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Dateline: Under a Halloween Moon covers a destructive case from North Dakota. It happened on a Halloween weekend in 2007. Joel Lovelien was just 38 years old. He was celebrating at a bar in Grand Forks. He donned his favorite hockey jersey that night. The green shirt displays his team's shades. Joel was engaged to be married. His fiancée was with him at the bar. They had huge plans for their future together. But the night took a tragic turn. Joel went out to support someone. He never came back alive. His death remains a mystery even to this date.
The case is filled with costumes and confusion. Several people were dressed up that night. Cops found it hard to identify everyone. The investigation struggled from the beginning. Dateline: Under a Halloween Moon brings this story back to light.
Dateline: Under a Halloween Moon: Who was Joel Lovelien?
Joel was employed as a computer technician at the local hospital. Individuals knew him as a generous person. He liked hockey a lot. The University of North Dakota team was his beloved. Joel had recently met Heather Eastling. She was a 31-year-old grade school teacher.
They formed a connection quickly. They had only known each other for a few months. However, their wedding date had already been decided. Joel was excited about this future. That night, he smoked a cigar and played blackjack.
Heather donned a mechanic's uniform for Halloween. They were having a special time together. The couple had no idea trouble was coming.
What happened outside the Broken Drum?
Dateline: Under a Halloween Moon examines the events of the night. A party bus stopped at the bar. Around 50 people were on that bus. They wore unique costumes for Halloween. Among them were a clown, a cowboy, and a hunter.
Someone was wearing a yellow lion attire. There was also construction work and a gangster. They were bar-hopping throughout the town. The group had been drinking heavily. Joel got a phone call around 11:30 PM. He went outside to take it.
Then he came back inside the bar. He informed his fiancée that someone required help. Someone had been left behind by the bus. Joel went out again to check on them. He kissed Heather before going out. Minutes later, someone ran inside calling for help. Joel was lying in the parking lot.
Blood covered the group near his head. He could not respond to anyone. Heather ran outside in shock. Paramedics rushed him to the hospital where he worked. Doctors could not have saved him. His injuries were too severe. He had been beaten tragically. The bones of his face were shattered. He choked on his own blood. Cops found around 80 people were still at the bar. They also found a yellow piece of costume. It had blood spots on it.
The reason the case remains unsolved is
The Halloween costumes made everything complex for the cops. They had to find people quickly that night. Before people took off their costumes, they discovered a clown crying.
His hands were trembling as well. He requested a lawyer immediately. They found a cowboy who gave the wrong name.
He inquired about a green shirt with the initials UND. That matched what Joel was wearing. A man called Travis Stay came forward after two days. He was 23 and wore the yellow lion costumes that day. Blood was on his clothes and shoes.
The DNA in the blood matched that of Joel. Travis said he threw his costume away because of the blood stains. But he claimed he was innocent.
He mentioned he was too drunk to remember. Travis was arrested and charged with murder. He refused a plea deal. He went to trial for murder, but the jury declared him not guilty. They had too many doubts about the case. Dateline: Under a Halloween Moon displays how complicated it became. Joel was much bigger than Stay. The party bus timeline did not match up.
Several questions remain unanswered. Dateline: Under a Halloween Moon asks who really murdered Joel. His fiancée still seeks justice. She was troubled by the verdict. Travis never became a nurse. He went to law school. He apologized to Joel's family in public. But he still says he did not kill Joel.
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Dateline: Under a Halloween Moon stays unsolved. Joel Lovelien's killer walks free. Justice is yet to be served.
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