Content advisory: This episode includes discussion of rape and sexual assault.

A confrontation in the carport followed by an assault from a stranger. Joyce Yost survives a terrifying attack. Then, with some reluctance, she reports what had happened to the police. Detective Bill Holthaus interviews Joyce before heading out to find the man who'd assaulted her: Douglas Lovell.

Joyce Yost had never met the man who followed her home on an April night in 1985, who kidnapped and raped her. He threatened to kill her, but she went to police anyway. Then, she vanished. Joyce has never been found. Now, investigative journalist Dave Cawley delves into the decades-old case to uncover the details of a murder-for-hire plot to silence Joyce. Cold reveals flaws in the system that left Joyce unprotected, examines pitfalls of the death penalty and asks if there’s such a thing as justice for Joyce Yost.

Survivors of rape, sexual abuse and sexual assault and their allies in the United States can connect with free resources at https://www.rainn.org/.

See photos, files and more for this episode: https://thecoldpodcast.com/season-2/ep-2-a-case-of-rape/

Episode transcript: https://thecoldpodcast.com/season-2-transcript/a-case-of-rape-full-transcript/

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If you enjoy Cold, please try these other great shows from KSL Podcasts: The Letter, Ransom, Unsolved Histories