The Cold Case of The Gold Cross Necklace

In 1972, 14-year-old Lora Jean Dugan walked away from her Montana home after a family argument, intending to hitchhike across state lines. Three weeks later, her body was discovered 250 miles away in the rugged North Dakota Badlands—a cross necklace left dangling from a nearby tree.

Decades after the case went cold, modern genetic genealogy and renewed efforts by the Billings County Sheriff’s Office are finally closing in on a killer who has remained in the shadows for over 50 years. This episode explores Lora Jean’s final journey and the forensic breakthrough that may finally bring justice to the "Girl with the Cross Necklace."

Let’s pull back the shadows that have kept these cold cases in the dark for far too long. Piece by piece, we’ll work to rebuild the truth not just for the story, but for the victims and the families still waiting for answers. The puzzle isn’t complete yet, but together, we’re getting closer.

Transcript

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In the early morning hours of april thirtieth, nineteen seventy two, a rancher was scanning the rugged sag brush covered hills just three miles southwest of Medora, North Dakota. The Badlands are known for their harsh beauty, but that morning the landscape held a secret it was never meant to keep. Tucked in the woods, the rancher found the body of a young girl. She was only wearing a coat. Evidence found at the scene was she was sexually assaulted, stabbed numerous times, and strangled. But what also was found, it was what the killer left next to her that would haunt investigators for decades. Dangling from a low tree branch, swaying slightly in the prairie wind was a small, delicate cross necklace. Who was she? How did she end up there two hundred and fifty miles from her home? Welcome guys to Shadows Uncovered, and I'm your host Sarah. Today we're looking at the case of a fourteen-year-old Laura Jean Duggan. A girl who walked away from a family argument in Montana and into a 50-year mystery that North Dakota investigators are finally on the verge of solving. Now for five decades, Laura Dean's file sat in a drawer labeled unsolved. But in 1972, forensic science was in its infancy. In 2003, investigators took another look, but the technology just wasn't there yet. But science finally caught up to Laura Jean's killer. In late 2025, Billings County Sheriff Dean Weinkoff made an announcement that breathed new life into the case. His office alongside the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation is now utilizing the same forensic tools that unmasked a golden state killer, genetic genealogy. By taking DNA preserved from the 1972 case crime scene and uploading it into the public databases, investigators aren't just looking for a direct match. They're looking for killers' cousins, siblings, or distinctive relatives. Just guys, think about that. Somewhere right now, a person is living their life. Maybe they're in their 70s or 80s now, thinking they got away with what they did in those North Dakota hills. But their own family tree is currently being used as a map that leads investigators straight to their door. Sarah Weinkoff has been clear. They are not giving up. The silence of the bandlands is finally starting to break. Now, what they stated is, is this the work of the Golden State killer? Montana and California, yes, they are not exactly neighbors, but the timeline fits. Why did the killer, after sexually assaulting, stabbing her several times, and then strangling her, takes her necklace and hangs it up like a trophy on a tree branch? This case to this day in 2026 is still unsolved. What I don't understand is the fact that if they preserved the DNA from 1972, okay, is it the DNA being crossed by what possibly semen was left or what was found on her coat? Or what hand fingerprints was on the cross. Either way, here we are, and they still have it in CODIS, and there is still not a direct match. But it would be funny since Genete DNA forensics genealogy came out to right when they discovered the Golden State Killer was used for this case, which somehow, by theory, maybe, maybe linked to the Golden State Killer. But guys, if you have anything for this case, anything at all that could help investigators finally put the pieces of this puzzle together, please reach out and call them. Call that sheriff's office. Mr. Schenk Wenkoff. The Billings County Sheriff's Department's contact information is 701-623-4323. And it's for anyone who have may or have been near Huntley or Medora in April 1972. 50 years, guys. 50 years, and we're still waiting answers for her family. Now, majority of her family most likely has passed on. But even if her family has passed on, there's still this link of their puzzle missing. What happened to their daughter? All right, guys. Catch me next week when we have another unsolved, unfiltered, maybe off track kind of case. All right, guys. Bye.