Searching For Closure

In August of 2009, 15 year old Kayla Berg went for a drive with her 24 year old family friend. They left the small northwest town of Antigo, WI for a night of driving. That night was the last night anyone saw Kayla again.  Season 2 of the Searching for Closure podcast is dedicated to investigating and reporting on the unsolved missing persons case, of young Kayla Berg. 

New episodes start Monday morning. 

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Originally I had a much different episode recorded, but in light of recent events, I decided to record something different.

19th century German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche has a great quote that I feel fits in well with my investigation into this case.

He said, “Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”

The lack of leads and new information, the toll this case has taken on my mind, and the regret of bringing up painful memories of people just living their own lives trying to overcome a tragic event in their past has lead me to this point.

I don't have any business looking into people's person lives. I'm not a cop or a detective. I don't have any business contacting people and making them relive that horrible event. I’m not any closer to finding the truth then when I first started.

Also, for the safety of me, and my family, on the off chance that I actually do get too close or offend the wrong person by asking the wrong question, I am officially ending my investigation into the Tina Davidson Cold case.

So where does this leave the podcast?

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In the last episode I traveled up to Fond Du Lac WI to investigate the 1973 murder of 9 year old Lisa French. She was murdered by Gerald Turner, also known as the halloween killer.

As hard as I tried, I couldn't find anything to really tie the two killings together, besides the fact that they both happened in 1973 and they both happened in Wisconsin. For this episode I look into another suspect that most websleuths point to.

Dennis Brantner was born in 1953. He was a 5’10 and 200 lb long-haul trucker who originally grew up in Mondovi, Wi, about 20 miles from Eau Claire.

He also had a history of violence against women.

On  August 22, 1990, the body of Berit Beck was found. Authorities determined she was strangled and suffocated. Her body was discovered in a ditch about 18 miles away from the Forest Mall in Fond du Lac near U.S. 41.

Was Dennis Brantner the mysterious killer of Tina Davidson that has eluded police for 45 years? Or was it one of the two other long haul serial killers, Robert Ben Rhoades or Keith Hunter Jesperson?

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Our investigation takes us to the night of Halloween 1973, in Fond du lac WI.  9-year-old Lisa French stepped off her front porch for what should have been a fun autumn evening of trick or treating

She was on her way to her friends house, for a night of trick or treat. On her way though, she decided to stop at a few houses to get a little extra candy.

The last door she would knock on would be the home of Gerald Turner.

The front door had been left partially open, and Lisa peaked inside. She called out in her little 9 year old voice, “Trick or treat!” as Turner stepped into the room.  He invited Lisa in and lured her into his bedroom.

Besides the location and time period, what similarities does Lisa's case share with Tina's? Could Gerald Turner be Tina's killer?

Please sign the petition to help keep Gerald Turner off the streets.

https://www.thepetitionsite.com/713/926/478/petition-to-keep-the-quotthe-halloween-killer-gerald-m.-turner-incarcerated/

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Satanic panic. A phrase that was wide spread during the 1980s. But where did it start? And how did Satanism factor into Tina's case? A number of factors contributed to the increased interest in, and fear of, the occult during the late 1960s and 1970s.

Early in this investigation I found a long and wild blog that was written about Tina. It was from an author by the name of Frater Barrabbas. A self described author, witch, practitioner of ritual magick, past member of the OTO, Gnostic Bishop, founder of Order of the Gnostic Star, musician, artist, ritual ordeal craftmaster.

He claims to have known Tina, and her friends. He makes some other wild claims. Since Frater is an author, a real published author, one has to wonder how much of his work is true and how much he embellished. I wanted to ask him some questions, such as..

What could Frater have done to the killer with his magick skills? Can he use his magick against me for questioning him on this podcast? Did she seek him out for his powerful witch magick? Did she know that evil forces were after her and he was the only one who could protect her? Did Tina give him a description of what the killer looked like? Where was he on the night of March 26th, 1973? Between the hours of 8pm and Midnight?

I reached out to Frater, and the conversation was, well... interesting....

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Before I started this podcast, I never would have thought that Racine had many murders.

I knew that sure, there were bad elements. Drug deals gone wrong, gangs, domestic violence that ended tragically, but I never expected so many unsolved homicides. In the last episode I only investigated up to 1983. A listener however, has pointed out three unsolved homicides that really stuck out to her. So I thought I'd spend a little bit of time on this episode detailing those cases to see if I can add to the pattern I already developed. One that I missed from 1983, one from 1987, and one from 1990.

I've had a lot of positive feedback from listeners. Most people have nothing but good things to say. It's all, Very encouraging and supportive. They thank me for trying to bring this cold case back to light. To perhaps get new leads and new tips. They are happy that I am doing this. And wish me the best of luck in a truly sincere way. But i've also had a few people come at me with fairly strong negativity. Listeners have told me that People are suspicious that I am trying to find out who might know something. Who might be willing to talk 45 years later. Or that I’m trying to locate a specific person or persons who knew something but were too afraid to talk.  

I've also Received warnings from multiple people. They say i better be careful . The killer(s), yes killers as in plural, more than one, may be looking for me if if i get too close to the truth.

Do I believe there is a band of serial killers in their 60s, hanging out together in Racine, with their earbuds in listening to this podcast, sharpening their blades,  and plotting to keep themselves hidden in the shadows?  
 

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Serial killers are often attracted to victims who are very similar.

Maybe

 (There was a problem with the audio originally in this episode, it has been reuploaded and fixed) 

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What? Who? When? Where? Why? With what? And How?

These are the 7 circumstances. They constitute a formula for getting the complete story on a subject. Principles that I learned getting my diploma in Journalism. Answering each one of these questions just brought more questions. During my investigation, I've found the more that I dig, the more questions I'm left with. Some I've found answers to, but some just lead me either to a dead end, down a rabbit hole, or just in circles. On this episode, I call the Deputy Chief of Police in hopes of getting answers. I also issue a statement to Tina's sister, Bonnie, and I have a childhood friend of Tina reach out to me. She tells me about Tina, and who she thinks committed the murder.

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In order to really understand what happened on the night of March 26th, 1973, I needed to... hit the bricks, as they say. I had to get out onto the street and see the actual places where these events actually happened. I wanted to go to all the locations I had read about.
Tina's house on 20th st. Her friend's house on Quincy Ave.. Virginia and Washington avenue. And finally the beach off Main st where Tina's body had been discovered. I wanted to put myself in Tina’s eyes that night.  Get a feel for the neighborhood and surrounding areas. What part of town did this all happen in? I grew up in or near Racine my whole life, but I wasn’t too familiar with this section of town.

But the question is.. where to begin?

In this episode I investigate all those areas.  I conquer my fears and try to attempt to contact Tina's sister Bonnie in hopes of learning more about Tina. I spend hours going through microfilm news archives at the library and I go to the Racine Police Department to look for answers.

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