Mike Safo with Lou Raguse, Award-Winning Reporter and Author

Mike Safo

Joined today by award winning journalist and author of the new true-crime book, "Vanished in Vermillion, The Real Story of South Dakota's Most Infamous Cold Case", Lou Raguse. Lou and I chat about his home state of Minnesota, iconic food, most famous Minnesotan and his Vikings. Lou tells us about covering high profile cases and what made the 1971 disappearance of Pam Jackson and Cheryl Miller intrigue him so much that he decided to write his first book about the case. We talk about the facts of the case, 2 high school girls go for a drive to a keg party and the car in front of them made a right turn, they made a left turn, and they were never seen again. Lou gets into the incompetence of the police in the early 70's, the closing of the case and why it was accepted. We discuss the forming of the Cold Case unit, why this case was chosen to be investigated and how a person already in prison became suspect number 1. Lou talks about the suspect, his surprise when the charges were dropped and the roller coaster of emotions covering the case. We hear about Lou reporting in Buffalo when the missing girls' car was found, his reaction, and how they identified Pam and Cheryl. Lou and I go over all the mistakes the police made early on, why the case should have been wrapped up in a weekend and the reaction to the book being written. He tells us the possibility of the book being optioned into a show/movie, the difficulty of getting the book published, and what is possibly next for him. Lou finishes up talking about jumping around from city to city, why he calls Minnesota home and how he conducted in interview with the two Japanese men who created Tecmo Bowl. All this and more with the award winning reporter and author. Follow Lou here: https://www.louraguse.com/