I gifted money
1062
00:58:38,748 --> 00:58:44,462
because you're able
to disperse $15,000 legally.
1063
00:58:44,462 --> 00:58:46,714
But it was Kim's.
- But it was Kim's money.
1064
00:58:47,006 --> 00:58:49,550
But she always used to do that, though.
1065
00:58:49,550 --> 00:58:52,887
Kim was a giver.
She never could have children.
1066
00:58:52,887 --> 00:58:54,972
My children were
her surrogate children
1067
00:58:54,972 --> 00:58:58,100
and she always gifted very nice,
very generously.
1068
00:58:58,100 --> 00:59:00,728
But I do know that was brought
to my attention
1069
00:59:00,728 --> 00:59:02,313
and that was wrong.
1070
00:59:02,313 --> 00:59:05,524
A check that written
to Lois's daughter for $5,000,
1071
00:59:05,524 --> 00:59:08,069
Kimberly Sanchez did not give
permission for.
1072
00:59:08,069 --> 00:59:11,072
Another check
in the amount of $5,000
1073
00:59:11,072 --> 00:59:13,699
to her son Braden,
1074
00:59:13,699 --> 00:59:16,744
Kimberly Sanchez
did not give permission for.
1075
00:59:17,161 --> 00:59:18,621
So all these were all--
1076
00:59:18,621 --> 00:59:20,831
they went right down the line.
There was not--
1077
00:59:20,831 --> 00:59:22,792
there was not a way that Lois
was gonna say,
1078
00:59:22,792 --> 00:59:25,002
"Yeah, she told me
I could do some things."
1079
00:59:25,002 --> 00:59:26,921
"She maybe didn't
tell me these but..."
1080
00:59:26,921 --> 00:59:30,966
But they asked her every one
of them and Kim said no.
1081
00:59:32,968 --> 00:59:36,305
I don't think that
Lois would have done it
1082
00:59:36,305 --> 00:59:38,015
intentionally in a way
1083
00:59:38,015 --> 00:59:41,310
that she knew she was
putting Kim in harm's way.
1084
00:59:42,686 --> 00:59:44,980
I think she did it
with intentions of,
1085
00:59:44,980 --> 00:59:46,857
"It's here,
I have a lot of money."
1086
00:59:46,857 --> 00:59:50,486
"I can spend some
and try to make it back and...
1087
00:59:50,486 --> 00:59:53,280
fill the voids
and nobody's gonna know."
1088
00:59:54,407 --> 00:59:57,702
She clearly didn't present
any sort of documentation
1089
00:59:57,702 --> 00:59:59,745
that said what she was doing
was legal
1090
00:59:59,745 --> 01:00:01,747
despite her claim.
1091
01:00:01,747 --> 01:00:04,291
And so, Lois is on the hook.
1092
01:00:07,878 --> 01:00:10,089
The town of Blooming
Prairie starting hearing about
1093
01:00:10,089 --> 01:00:13,259
Lois embezzling money
from her sister, Kim.
1094
01:00:13,634 --> 01:00:14,927
It's just unbelievable
1095
01:00:14,927 --> 01:00:17,930
that somebody from town
would do that.
1096
01:00:19,348 --> 01:00:21,267
When Lois got caught,
1097
01:00:21,267 --> 01:00:23,060
she had to face reality
1098
01:00:23,060 --> 01:00:25,730
of all of her friends
and family
1099
01:00:25,730 --> 01:00:30,526
knowing that she
would actually steal
1100
01:00:31,110 --> 01:00:34,196
from her sister who was unable
to take care of herself.
1101
01:00:34,196 --> 01:00:36,699
And that was more
than Lois could take.
1102
01:00:38,951 --> 01:00:41,579
For the first and only time
I've ever thought
1103
01:00:41,579 --> 01:00:44,790
about taking my life,
I had a suicide attempt.
1104
01:00:44,790 --> 01:00:49,962
And it was successful
because apparently I had died.
1105
01:00:51,964 --> 01:00:53,716
The way I understood it,
1106
01:00:53,716 --> 01:00:56,844
Lois, I think she took
a bunch of pills.
1107
01:00:58,804 --> 01:01:01,474
Dave came home
and there she was
1108
01:01:01,474 --> 01:01:02,933
sitting on the couch,
1109
01:01:02,933 --> 01:01:06,562
either blue or green,
or about done for.
1110
01:01:07,021 --> 01:01:10,316
Apparently she had overdosed
on some medication she'd taken,
1111
01:01:10,316 --> 01:01:12,777
and she'd left a suicide note.
1112
01:01:12,777 --> 01:01:17,698
And he called 911
and the paramedics came.
1113
01:01:17,698 --> 01:01:20,910
He performed CPR on me
until they came.
1114
01:01:20,910 --> 01:01:23,662
And the helicopter came,
1115
01:01:23,662 --> 01:01:26,540
and I woke up on life support.
1116
01:01:27,792 --> 01:01:30,461
The Mayo One
medevac helicopter
1117
01:01:30,461 --> 01:01:33,506
came and landed right next to
Lois and Dave's house.
1118
01:01:34,215 --> 01:01:37,259
Of course, in Blooming Prairie,
that's a big thing.
1119
01:01:37,259 --> 01:01:40,012
Mayo One came
to Blooming Prairie.
1120
01:01:41,389 --> 01:01:42,973
It was wildfire around town.
1121
01:01:42,973 --> 01:01:45,893
Everybody's talking about Lois
had tried to commit suicide
1122
01:01:45,893 --> 01:01:48,521
and what was going on out there.
1123
01:01:49,522 --> 01:01:51,440
I know that she spent
some time at Generose,
1124
01:01:51,440 --> 01:01:54,485
the mental health hospital
here in Mayo Clinic.
1125
01:01:54,485 --> 01:01:56,487
I tried to create
a care package
1126
01:01:56,487 --> 01:01:59,365
to bring up to her when
she was still in the hospital.
1127
01:02:00,324 --> 01:02:01,909
But no, it wasn't really...
1128
01:02:02,660 --> 01:02:04,870
- It was hushed.
Why?
1129
01:02:05,955 --> 01:02:07,373
I don't know
if it was something that
1130
01:02:07,373 --> 01:02:09,375
Lois herself was ashamed of it
1131
01:02:09,375 --> 01:02:11,168
and didn't want people to know.
1132
01:02:51,917 --> 01:02:54,879
Gambling is by far
the highest rate
1133
01:02:54,879 --> 01:02:57,339
of suicide
in any addiction there is.
1134
01:02:58,090 --> 01:02:59,717
Why do you think that is?
1135
01:02:59,717 --> 01:03:01,969
Because of the severe guilt
and shame
1136
01:03:01,969 --> 01:03:04,346
that's associated with it.
1137
01:03:05,890 --> 01:03:08,851
When someone ingests
alcohol or drugs,
1138
01:03:08,851 --> 01:03:10,895
we as the outsider
1139
01:03:10,895 --> 01:03:14,190
still can use that
as an excuse.
1140
01:03:14,774 --> 01:03:16,817
When you're not ingesting
anything,
1141
01:03:16,817 --> 01:03:18,903
what do you use as the excuse?
1142
01:03:19,320 --> 01:03:20,946
There isn't anything.
1143
01:03:22,239 --> 01:03:24,408
She was treated
for almost two weeks
1144
01:03:24,408 --> 01:03:27,203
and then came home
shortly before Christmas.
1145
01:03:28,537 --> 01:03:30,915
I don't know for sure
what mental illness
1146
01:03:30,915 --> 01:03:32,666
she struggled from.
1147
01:03:33,084 --> 01:03:35,795
I would definitely guess
some depression,
1148
01:03:35,795 --> 01:03:37,755
maybe some bipolar.
1149
01:03:38,172 --> 01:03:42,051
But I don't know 100%.
I never dug deep into it.
1150
01:03:43,135 --> 01:03:44,720
There's a tremendous stigma
1151
01:03:44,720 --> 01:03:46,847
with suicide and mental health
1152
01:03:46,847 --> 01:03:48,933
in smaller communities.
1153
01:03:48,933 --> 01:03:52,103
You know, I think it's been
such a taboo subject
1154
01:03:52,103 --> 01:03:54,772
for so many years that people
don't want to talk about it
1155
01:03:54,772 --> 01:03:55,773
and deal with it.
1156
01:03:55,773 --> 01:03:57,400
She didn't really give any
1157
01:03:57,400 --> 01:03:59,652
true indications to anybody,
1158
01:03:59,652 --> 01:04:02,238
you know, around her that,
1159
01:04:02,738 --> 01:04:05,658
you know,
she was battling these demons.
1160
01:04:10,705 --> 01:04:12,748
In early 2016,
she was removed
1161
01:04:12,748 --> 01:04:14,959
as guardian,
and her conservatorship
1162
01:04:14,959 --> 01:04:17,044
was ended by the courts.
1163
01:04:18,379 --> 01:04:20,756
According
to the court documents,
1164
01:04:20,756 --> 01:04:24,468
during her time
as a caregiver to Kim,
1165
01:04:24,468 --> 01:04:28,639
she took about $50,000
that didn't belong to her
1166
01:04:28,639 --> 01:04:30,599
that was Kim's money.
1167
01:04:32,101 --> 01:04:34,145
Kim had inherited
1168
01:04:34,145 --> 01:04:36,814
from her father
about $200,000.
1169
01:04:36,814 --> 01:04:39,734
So when you think about
Lois helping herself
1170
01:04:39,734 --> 01:04:41,902
to a quarter of that,
1171
01:04:41,902 --> 01:04:44,363
that's not a little number.
1172
01:04:45,823 --> 01:04:47,950
I was found to
1173
01:04:47,950 --> 01:04:50,745
probably mishandle about
thirty-some thousand dollars.
1174
01:04:50,745 --> 01:04:53,247
$37,000, so they said,
1175
01:04:53,247 --> 01:04:56,208
"We see that you've been
doing it. We kind of understand
1176
01:04:56,208 --> 01:04:58,335
why it was mishandled,
so just pay it back."
1177
01:04:58,335 --> 01:05:02,548
The court ordered
that she repay Kim $58,000.
1178
01:05:02,548 --> 01:05:06,135
So to offset $20,000 of that,
1179
01:05:06,135 --> 01:05:09,513
Lois was going to give Kim
1180
01:05:09,513 --> 01:05:12,892
two lots in the cemetery
1181
01:05:12,892 --> 01:05:17,271
that were expected
to total $20,000.
1182
01:05:17,271 --> 01:05:20,524
Then she was to write a check,
reimburse her
1183
01:05:20,524 --> 01:05:22,276
the remaining $38,000.
1184
01:05:22,276 --> 01:05:25,946
And so, she did that,
transferred the property,
1185
01:05:25,946 --> 01:05:27,573
or the cemetery lots,
1186
01:05:27,573 --> 01:05:30,451
wrote a check for $38,000,
1187
01:05:30,451 --> 01:05:32,370
which promptly bounced.
1188
01:05:33,579 --> 01:05:35,247
After the check bounced,
1189
01:05:35,247 --> 01:05:38,167
and I have to believe that
Lois knew it would bounce,
1190
01:05:38,167 --> 01:05:42,088
she disappeared and was...
1191
01:05:42,922 --> 01:05:45,257
I guess for lack
of a better term, missing.
1192
01:05:47,426 --> 01:05:49,887
And it was, I guess, dramatic,
1193
01:05:49,887 --> 01:05:52,014
or important enough
1194
01:05:52,014 --> 01:05:56,310
that Dave reported her missing
to law enforcement.
1195
01:05:57,061 --> 01:05:59,105
She had taken with her
her medications,
1196
01:05:59,105 --> 01:06:00,606
and food and water.
1197
01:06:00,606 --> 01:06:02,900
Dave was worried that
she might be a suicide risk
1198
01:06:02,900 --> 01:06:04,902
because she'd
attempted suicide before.
1199
01:06:04,902 --> 01:06:06,570
But that time,
she'd left a note.
1200
01:06:06,570 --> 01:06:07,947
This time, she didn't.
1201
01:06:08,739 --> 01:06:11,325
She told me she was trying
to get away from Dave.
1202
01:06:11,325 --> 01:06:14,412
I'm pretty sure she told me that
one way or the other.
1203
01:06:14,870 --> 01:06:17,832
And she needed somewhere
to go for a week,
1204
01:06:17,832 --> 01:06:20,793
and the cabin happened
to be open,
1205
01:06:20,793 --> 01:06:22,712
and Stacia, my daughter,
had been wanting
1206
01:06:22,712 --> 01:06:24,130
to go to the cabin.
1207
01:06:24,130 --> 01:06:27,591
And I-- and I have a hard time
getting away
1208
01:06:27,591 --> 01:06:29,927
to go to the cabin,
so I thought, "Oh, perfect."
1209
01:06:29,927 --> 01:06:33,556
And so the two of them
decided to go.
1210
01:06:34,974 --> 01:06:36,434
Okay.
1211
01:06:37,518 --> 01:06:38,936
Watch. Stare at it.
1212
01:06:39,478 --> 01:06:42,565
Can I plug my ears?
1213
01:06:45,401 --> 01:06:47,778
Did you see it?
No.
1214
01:06:47,778 --> 01:06:49,280
It was beautiful!
1215
01:06:49,280 --> 01:06:51,323
Too fucking busy
ducking. Jesus.
1216
01:06:51,323 --> 01:06:53,617
Oh my God.
It was beautiful.
1217
01:06:54,577 --> 01:06:58,164
As it turned out,
she called a few days later,
1218
01:06:58,164 --> 01:07:00,541
and all was well.
She was just visiting a friend.
1219
01:07:00,541 --> 01:07:04,003
There was nothing nefarious
going on, but that was
1220
01:07:04,712 --> 01:07:08,466
just sort of a little precursor
of the drama
1221
01:07:08,466 --> 01:07:12,011
that is now, I think,
beginning to develop.
1222
01:07:12,428 --> 01:07:14,972
After the $38,000
check bounced,
1223
01:07:14,972 --> 01:07:16,932
that is a pretty good
indication
1224
01:07:16,932 --> 01:07:18,809
that she was
not going to uphold
1225
01:07:18,809 --> 01:07:20,811
her end of the plea agreement.
1226
01:07:20,811 --> 01:07:24,315
And so they set up
another hearing
1227
01:07:24,315 --> 01:07:26,067
for Lois to come back in.
1228
01:07:27,151 --> 01:07:29,070
She did not attend.
1229
01:07:29,653 --> 01:07:31,530
I had gotten sick.
1230
01:07:31,989 --> 01:07:35,034
And I didn't go to court
that day
1231
01:07:35,034 --> 01:07:36,327
to write the check.
1232
01:07:36,327 --> 01:07:38,245
Did you have the money
to cover it?
1233
01:07:38,579 --> 01:07:40,873
No. I had to talk
with David about it.
1234
01:07:40,873 --> 01:07:43,959
And I did not. I was so scared.
1235
01:07:43,959 --> 01:07:46,212
So I didn't go
to court that day.
1236
01:07:47,755 --> 01:07:51,008
That's an issue.
You have to go to court.
1237
01:07:51,008 --> 01:07:53,511
And so, the court said,
"Well, yeah.
1238
01:07:53,511 --> 01:07:56,222
You took all this and you
have to pay it all back.
1239
01:07:56,222 --> 01:07:58,599
And now we are adding
on top of that
1240
01:07:58,599 --> 01:08:00,559
some other things
that you have to pay for,
1241
01:08:00,559 --> 01:08:02,520
including the people
who are now going to be caring
1242
01:08:02,520 --> 01:08:05,189
for your sister, because
you didn't do that right.
1243
01:08:05,189 --> 01:08:06,691
And we need
to get somebody in there
1244
01:08:06,691 --> 01:08:08,901
who will take care of her
and not steal her money."
1245
01:08:08,901 --> 01:08:11,070
The new amount of judgment
1246
01:08:11,070 --> 01:08:15,241
was $100,533.93.
1247
01:08:15,241 --> 01:08:19,662
And her life just got
immediately much worse.
1248
01:08:23,958 --> 01:08:27,253
I think there was some
mad money stuff there.
1249
01:08:28,504 --> 01:08:32,258
Dave was really,
really ticked off about that.
1250
01:08:34,051 --> 01:08:35,553
They could come in
and say,
1251
01:08:35,553 --> 01:08:38,097
"Well, you're part
of these assets.
1252
01:08:38,097 --> 01:08:40,391
Let's take this wax worm farm
1253
01:08:40,391 --> 01:08:42,226
that is kind of
your husband's baby,
1254
01:08:42,226 --> 01:08:45,229
and that he has worked
pretty hard at to build up
1255
01:08:45,229 --> 01:08:47,732
and to make a name
for himself."
1256
01:08:47,732 --> 01:08:51,235
And so, now not only is Lois
1257
01:08:51,235 --> 01:08:53,279
kind of embarrassing him,
1258
01:08:54,363 --> 01:08:58,325
she's sort of endangering
their livelihood as well.
1259
01:08:58,325 --> 01:09:00,411
Not just Dave's, but her own.
1260
01:09:02,121 --> 01:09:04,165
Dave told a friend,
1261
01:09:04,707 --> 01:09:06,876
"The worst thing
I ever did in my life
1262
01:09:06,876 --> 01:09:10,838
was going back that afternoon
to the house."
1263
01:09:11,589 --> 01:09:14,592
So, in other words,
he regretted showing up
1264
01:09:14,592 --> 01:09:17,887
before his wife died
from her suicide attempt,
1265
01:09:18,220 --> 01:09:19,722
and saving her life.
1266
01:09:24,268 --> 01:09:25,936
What was it like then?
1267
01:09:40,659 --> 01:09:43,704
"How am I going to pay
$100,000 back that...
1268
01:09:44,288 --> 01:09:45,873
my husband won't give me?"
1269
01:09:45,873 --> 01:09:47,166
And I think that's also when
1270
01:09:47,166 --> 01:09:49,710
she started working
at Target and stuff,
1271
01:09:49,710 --> 01:09:52,380
trying to figure out
how she was gonna
1272
01:09:52,380 --> 01:09:54,340
pay that back but still feed
1273
01:09:54,340 --> 01:09:56,634
the gambling addiction
that she created.
1274
01:09:58,010 --> 01:10:00,596
She called me one day
1275
01:10:00,596 --> 01:10:04,850
and asked me
if I could give her some money.
1276
01:10:04,850 --> 01:10:08,187
I knew she had to be desperate,
because...
1277
01:10:08,187 --> 01:10:10,648
I never had money.
She was the one with money.
1278
01:10:10,648 --> 01:10:13,359
I was surprised
she was asking me for money
1279
01:10:13,359 --> 01:10:15,611
and I-I didn't have any,
and she's like,
1280
01:10:15,611 --> 01:10:18,948
she had something to say
about that. You know, like...
1281
01:10:19,448 --> 01:10:23,828
"Oh, I can't even count on you
to give me some--" You know.
1282
01:10:23,828 --> 01:10:25,162
But, uh...
1283
01:10:25,496 --> 01:10:27,707
I don't think she told me
what it was for,
1284
01:10:28,207 --> 01:10:29,792
but I felt bad. I...
1285
01:10:30,334 --> 01:10:32,837
I think she--
I don't think she wanted $20.
1286
01:10:32,837 --> 01:10:34,714
I think she wanted like...
1287
01:10:35,339 --> 01:10:36,841
thousands.
1288
01:10:38,592 --> 01:10:40,261
Two things here
that are so sad
1289
01:10:40,261 --> 01:10:42,555
about gambling addiction,
I think, is one,
1290
01:10:42,555 --> 01:10:45,266
that the person believes
the disease
1291
01:10:45,266 --> 01:10:47,518
is the only cure available.
1292
01:10:47,518 --> 01:10:49,645
They're in debt because
they've gambled too much,
1293
01:10:49,645 --> 01:10:51,522
and they believe
that if they gamble more,
1294
01:10:51,522 --> 01:10:53,566
they'll be able to win back
the money they've lost
1295
01:10:53,566 --> 01:10:55,693
and repay money they've stolen.
1296
01:10:55,693 --> 01:10:59,071
And then they feel such guilt
and shame that that...
1297
01:10:59,697 --> 01:11:02,700
turns inward, you know,
the anger turns inward,
1298
01:11:02,700 --> 01:11:05,244
and so the gambling addict
is much more likely
1299
01:11:05,244 --> 01:11:07,538
to harm themselves than others.
1300
01:11:07,538 --> 01:11:10,332
It's very unusual
for gambling addicts
1301
01:11:10,332 --> 01:11:11,876
to go out and harm others.
1302
01:11:11,876 --> 01:11:14,962
There's a handful of instances
in the last 20 years
1303
01:11:14,962 --> 01:11:16,213
of people doing that,
1304
01:11:16,213 --> 01:11:18,966
and Lois Riess,
I think, is one of those.
1305
01:12:17,983 --> 01:12:19,652
It was just the perfect storm.
1306
01:12:19,652 --> 01:12:23,197
It was just years and years
of abuse
1307
01:12:23,197 --> 01:12:25,574
and years and years
of giving and giving,
1308
01:12:25,574 --> 01:12:28,119
and neglecting
my own mental health.
1309
01:12:28,119 --> 01:12:30,705
And my own needs,
and it just...
1310
01:12:30,705 --> 01:12:34,875
I don't know, I think the word
psychotic break, I just snapped.
1311
01:12:36,961 --> 01:12:39,922
Once the police
discovered Dave's body
1312
01:12:39,922 --> 01:12:41,382
on March 23rd,
1313
01:12:41,382 --> 01:12:43,426
they went looking for Lois.
1314
01:12:43,968 --> 01:12:47,346
They'd gotten this report that
Lois had left the day before.
1315
01:12:47,763 --> 01:12:49,140
So they didn't know
where she was.
1316
01:12:49,140 --> 01:12:51,809
They didn't know where to look,
where she might be.
1317
01:12:52,476 --> 01:12:54,019
After Lois disappeared,
1318
01:12:54,019 --> 01:12:58,190
I reached out to casinos
all over the area,
1319
01:12:58,190 --> 01:13:01,485
from Iowa to Minnesota,
and surrounding.
1320
01:13:01,485 --> 01:13:03,320
I wrote them and I was like,
1321
01:13:03,320 --> 01:13:07,283
"Look, my aunt is Lois Riess.
She's wanted."
1322
01:13:07,283 --> 01:13:09,994
I kind of pleaded with them,
"If you see her,
1323
01:13:10,453 --> 01:13:13,122
please tell me. Let me know."
1324
01:13:14,498 --> 01:13:18,335
And then one
actually responded to me,
1325
01:13:18,335 --> 01:13:19,628
Diamond Jo's did.
1326
01:13:19,628 --> 01:13:21,756
It was a gentleman
that worked there.
1327
01:13:21,756 --> 01:13:23,007
And he told me,
1328
01:13:23,007 --> 01:13:25,676
"Holy shit,
I think I just talked to her."
1329
01:13:26,010 --> 01:13:29,221
He said that she didn't act
as if anything was wrong.
1330
01:13:29,847 --> 01:13:31,057
Very normal.
1331
01:13:33,976 --> 01:13:36,228
But by the time
the police showed up,
1332
01:13:36,896 --> 01:13:38,814
Lois was gone.
There was no sign of her.
1333
01:13:38,814 --> 01:13:42,318
She hadn't been returning
phone calls from her children,
1334
01:13:42,318 --> 01:13:44,612
or opening her son's Snapchats.
1335
01:13:47,114 --> 01:13:48,032
Hello.
1336
01:13:51,035 --> 01:13:53,496
The police then
discovered surveillance video
1337
01:13:53,496 --> 01:13:56,374
from the convenience store
next door to the casino
1338
01:13:56,374 --> 01:13:59,001
where Lois is buying
a sandwich.
1339
01:14:07,176 --> 01:14:09,720
She changed her voice.
Her voice didn't sound the same.
1340
01:14:09,720 --> 01:14:11,722
She didn't sound like Lois.
1341
01:14:12,431 --> 01:14:13,557
I think so.
1342
01:14:13,557 --> 01:14:15,434
She sounds
like such a child.
1343
01:14:15,434 --> 01:14:17,395
This little girl voice.
1344
01:14:17,728 --> 01:14:21,899
And to me, that speaks to her
just not knowing what to do.
1345
01:14:23,067 --> 01:14:24,026
Yup.
1346
01:14:24,026 --> 01:14:25,945
For crying out loud, Lois.
1347
01:14:25,945 --> 01:14:27,154
It's 35W.
1348
01:14:27,154 --> 01:14:28,906
How far south do you want to go?
1349
01:14:28,906 --> 01:14:31,075
You know,
yeah, get on that road.
1350
01:14:32,910 --> 01:14:34,537
Lois was not good
with directions.
1351
01:14:34,537 --> 01:14:35,913
She wasn't good with maps.
1352
01:14:35,913 --> 01:14:38,249
She was not good
with finding her way around.
1353
01:14:38,833 --> 01:14:41,210
Why she wanted to go south,
we didn't know.
1354
01:14:41,210 --> 01:14:43,713
We didn't know
what the exact connection was.
1355
01:14:44,171 --> 01:14:45,589
Was it some vague question
1356
01:14:45,589 --> 01:14:47,717
that popped into her mind
at the time to throw us off,
1357
01:14:47,717 --> 01:14:49,427
or was she actually
heading south?
1358
01:14:52,596 --> 01:14:55,433
When we were trying to look
for family, friends,
1359
01:14:55,433 --> 01:14:57,101
people that she would turn to,
1360
01:14:57,101 --> 01:15:00,187
she really didn't know many
people outside of Minnesota,
1361
01:15:00,187 --> 01:15:04,567
which we found odd why
she would want to head south.
1362
01:15:05,151 --> 01:15:07,153
We figured all the people
that she could turn to
1363
01:15:07,153 --> 01:15:08,821
would be in Minnesota.
1364
01:15:10,072 --> 01:15:11,866
I was worried.
1365
01:15:12,658 --> 01:15:14,201
Where is she?
1366
01:15:14,577 --> 01:15:16,620
Where is she going?
1367
01:15:16,620 --> 01:15:19,415
It was really sad
when I found out
1368
01:15:19,415 --> 01:15:20,791
she was on the run.
1369
01:15:20,791 --> 01:15:22,918
I thought of all that
Heart music,
1370
01:15:22,918 --> 01:15:25,421
and played a lot of it,
'cause it...
1371
01:15:25,796 --> 01:15:29,050
you know,
it was a nostalgic music,
1372
01:15:30,009 --> 01:15:30,926
and time.
1373
01:15:34,263 --> 01:15:38,225
♪ Heading out this morning ♪
1374
01:15:38,225 --> 01:15:40,686
♪ Into the sun ♪
1375
01:15:42,688 --> 01:15:46,734
♪ Riding on the diamond waves ♪
1376
01:15:46,734 --> 01:15:49,653
♪ Little darlin' one ♪
1377
01:15:50,905 --> 01:15:54,575
♪ Oh, Annie, dreamboat Annie ♪
1378
01:15:54,575 --> 01:15:59,538
♪ Little ship of dreams ♪
1379
01:15:59,538 --> 01:16:03,334
♪ Going down
the city sidewalk ♪
1380
01:16:03,334 --> 01:16:04,835
♪ Alone... ♪
1381
01:16:04,835 --> 01:16:07,630
I'm from Blooming
Prairie, Minnesota originally.
1382
01:16:08,923 --> 01:16:11,509
Now I reside
in Fort Myers Beach, Florida
1383
01:16:11,509 --> 01:16:12,718
most of the time.
1384
01:16:18,766 --> 01:16:21,435
My husband, Rod, and I are
retiring out of our business
1385
01:16:21,435 --> 01:16:22,853
from Blooming Prairie,
Minnesota,
1386
01:16:22,853 --> 01:16:25,106
which is Koster's Car Korner.
1387
01:16:25,439 --> 01:16:27,608
Down here,
in Fort Myers Beach,
1388
01:16:27,608 --> 01:16:29,151
we have a rental business.
1389
01:16:29,151 --> 01:16:32,738
So, we now are up to eight
rentals that we rent out.
1390
01:16:33,322 --> 01:16:36,325
So, that's also one
of my rental houses there.
1391
01:16:37,660 --> 01:16:39,787
And then this is the house
we live in
1392
01:16:39,787 --> 01:16:43,082
but rent when we're, um...
1393
01:16:43,416 --> 01:16:46,252
out for summers
visiting the grandkids.
1394
01:16:51,298 --> 01:16:53,759
On the morning of April 2nd,
1395
01:16:54,093 --> 01:16:57,763
I decided I was going
to finish cleaning the garage,
1396
01:16:57,763 --> 01:17:00,224
which I had been at
for a few days.
1397
01:17:00,224 --> 01:17:01,726
Put on my work clothes,
1398
01:17:01,726 --> 01:17:05,104
went down,
started cleaning, sweeping...
1399
01:17:11,944 --> 01:17:14,030
and a car pulled in.
1400
01:17:15,948 --> 01:17:19,285
It was a pearl-colored
Cadillac Escalade.
1401
01:17:20,453 --> 01:17:21,954
And a woman got out.
1402
01:17:21,954 --> 01:17:25,374
And she had this long,
platinum hair.
1403
01:17:25,374 --> 01:17:28,044
She was writing something down
1404
01:17:28,044 --> 01:17:30,379
and I stepped forward and said,
"Can I help you?"
1405
01:17:30,379 --> 01:17:32,965
And she looked up
from her paper,
1406
01:17:32,965 --> 01:17:35,092
and eye to eye,
it was Lois.
1407
01:17:35,092 --> 01:17:37,219
So she immediately said,
1408
01:17:37,219 --> 01:17:39,972
"Wrong house, wrong house,"
and looked flustered,
1409
01:17:39,972 --> 01:17:42,308
and quick got in her vehicle
and drove away.
1410
01:17:44,810 --> 01:17:46,812
I ran up the stairs so fast,
1411
01:17:46,812 --> 01:17:48,397
my heart just pounding,
1412
01:17:48,397 --> 01:17:51,233
said to my husband, who was
on the phone at the time,
1413
01:17:51,233 --> 01:17:52,610
he puts the phone down,
1414
01:17:52,610 --> 01:17:55,780
and left the person on
that was on,
1415
01:17:55,780 --> 01:17:58,574
which I found out
was my daughter, and he's--
1416
01:17:58,574 --> 01:18:00,868
he's like,
"What is going on with you?"
1417
01:18:00,868 --> 01:18:04,413
I said, "Lois! Lois Riess
was just in our driveway.
1418
01:18:04,413 --> 01:18:06,290
Quick, Rod, let's follow her.
1419
01:18:06,290 --> 01:18:10,294
I'll dial 911 and you drive,
and we'll follow her."
1420
01:18:10,294 --> 01:18:14,465
He says, "Honey, she has a gun.
We are not following her.
1421
01:18:14,465 --> 01:18:17,343
No way! She murdered somebody."
1422
01:18:21,180 --> 01:18:23,808
My husband picks up the phone
and he says
1423
01:18:23,808 --> 01:18:25,184
to my daughter Breauna,
1424
01:18:25,184 --> 01:18:27,645
"Breauna, call the local
sheriff's department
1425
01:18:27,645 --> 01:18:29,563
or police and let them know
1426
01:18:29,563 --> 01:18:31,857
that Lois was just
in our driveway."
1427
01:18:59,343 --> 01:19:03,389
So then we decided
to just dial 911 ourself.
1428
01:19:18,112 --> 01:19:20,364
And the 911 operator said,
1429
01:19:20,364 --> 01:19:23,784
"Well, ma'am, you're gonna
have to call the place
1430
01:19:23,784 --> 01:19:25,661
where this all took place,
1431
01:19:25,661 --> 01:19:27,913
in Blooming Prairie, Minnesota."
1432
01:19:28,539 --> 01:19:30,875
In the end, I finally got
the sheriff's department
1433
01:19:30,875 --> 01:19:33,544
and got somebody here
about a half an hour later.
1434
01:19:33,544 --> 01:19:35,087
In the meantime,
1435
01:19:35,087 --> 01:19:38,507
I remember we had invited
Dave and Lois
1436
01:19:38,507 --> 01:19:40,551
in about 2015, maybe,
1437
01:19:40,551 --> 01:19:43,387
and had said,
"Come on down, you guys,
1438
01:19:43,387 --> 01:19:46,223
if you want to come to Florida,
you can come stay with us."
1439
01:19:46,223 --> 01:19:49,143
So I wonder
if she isn't trying to squat
1440
01:19:49,143 --> 01:19:51,854
in one of my houses
to move in.
1441
01:19:53,939 --> 01:19:56,442
She was no
brain surgeon, okay?
1442
01:19:57,151 --> 01:19:59,904
For the life of me,
I don't know how she figured out
1443
01:19:59,904 --> 01:20:01,947
how to get to Florida
in that Cadillac,
1444
01:20:01,947 --> 01:20:04,325
but she did somehow, you know?
1445
01:20:12,333 --> 01:20:14,919
So when the police pulled
into the driveway,
1446
01:20:15,544 --> 01:20:17,671
they pulled it up on their
computer screen and said,
1447
01:20:17,671 --> 01:20:22,093
"There's not really enough here
for us to be looking for her,
1448
01:20:22,718 --> 01:20:25,137
because it says
theft and forgery,
1449
01:20:25,137 --> 01:20:27,598
and to extradite her
all the way back to Minnesota
1450
01:20:27,598 --> 01:20:31,894
for theft and forgery seems like
a frivolous thing to do."
1451
01:20:32,144 --> 01:20:35,398
Rod and I kept saying,
"No, she murdered her husband."
1452
01:20:35,398 --> 01:20:37,775
But they kept saying
she's only a person of interest
1453
01:20:37,775 --> 01:20:39,151
in her husband's murder.
1454
01:20:39,151 --> 01:20:41,696
"It doesn't say here
she's wanted for murder."
1455
01:20:42,154 --> 01:20:45,449
So we just couldn't
convince them.
1456
01:20:47,618 --> 01:20:51,664
I just had the feeling that
Lois was still in our area.
1457
01:20:52,164 --> 01:20:55,876
And, so I packed my purse
with all my jewelry
1458
01:20:55,876 --> 01:20:57,962
and any money that we had,
1459
01:20:57,962 --> 01:21:00,423
our checkbooks,
anything of value,
1460
01:21:00,423 --> 01:21:03,008
and took 'em with,
and said to my husband,
1461
01:21:03,008 --> 01:21:05,678
"We are not staying
in our house tonight.
1462
01:21:05,678 --> 01:21:07,096
We're staying
at the Lighthouse Resort.
1463
01:21:07,096 --> 01:21:09,014
I am scared for my life."
1464
01:21:09,473 --> 01:21:12,435
And he kept saying,
"Oh, honey, she left.
1465
01:21:12,435 --> 01:21:16,522
As soon as you made eye contact,
she was pointed at the bridge.
1466
01:21:16,522 --> 01:21:18,149
She's not here anymore."
1467
01:21:18,566 --> 01:21:20,317
Well then, one of the deputies
1468
01:21:20,317 --> 01:21:24,196
who was also a friend,
met us at Lighthouse Resort,
1469
01:21:24,196 --> 01:21:26,198
and he kept saying
the same thing.
1470
01:21:26,198 --> 01:21:28,117
"You guys made eye contact,
1471
01:21:28,117 --> 01:21:29,994
she left, went over the bridge."
1472
01:21:29,994 --> 01:21:31,954
I kept saying,
"I don't think so."
1473
01:21:33,456 --> 01:21:35,291
I didn't find out
about the phone call
1474
01:21:35,291 --> 01:21:37,084
until the next day
when I came into work
1475
01:21:37,084 --> 01:21:39,879
that Lois showed up
at the Kosters' residence
1476
01:21:39,879 --> 01:21:41,505
in Florida.
1477
01:21:41,505 --> 01:21:45,092
And no one took action on it.
We were wondering, like,
1478
01:21:45,092 --> 01:21:48,095
"What happened?
Why wasn't this acted upon?
1479
01:21:48,095 --> 01:21:51,057
What information
was actually relayed?"
1480
01:21:52,099 --> 01:21:55,061
I presume Dodge County
Sheriff's Office
1481
01:21:55,061 --> 01:21:57,355
knew it was likely Lois Riess
1482
01:21:57,355 --> 01:21:58,856
who had already
committed a murder.
1483
01:21:58,856 --> 01:22:00,941
I presume they figured that out
1484
01:22:00,941 --> 01:22:03,778
by the scene at the Riess home.
1485
01:22:03,778 --> 01:22:07,239
Why you wouldn't then alert
1486
01:22:08,115 --> 01:22:10,326
about anybody you could...
1487
01:22:10,785 --> 01:22:12,536
You don't know where she is.
1488
01:22:13,412 --> 01:22:16,582
How about you have all
of the other millions of eyes
1489
01:22:16,582 --> 01:22:19,126
in this country helping you?
1490
01:22:21,379 --> 01:22:23,172
Lois kind of vanishes again.
1491
01:22:23,172 --> 01:22:24,882
She goes off the grid.
1492
01:22:24,882 --> 01:22:27,051
We don't know
what she's doing in Florida.
1493
01:22:27,051 --> 01:22:29,470
We don't know who she's with,
where she's staying.
1494
01:22:44,902 --> 01:22:48,447
Friday,
we got a knock on the door,
1495
01:22:48,447 --> 01:22:50,366
and it was
the sheriff's department
1496
01:22:50,783 --> 01:22:54,578
saying they had found
that '05 Cadillac Escalade
1497
01:22:54,578 --> 01:22:57,331
that was Lois's
parked down at Bowditch Park,
1498
01:22:57,331 --> 01:22:59,959
which is
at the end of the island,
1499
01:22:59,959 --> 01:23:03,337
maybe a mile away
from our house or so.
1500
01:23:04,463 --> 01:23:07,425
I received a phone call
from a sergeant in our K-9 unit
1501
01:23:07,425 --> 01:23:11,262
who located a white-colored
Cadillac SUV.
1502
01:23:11,262 --> 01:23:12,930
I believe it was an Escalade.
1503
01:23:12,930 --> 01:23:15,099
And it was in the parking lot,
abandoned,
1504
01:23:15,099 --> 01:23:18,185
at Bowditch Point,
which is on Fort Myers Beach.
1505
01:23:19,186 --> 01:23:21,063
He called me,
told me that this was a vehicle
1506
01:23:21,063 --> 01:23:22,440
that was possibly used
1507
01:23:22,440 --> 01:23:25,317
in a homicide investigation
up in Minnesota.
1508
01:23:26,360 --> 01:23:28,279
Pretty nice vehicle, actually.
1509
01:23:28,279 --> 01:23:31,240
And it belonged to a Lois Riess
and her husband.
1510
01:23:34,201 --> 01:23:36,662
Why did she leave
her car?
1511
01:23:37,163 --> 01:23:39,290
What's in her mind?
1512
01:23:39,790 --> 01:23:41,250
What's in her head?
1513
01:23:45,755 --> 01:23:50,176
Lois seemed to blend into
Fort Myers Beach very easily.
1514
01:23:51,761 --> 01:23:53,345
A lot of Midwest people here
1515
01:23:53,345 --> 01:23:57,183
from Iowa, Ohio,
Wisconsin, Minnesota.
1516
01:23:58,225 --> 01:24:00,770
Was she desperate
for money at that point?
1517
01:24:01,520 --> 01:24:04,190
Is she gonna pound on our door
in the middle of the night
1518
01:24:04,190 --> 01:24:06,233
and hold us at gunpoint?
1519
01:24:06,776 --> 01:24:11,197
I was very, very afraid
for my husband and my life.
1520
01:24:11,739 --> 01:24:14,700
She's obviously capable
of doing it again.