All language subtitles for Unsolved.Mysteries.S04E14.480p.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-PLAYREADY_track3_[und]

ANNOUNCER: This program is
about unsolved mysteries.

Whenever possible, the
actual family members

and police officials
have participated

in recreating the events.

What you are about to see
is not a news broadcast.

ROBERT STACK: On May
12th, 1982, the body

of a young Minnesota
housewife washed up

on the shore of Lake Superior.

Her husband, Larry Race,
was convicted of murder

and sentenced to life in prison.

To this day, Race
maintains his innocence

and his dead wife's
parents support his claim.

Is Larry Race
guilty or innocent?

Helen Rose Myran grew up on
the Long Plain Reservation

in Manitoba, Canada.

In 1941, Helen Rose was
banished by her father

when she joined the
Royal Canadian Air Force.

Heartbroken, she vanished.

Her family has not seen
her in nearly 50 years.

Also, thanks to our viewers,
a man charged with murdering

his wife is now in custody
following a dramatic shootout

with police.

Join me, perhaps you may be
able to help solve a mystery.

Lake Superior, headwater
of the Great Lakes.

The largest freshwater
lake in the world.

The water temperature
hovers near freezing

for most of the year.

A person adrift
without a life raft

stands little
chance of survival.

On May 12, 1982, the lake
claimed another victim,

33-year-old Debbie Race.

Her life jacket was intact,
she had not drowned.

Debbie Race had succumbed
to the icy lake temperatures

and died of hypothermia.

According to the authorities,
Debbie Race's death

was no accident.

Her husband, Larry
Race, was accused

of deliberately
allowing her to freeze

to death in Lake Superior.

He was subsequently
convicted of murder.

Yet Debbie's own parents believe
that Larry could not possibly

have harmed their daughter.

After eight agonizing
years and five

unsuccessful post-trial
reviews, this is

the final appeal of Larry Race.

Larry Race is currently
serving a life

sentence at Stillwater
State Prison

in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

He maintains that the
jury which convicted him

was prejudiced, because
he had a long history

of adulterous relationships.

LARRY RACE: What happened
that night was an accident.

I didn't kill Debbie.

Yes, I was unfaithful, but I
had nothing to do with her death

that night.

Adultery, yes, I'm
guilty for that.

Sorry for it--

I'm extremely sorry.

ROBERT STACK: Debbie and Larry
Race, along with her three

children, lived in
Hoyt Lakes, Minnesota,

75 miles from Lake Superior.

Larry's hobbies were
boating and scuba diving,

Debbie built her world around
her home and her children.

Over the years, Larry and
Debbie's married suffered

badly because of his affairs.

But by 1982, Larry says
they had vowed to try again.

May 11th of 1982 was
Larry and Debbie's

14th wedding anniversary.

To celebrate, they had dinner
at a lakeview restaurant,

and took their boat
named the Jenny

Lee, after their
daughters, on Lake

Superior for an evening cruise.

LARRY RACE: It felt as if
things were starting over again.

Things had like
a renewed spirit.

I wanted to stop what I was
doing, and I was thinking,

you know, maybe
this is the chance.

You know, I have a wonderful
woman here, there's

nothing wrong with her, and--

and I want to take
an about face.

ROBERT STACK: After
darkness fell,

Larry and Debbie
drifted contentedly.

They stayed about
one mile off shore,

enjoying the view
of the city lights

and listening to tapes
of their favorite music.

I'm going to
turn the tape over.

Or do you want to
listen to another one?

- No, that's good.
- All right.

ROBERT STACK: Suddenly at
9 PM, the mood was broken.

Debbie noticed that the
boat was taking on water.

ACTOR AS DEBBIE
RACE: Larry, there

is water all over the
bottom of the boat,

where's that coming from, honey?

ROBERT STACK: Larry says
Debbie began to panic.

She had no faith
in the Jenny Lee,

because it had nearly
sunk the summer before.

LARRY RACE: As soon as we
pulled the cover off the engine,

we noticed there was water
spraying all over the place.

So we shut the engine
down, took the alternator,

loosened up the bolt, and
dropped the alternator.

Soon as we dropped
the alternator,

it shut the engine down,
the water leaking stopped.

ACTOR AS DEBBIE RACE:
Is that going to hold?

ACTOR AS LARRY RACE:
I think that'll work.

I'm going to have
to tape it, though.

LARRY RACE: Things were pretty
well under control till then.

We worked together to
get the boat fixed,

we worked together to
get the water stopped,

and everything was OK.

We didn't feel [inaudible],
we had a light on.

Nothing-- nothing was bad then.

ACTOR AS LARRY RACE: Can you
cut this tape right here?

LARRY RACE: Once we got
all the repairs done,

Debbie went to start the engine.

Larry, it won't start!

ACTOR AS LARRY RACE: Just
turn it over, one more time.

LARRY RACE: Well,
I figured she just

didn't know how to start it
right, so I went to start it.

ACTOR AS LARRY RACE:
Here, let me get in there.

LARRY RACE: I made it till
almost the battery was dead.

We had two batteries
on the boat.

It wouldn't start
for me, either.

So now we're both
back by the engine,

wondering why it won't start.

Must be something
I'm missing here.

[loud bang]

(SCARED) Oh,
Larry, we're sinking!

I want to get off the boat now,
Larry, I want to get off now!

LARRY RACE: The fear
came to both of us

when we heard that gushing
and that wooshing noise

from the bottom of the boat.

I mean, I was scared
along with her.

She made me scared.

Now I didn't know how to--

I wasn't thinking right,
I didn't listen to what

I-- what I should have done.

I made poor judgments, I
listened to what she said,

get off the boat.

OK, crack the valve on
this one, I get it together.

OK, tell me when you're ready.

I got it.

LARRY RACE: First thing
we did was pull the life

raft out to get it blowing up.

We always carry a scuba tank
on the board for that purpose.

Larry, there's holes in
it, it's not holding air,

we can't use this!

LARRY RACE: So we
tossed that one aside

and got the second one, then we
filled that one up the same way

we started the first one.

And that was filled,
it worked fine.

- Little more.
- OK.

LARRY RACE: Even though
these are two man rafts,

there's only room for
one person in that boat.

So you're going
to get in here,

I'm going to drag
us to shore, OK?

ACTOR AS DEBBIE RACE: All right.

ACTOR AS LARRY RACE: OK.

ACTOR AS DEBBIE RACE: OK,
I'm going to put my purse

in the bag, give me your shoes.

ROBERT STACK:
Debbie put her purse

and other valuables, as well as
Larry's shoes into a gear bag.

She took the bag and a scuba
tank with her in the life raft.

Larry Race had his dry suit
and scuba tanks on board.

He was a strong swimmer,
and thought he could tow

Debbie and the raft to safety.

He had done the same
thing with his daughters

when the Jenny Lee had
run into trouble before.

I knew I had to push her
to shore, and I knew I could.

I was strong enough,
she said the same thing.

She said Larry, you're
strong enough, you can do it.

[crying]

LARRY RACE: I pushed, and I
pushed, and I was making it.

I was OK, but I
started getting cold.

I can't hold on.

I gotta come in, my
hands are freezing.

I can't hold on, I need
to get to the boat.

All right.

No, no!

No, Larry, the
water's coming in.

No, don't come in,
you can't come in.

OK.

LARRY RACE: She was terrified.

And at that time, I knew I
couldn't get in the raft.

And, um-- and I thought
that, you know, I would die.

And at that time, I
made a poor judgment.

Looked off to the right,
and there was lights coming.

I said, I'll go for help.

--light out there.

I-- I think I could get to it.

LARRY RACE: The lights were
closer than swimming to shore.

Debbie was going that
way towards shore,

I was going the
opposite way for help.

One of us were
going to get help.

One of us were going
to get to shore--

Debbie was going to
get to shore for help,

or I was going to get
to the boat for help.

One of us were going to
get somebody to help.

ROBERT STACK: The light
Larry Race had seen

was his his own boat.

This time, the engine started.

After catching his breath,
he would search for Debbie,

all the while firing
distress flares.

In the end, Larry
would return to shore

and notify the Coast Guard.

They would conduct a grid
search of the lake, to no avail.

The next afternoon, a teenager
on his way home from school

saw Debbie Race's
body in the lake.

Larry Race was
charged with murder.

At his trial, Larry
Race's attorneys

advised him not to take the
stand on his own behalf.

After he was convicted, Larry
hired a new team of lawyers,

insisting that he'd been the
victim of incompetent counsel.

Larry Race believes that
if he had testified,

the jury would not
have found him guilty.

The prosecuting
attorney at Larry Race's

tried to link John DeSanto
of Duluth, Minnesota.

Even though the case against
Larry was circumstantial,

DeSanto was able
to convince a jury

that Larry Race had
the opportunity, means,

and motive to murder his wife.

JOHN DESANTO: I have absolutely
no doubt that Larry Race is

guilty of first degree
murder, and that's

why I believe that this
is not an appropriate case

for Unsolved Mysteries.

It simply is not an
unsolved mystery.

I believe the evidence
showed that he wanted out

of an unhappy marriage
at this time in his life,

and at the same time, he had
$108,000 of life insurance

on her life, in place,
that he had purchased

within the seven months
previous to her death

through Credit Life Insurance.

Part of it, about
$37,000, was mortgage

insurance that came along with
the mortgage on his house.

The rest of it came as
part of a group policy

from his credit union.

And there was some
testimony, in fact,

that Debbie had been
the one to seek out

this additional
insurance coverage.

Larry, it won't start!

ROBERT STACK: Larry
Race's defense

was built around his story
of mechanical problems

of the Jenny lee.

The prosecution claimed
Larry concocted the episode.

ACTOR AS LARRY RACE: --start
up, it's already [inaudible]

ROBERT STACK: After his
trial, the Jenny Lee was sold

and an independent mechanic
examined the starter.

DAVID W. LARSON: The mechanic
said that it was worn,

and that the type of
problem that he saw there

would cause an intermittent
starting failure.

That the engine, on some
occasions, would not start.

At one of Larry Race's
post-conviction hearings

following the trial, a man did
come forward and testify that

he'd found a starter problem
in the Jenny Lee in late May

or early June of 1984, or two
years after Debbie's death,

the night of May
11th and 12th of '82.

He simply could not say
that this was a problem he--

that was on the boat the
night of Debbie Race's death,

and therefore it was
ruled irrelevant,

both in the trial
court and ultimately

in the appellate courts.

It-- look, it's losing
air, there's holes!

It's got a hole in it!

We can't use this!

ROBERT STACK: Larry Race is
adamant that he had two life

rafts on board the Jenny Lee.

JOHN DESANTO: Well,
the evidence clearly

showed there was but one raft
on the Jenny Lee the night

of May 11th and 12th of 1982.

Every one of Larry Race's
diving companions or friends,

or both, that
testified at the trial

said that they
had never seen him

in possession of two blue and
yellow rafts, as he claims.

And also significant is the
fact that the search and rescue

people from the Coast Guard said
that if that raft had existed,

they would have found it.

We've got-- we
don't have a radio--

ROBERT STACK: At
Larry Race's Trial,

the Deputy Sheriff testified
that Larry had told him there

were two life rafts on board.

--right now.

I didn't hear you mention
any noise makers of any sort.

No, we don't
have a noise maker.

But we do have two raft.

Huh.

I just got another raft.

This deputy testified
that Larry specifically told

him quote, "What about rafts?

I have two."

That deputy testified
about that happening

over two weeks beforehand.

Well, sounds like you've
got just about everything.

Yeah.

ROBERT STACK: The prosecution
points out to the deputy's

testimony was inconsistent.

When he was first questioned 11
days after Debbie Race's death,

he said he knew nothing
about two rafts.

--end up in the water,
rafts'd definitely help, yeah.

ROBERT STACK: The prosecution
claims that Larry pushed Debbie

and the raft well
away from the Jenny

Lee, then returned to the boat
and donned his scuba equipment.

They say Larry swam
back under Debbie's raft

and slashed it with knife,
leaving her to freeze

to death in the icy waters.

[crying]

JOHN DESANTO: This was
very significant evidence

at the trial.

And it was that there were five
punctures or cuts in the bottom

of the raft, placed in the
raft while it was inflated,

because as the
experts testified,

there was no knife cut on the
top of the raft that would

correspond with the
bottom puncture,

meaning the air
chambers were inflated.

And strategically
placed, in that they

cut both air chambers.

It wasn't a random thing like
vandalism, where someone who

isn't really intent on
cutting both air chambers,

but just damaging a
piece of property.

They were placed in
both air chambers,

from the bottom, while
the raft was inflated.

ROBERT STACK: The
prosecution failed to produce

the knife used to cut the raft.

The puncture marks did not match
the only knife found on board

the Jenny Lee.

The prosecution asserts that
once Debbie had been set

adrift, Larry dragged the life
raft back to the Jenny Lee,

so he would have support for
his story about attempting

to inflate a first raft.

JEAN AUBINEAU: All
of the events that

leads to the action of Larry,
according to the prosecution,

required super human
effort, super feat that were

not just physically possible.

ROBERT STACK: Witnesses
place the Jenny Lee here,

near the mouth of the
Talmadge river at 8:30 PM,

and again at 9:30.

Debbie's body was found
here, seven miles away.

According to Jean
Aubineau, it would

have been impossible
for a body to drift

that far without a raft.

JEAN AUBINEAU: If she has been
in the water with a parka,

with a life vest, she can
only travel one to two miles

and will hit shore somewhere.

The only way she could have
landed seven miles down

was on a raft.

The fact that
we just don't know

where the Jenny Lee was on the
lake at the time he persuaded--

that time Larry Race
persuaded Debbie to leave it,

makes it impossible to then
start with a drift theory that

would put her body at
such and such a place,

whether she's in a
raft or without a raft.

Because we, again, don't have
a precise starting point.

We never did have
one, and that's

what makes it so difficult
to give any credibility

to the Aubineau
drift theory that

was presented by the defense.

ROBERT STACK: According
to Larry Race's attorneys,

the skin lividity
in Debbie's body

also proves that she came
ashore in a life raft.

Debbie's blood had
not sunk to her feet.

They claim it would
have done so if she'd

been kept afloat in an upright
position by a life vest.

The lividity of Debbie Race's
blood following her death

was to the back, and
that was consistent,

or is consistent with the fact
that she floated in the water

with that life jacket, without
a raft available to her.

Because as the expert
testified at trial,

this particular
life jacket would

have kept her basically
face up on her back

as she floated,
following her death.

Her body, of course,
was then found face up,

on its back, on the
shore of Lake Superior

as well, which would continue
the lividity to her back.

And the autopsy report
clearly indicates

the lividity was to her back.

ROBERT STACK: After
hearing all the evidence,

but without hearing
from Larry Race himself,

a jury of four men
and eight women

found him guilty of murder.

MICHELLE LEE RACE:
I couldn't believe

it, because there was no hard,
cold evidence, hard facts.

There wasn't anything.

It was all circumstantial.

There was nothing
concrete about his case

at all, except he
had his affairs.

It's hard to
take, you know, when

so many people
think he was guilty,

but it's never been
a problem with us.

We just don't believe
he was guilty.

If you only knew Larry, you
wouldn't think that Larry would

ever do anything like that.

Today, I'm angry at the fact
that he was able to convince 12

jury members that this
happened without any facts,

without any evidence, he just
says, we think Larry did it.

We want him convicted.

And that's what he did.

You getting off work now?

Yeah, I'm going to go
home in a few minutes.

Gonna see your boyfriend?

No.

ROBERT STACK: In 1981,
17-year-old Annette Schappacher

fell in love with Jim Burnside,
a butcher at the grocery store

where Annette worked.
- Bye.

You have a good evening.

Bye.

ROBERT STACK: A year
later, the couple married.

The bride was just
18, the groom, 46.

For Annette, the marriage marked
the beginning of a nightmare.

JEAN SCHAPPACHER: She
became afraid of him

almost immediately, because
he was jealous of her,

and when he was drinking
he was violent, and--

and made remarks to her
all the time, that she

would never, ever leave him.

That-- well, he started telling
her right from the beginning

that he would kill her if
she ever tried to leave him.

ROBERT STACK: In 1987, after
five years of nearly constant

emotional and physical
abuse, Annette finally

found the courage to leave Jim.

Two months later, Jim Burnside
brutally attacked Annette

and one of her coworkers.

[crying] Please!

Hey!

Get over here,
what are you doing?

[gunshot]

[crying and screaming]

ROBERT STACK: Annette's
coworker survived the attack.

Annette had been stabbed 15
times with a butcher knife,

and was pronounced
dead at the scene.

That afternoon, Jim
Burnside disappeared.

JEAN SCHAPPACHER:
It's bad enough

knowing that Annette
had to die, but to know

that he is still out there--

it's horrible.

We just want him caught,
and I just hope and pray

that somebody spots him.

ROBERT STACK: Update.

The night this story
aired, two viewers

contacted our telecenter to
report that Jim Burnside was

living in Shelby County, Alabama
under the assumed name Al

Wilson.

MARY COLLUM: When I
saw his actual picture,

I just looked at my husband
and I just started pointing

and I'm going, you know, tell
me my eyes aren't deceiving me.

You know, that is Al?

And he goes, yes, that's Al.

The first thing I
thought is that well, you

know, let's call
up the authorities

and get this guy off the street.

ROBERT STACK:
Burnside was employed

as a carpenter at the
280 Flea Market, just

outside of Chelsea, Alabama.

JAMES JONES: We had received
a call from the FBI office

in Birmingham, stating that
they felt pretty sure that Jim

Burnside that would be at this
fleamarket on highway 280,

located in Shelby County.

ROBERT STACK: The morning
after our broadcast,

FBI agents and
Sheriff's deputies

checked out the flea market.

You got a fellow
hanging around here

by the name of Al Wilson?

Yeah, he's right
there on the roof.

JAMES JONES: And apparently
Burnside saw them

and went towards his truck.

FBI, halt!

FBI, hold it!

The The fugitive
drew a .357 magnum

and pointed it at the officers.

Put the gun down,
put the gun down!

[gunshot]

[gunshot]

[gunshots]

Hands up, get your hands up!

ROBERT STACK: Burnside
was struck by two bullets.

He was placed under arrest and
taken to a Birmingham hospital.

JAMES JONES: From what we've
been able to determine in again

talking to his coworkers,
that he had made

a statement on Thursday
morning that he had anticipated

having problems that day.

So apparently he had viewed
the Unsolved Mysteries

himself Wednesday night.

On April 1, 1988, Jeanne
Tovrea, a wealthy socialite

from Phoenix, Arizona, was
murdered in her own bed

while she slept.

At the time of
her death, she was

worth several million
dollars, most of inherited

from her late husband.

But Jeanne Tovrea's
origins were humble.

Jeanne was born in
a small Arkansas

farming community and married
fresh out of high school.

In 1953, her marriage
failed, and Jeanne

eventually wound up in Phoenix,
working as a cocktail waitress.

If you folks
need anything, I'll

be sitting right over there.

ROBERT STACK: Jeanne had
no intention of spending

her life waiting tables.

On her rest breaks,
she studied real estate

law, determined to make a
better life for herself.

Several years later,
Jeanne was well on her way.

She had obtained her real
estate license in 1970,

and become an immediate success.

In 1971, one of Jeanne's
clients introduced her

to Edward Tovrea, a
charming, wealthy divorce.

Jeanne's the one that
helped us on that real estate

deal I was telling you about.

She did a great job for us.

ACTOR AS EDWARD
TOVREA: Oh really?

Well, congratulations.

That was super.

Thanks, you're
embarrassing me.

ACTOR AS EDWARD TOVREA: Never
be embarrassed when somebody

tells you you've
done something well,

it's part of the business.

And I think you're going to
do well because of your people

skills or that you're good at.

SANDRA ELDER: Ed had
all the qualities

that Jeanne was looking for.

JEANNE'S CLIENT: I'd
like to propose a toast.

SANDRA ELDER: It's
just that simple.

To old friends, and
to new friendships.

You have to kiss
a lot of frogs

before you find the prince,
and she considered Ed a prince.

ROBERT STACK: Ed Tovrea embarked
on an intense courtship,

and Jeanne was
swept off her feet.

Ed's ancestors had made
millions in the cattle business,

and were among the founding
fathers of Phoenix.

But Ed Tovrea made his own name
as a pilot in World War II.

He was shot down and taken as a
prisoner of war by the Germans.

Ed helped engineer
the famous Great

Escape, digging
tunnels which allowed

79 other POWs to go free.

Less than a year after
they met, Jeanne and Ed

were married in a private
ceremony in Hawaii.

Jeanne became an instant hit
with the Phoenix upper crust.

DANNY MEDINA: She seemed
to fall right into it,

as if though she'd had
that money forever.

She was welcomed and very, very
well loved, extremely liked.

I don't know of one-- and
I can honestly say this--

I don't know one person
that disliked Jeanne.

She was just one of
those very special people

with very special qualities.

She treated people like
she wanted to be treated.

I never saw any
airs with Jeanne.

They entertained a lot,
very casual entertaining.

Had friends in.

They had a very good marriage.

They both liked to
do the same things.

ROBERT STACK: But there
was one cloud darkening

Jeanne and Ed's life together.

Respiratory problems had plagued
Ed ever since his POW days.

By 1982, he was
virtually bedridden,

and Jeanne nursed
him around the clock.

How about a little soup?

Jeanne, I think
it's about time

we talked about what you're
going to do after I'm gone.

Ed, please don't
talk that way.

I just want to make
sure you're taken care of.

You get the house, and
you're comfortable.

OK?

OK.

Jeanne was not
a greedy person.

It wasn't like, well, I--

I have married you,
everything you have is mine.

This was not Jeanne.

ROBERT STACK: On July
11, 1983, Ed Tovrea died.

He left Jeanne an estate worth
millions, including the house

and a valuable art collection.

SANDRA ELDER: It
was hard for her

to visualize life
without him, because he

was her steadying factor.

I think it was scary for her.

ROBERT STACK: After
a period of mourning,

Jeanne threw herself back
into the Phoenix social world.

DANNY MEDINA: I think it was
her way to get over everything,

and meet people.

Became quite the socialite,
and chaired many of the balls,

and her circle of
friends all went.

So it became a very-- for
Jeanne it became a way

of doing things for herself.

Well, I'm going to finish
these last few invitations

and call it a night.

ROBERT STACK: The evening
of March 31, 1988,

found Jeanne Tovrea preparing
the final few invitations for

yet another high society party.

At 7 PM, she spoke
with her sister.

By 1:00 AM the next
day, she would be dead.

DANNY MEDINA: She had
mailed those invitations

and then they came
right after we found

out that she had been murdered.

And it did do a
number on all of us.

It was almost like,
remember my party?

It was very spooky.

ACTOR AS ERNIE HAMRICK:
Wonder if he did that before

or after he killed her.

ROBERT STACK: At
the murder scene,

police found several
fingerprints, but

little other physical evidence.

Jeanne's purse, along
with her identification

and credit cards, were missing.

ACTOR AS ERNIE HAMRICK:
--to the jewelry case, too.

COP: Ernie, do you want
to move the pillow?

ACTOR AS ERNIE HAMRICK: Sure.

ACTOR AS ERNIE HAMRICK: Those
credit cards never been found

and they've never
been used to this day.

The fingerprints that we
have have been compared

to every name that's
been mentioned to us,

has been through
our computer system,

and we have not identified
who those prints belong to.

In my opinion, and that
opinion of two detectives,

all felt it that she
was the victim of a hit.

She was killed
intentionally for somebody.

ROBERT STACK: Police theorize
that the killer was familiar

with Jeanne's neighborhood,
because he had so easily

gained access to her home.

ERNIE HAMRICK: I would say
the suspect at least had

some knowledge of the house.

Entry into the house was
made through a window,

but it was done in a manner not
to set the alarm system off.

There's white carpeting
throughout the house,

and there was no indications in
any room, except her bedroom,

that anybody had been in there.

It appears that he
knew the direct path

from the point of entry to
her bedroom and where she was.

She was shot while she
lay in bed, asleep.

There was no obvious
signs of a struggle.

[muffled gunshots]

ROBERT STACK: Police believe
that the killers scattered

Jeanne's costume jewelry
simply to give the appearance

of a burglary attempt.

He left thousands of dollars
worth of real jewelry

untouched in the next room.

Also, it seemed that he
wanted someone to be alerted.

ERNIE HAMRICK: The alarm was
set off when the sliding door

was opened by the suspect.

He could have out the same
way he got in without ever

setting the alarm off.

It's only a theory, but one
of the reasons we considered

is that this person, if
he was paid to kill her,

wanted to let the
person who paid

him know that the job was done.

ROBERT STACK: Who could have
wanted Jeannie Tovrea dead?

Police were at a loss, until
they were given the old tapes

from her answering machine.

That was when they heard the
voice of a mysterious man who

called himself Gordon Phillips.

GORDON PHILLIPS
(ON TAPE): --and I

will try and call
back this afternoon,

and I have some
information for you.

It's a beautiful
place you have here.

ROBERT STACK: In 1987, Phillips,
who claimed to be a magazine

writer, had tried to interview
Jeanne about her late husband's

POW experiences.

How may I help you?

Well, as I told
you on the phone,

I'm writing a book
about prisoners of war.

I'd like to talk
to you specifically

about your husband, Ed.

Well, you know, that
was a very long time ago.

I'm not that familiar
with Ed's past.

Well, surely he must
have said something to you

about his POW experience.

I mean, that was a
big part of his life.

He didn't like to
dwell in the past.

You know, you'd be
better off talking

to the first Mrs. Tovrea.

Tell me about Ed himself.

Your husband, the man.
What was he like?

Mr. Phillips, you say
you worked for Time Life.

Yes.

Well, then of course you
would have some identification

you could show me.

Well, actually I'm
a freelance writer,

I'm not really on staff.

I can provide you
with some references.

You know, I'm going to
have to cut you short.

I have a plane to catch in
the morning, and a lot--

SANDRA ELDER: Jeanne
had him checked out,

and Time magazine had
never heard of him.

And Jeanne once again
told him that she was

the wrong person to talk to.

She couldn't seem to
make him understand this.

ROBERT STACK: Gordon
Phillips continued to hound

Jeanne Tovrea by phone.

If she was not in, he left
messages on her machine.

And Jeanne became certain that
Phillips was following her.

Mr. Phillips, I told you, I
do not want to meet with you.

SANDRA ELDER: Maybe
she'd be at a party,

or out shopping or
something, and she

thinks she saw this guy.

For a while there, it
was every time she went

somewhere she would see him.

He never came up to her, but
she would see him in a crowd.

And she was extremely
nervous about this.

GORDON PHILLIPS (ON TAPE):
Look, Jeanne, this is

Gordon Phillips checking back.

It's about 3:30, I will
call back around 5:00.

Thank you.

[machine beep]

ROBERT STACK: Police still have
no idea who Gordon Phillips is,

where he has gone, or
whether he was involved

in the murder of Jeanne Tovrea.

My greatest fear is
that I'll never know why.

It's inconceivable to me
that Jeanne was murdered.

This happens to
other people, it's

what you read in the newspaper.

It doesn't happen to my family.

I miss her.

She was my sister, she
was my best friend.

She was mine, and she
didn't deserve to die.

ROBERT STACK: When
we return, the saga

of a young Indian woman who
ran off to join the Air Force

and never came home.

In Manitoba, Canada, just
across the North Dakota border

is a family called
the Myran clan.

They are part of the plains
Ojibwe Indian nation.

In the 1940s, the Myrans
found themselves caught

between the global politics
of the Second World War

and the deeply rooted
traditions of the Ojibwe.

There were seven children
in the Myran family.

The youngest girl, Helen Rose,
was just six months old when

this picture was taken in 1925.

Her family has not seen her
for more than half a century.

It's been going on too long.

We've missed her too long,
too many years have gone by.

And we'd like to find her now.

No matter where she
is, we still love her,

and we're all concerned
about her, too.

ROBERT STACK: When the Myran
children were growing up,

they spent the winter months at
a government boarding school.

Every summer, they came home
to their parents' log cabin

on the Ojibwe reservation.

ACTRESS AS MRS. Myran: Helen
Rose, come and sit beside me.

ROBERT STACK: In
September of 1932,

the children prepared
to return to school,

even though their
mother was gravely ill.

And I might not be here
when you return from school.

Be a good girl, and
make me proud of you.

I will.

Goodbye.

ROBERT STACK: A month
later, Archie Myran

showed up at his children's
school, unannounced.

When you children
left last summer,

your mother was very sick.

FLORA MERRICK: Our dad came
and told us that our mother

had passed away.

And--

--she died there,
three days ago.

FLORA MERRICK: Right away I saw
what it was going to do to her.

ACTOR AS ARCHIE
MYRAN: Helen Rose!

ROBERT STACK: All of the
children were devastated,

especially Helen Rose.

Always her mother's
favorite, she would never

fully recover from the death.

By 1941, Helen Rose
was in her junior year

at the boarding school.

She was 17, and the world had
become a very different place.

Right now as I'm
speaking, the German hordes

are marching across
Europe, causing

havoc, destruction, and death.

ROBERT STACK: Hitler's armies
were threatening to overrun

the globe.

The new principal at
the boarding school

was actively interventionist,
and Helen Rose became swept

up in the anti-fascist fervor.

You know I've talked to you
about joining the reserves.

This is your opportunity to join
the world that really matters.

ANGUS MERRICK: He
was teaching them

the role of the other society,
and I presume that that's

where Helen got her
idea to better her life

with the outside world,
and to join the air force.

ROBERT STACK: Helen Rose
dropped out of high school.

In an unprecedented move
for an Ojibwe woman,

she'd listed in the
Royal Canadian Air Force.

When they discovered that
Helen Rose was underage,

the Air Force ordered her to
obtain her father's permission.

Helen Rose returned to
the reservation in July.

As a tribal elder, Archie
Myran was helping preside

over the annual [inaudible]
thirsting dance,

when the plains Ojibwe
erect traditional structures

and offer prayers
to the Great Spirit.

What is it you want
to talk to me about?

I would like for you to sign--

JEAN MEECHES: She had
papers, and she asked

my dad to sign those papers.

What is this paper?

It's to join the
Canadian armed forces.

I don't think I
want you to join

the Air Force, my daughter.

Why not?

JEAN MEECHES: And he
told her, that I don't

want you to die someplace else.

If you go to war,
you may not come back.

So he didn't sign those
papers, and Helen Rose got mad.

Said you'll never see me again.

I'll get someone else to
sign for me or something.

ANGUS MERRICK:
Friends and relatives

who would have been proud to
see Helen in the Air Force.

I often think now,
if he had consented

to signing his
name on there, this

would have been far different.

We would have-- I'm sure that
we would have had Helen Rose

with us here all this time yet.

ROBERT STACK: Helen Rose did not
return to her father's cabin.

She spent the
night with an aunt.

The next morning she
said her last goodbyes.

You take care of yourself,
and I'm going to miss you.

Yeah, I'm going
to miss you, too.

ANGUS MERRICK: When she was
leaving her auntie's place,

she told her auntie
well, I'm leaving now,

and you'll never see me again.

I'm not ever coming back.

Well, take care, OK?

ANGUS MERRICK: She
was very disappointed.

She wasn't actually mad,
but she was disappointed why

she didn't get that signature.

ROBERT STACK: Two
years later, Helen Rose

did return to the area.

And where are you
stationed, miss?

ROBERT STACK: When Angus Merrick
walked into the general store

15 miles from the
reservation, he was shocked

to see his sister-in-law.

Helen Rose!

Angus!

It's-- nice to see.

Helen Rose, how
you been doing?

Oh, I'm fine.

ANGUS MERRICK: She
had her uniform on,

and oh, she looked good.

Thank you.

ANGUS MERRICK: I
said you father's

just across the street, here.

I'll go and get him.

He'll maybe want
to see you, too.

I'll be right back, OK?

Just-- it won't take long.

So I went over and told Archie
that his daughter Helen was

there, and asked him, if he--

would you like to come?

And without hesitation,
he came right away.

By the time we got to the
store, I couldn't find Helen.

She disappeared.

She was here.

ROBERT STACK: 16 years
later, Archie Myran

died without ever
having made peace

with his youngest daughter.

Each year, Archie
Myran's family gathers

at the cemetery to
honor the entire Myran

clan with an Ojibwe ceremony.

The extended family now numbers
150, and still they long

for the return of Helen Rose.

Even if she is passed away,
her family wants to know,

so that Helen Rose's spirit
can be honored in accordance

with the Ojibwe tradition.

JEAN MEECHES: I don't know
what's keeping her away.

Surely she cannot hold
a grudge this long.

We have no part in it, it
was between her and my dad.

Not us.

She said she wasn't
going to come back,

and she has stuck
to her word, true.

Like a real Indian woman.

Join me next week for another
edition of Unsolved Mysteries.