Hell and Gone Murder Line: Lori Murchison

On Sept. 1, 1995, a police officer in Fort Smith, Arkansas pulled over a vehicle. A man named Jerry Cogan was driving and his girlfriend, 24-year-old Lori Murchison, was the passenger.  Lori worked at a local nursing home. She had a four year old daughter, Britney, and adored her little girl. But Lori had been battling an addiction to drugs, according to what her friends told police, mainly to methamphetamines and also alcohol.  Because of that, Lori had been living with her mother, Nancy, in between staying at different local motels, and Nancy had been taking care of Lori’s daughter on and off. Lori and Jerry had been at a bar that night. When the officer pulled them over, he believed that both of them had been drinking. So, he placed Jerry under arrest for DUI, and Lori for suspicion of public intoxication.  Lori was taken to the Sebastian County jail. And she was released sometime after 5 AM on September 2nd. She told detectives that she planned to get money and come back to bail Jerry out.  But she never returned to jail. The last time she was seen alive was at the Continental Motel, when she was picking up a key to a room.  Her family had no way of knowing where she was - or that the hunt for this missing mother would eventually involve charges of corruption at the highest levels of government.  If you have a case you’d like the Hell and Gone team to look into, you can reach out to us at our Hell and Gone Murder Line at 678-744-6145. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Om Podcasten

Hell And Gone is a true crime podcast from iHeartPodcasts and School of Humans that follows journalist and private investigator Catherine Townsend as she investigates unsolved deaths.  Now in its fifth season, Hell and Gone is going weekly.  Over the past five years of making true crime podcast Hell and Gone, host Catherine Townsend has received hundreds of messages from people all around the country asking for help with an unsolved murder that’s affected them, their families and their communities.  In past seasons of the show, she’s only been able to focus on one case. But now, she’s hosting a new weekly show called Hell and Gone Murder Line. Every Thursday, Catherine features a new case, adds updates to old ones, and helps as much as she can to get the word out about unsolved murders.  If you have a case you’d like Catherine and her team to look into, you can call the Hell and Gone Murder Line at 678-744-6145.