In the early 1980s, Springfield, Illinois learned there was no safe hour.

On this episode of American Dread, we examine two unconnected crimes that unfolded just one year apart — one in broad daylight, the other in the dead of night — and how both shattered a city’s sense of safety.

In 1981, an axe attack inside Lauterbach Cottage Hardware left one man dead and a killer who vanished without a trace.

In 1982, a brutal double murder inside a family home was solved — but its consequences would resurface decades later in a devastating way.

These cases aren’t linked by suspects or motive.

They’re linked by place, time, and a chilling truth: violence doesn’t wait for darkness.

American Dread is part of the American Hauntings Podcast Network.

Check out our new American Hauntings Podcast Network for even more spooky shows.

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