Baby Lisa Irwin - 11 Years Later
This weekend marks 11 years since Baby Lisa Irwin was last seen in Kansas City, Missouri. It is almost a sure bet that there will be a brief story on one or more of the area's television stations with the parents showing what they purport to be an age-progressive photo. In my opinion, that is very disgraceful.
The days that followed October 3/4, 2011, the parents hibernated. They did not appear to go to the police station and fully cooperate, which would also have diverted suspicion of culpability of knowledge from themselves.
I do not pretend to know who is responsible for Baby Lisa's death or disappearance. Nor am I dumb enough to accuse any one person. But I still believe she died that night.
As a parent, I know that if I believed my child was kidnapped, I would be the biggest pain you ever saw. The day the cadaver dogs hit on the a spot in the Irwin parents' bedroom floor, I was on the phone with Mark Klaas who's daughter Polly Klaas was abducted in 1993. Mark told me when that happened he went to the police station and demanded to be given a polygraph, so they would discount him as a suspect and look outward.
On January 7, 2012, I was invited to Deborah's aunt's house by her aunt to discuss the potential leads that could be looked at. Rather than cooperate with authorities, that day Jeremy Irwin drove his wife Deborah Irwin to where I was. We spent around four hours sitting on the couch.
On February 3, 2012, the parents appeared on local television on the Dr. Phil Show. That night, I was the lead guest on HLN's Jane Velez-Mitchell Show. The first question Jane asked me was what I thought about the appearance on the Dr. Phil Show. I replied that I think if you want to find your baby you go to the Kansas City police department, not Dr. Phil.
When the showed aired that night, a Florida cousin of Deborah's messaged me and asked me why I said that. I told her, because I believe it. She then asked why I was even on the show. I told her I was invited to be on the show; and, perhaps on my next invitation, if she would like, I could clear it through her first.
Since then, the National Enquirer wanted to pay me for my story on my front row seat. Didn't happen. A few months after the Dr. Phil appearance, I saw Jeremy at my bank. I tried to speak once and he would not. I didn't push it. I did stand in line long enough to hear that he was withdrawing over $2,000 in cash. The teller had to go to the vault. No confidentiality breached on that. This was the public lobby of the bank. I do not know the source of that money. Maybe they are good savers.
A few years ago, two young women made an appointment to come see me in my office. They told me they were writing a book on the case. They told me the parents turned them away from their property. They said they were referred to the parents' local "publicist", whom they contacted to try to arrange an interview. They told me the first question the "publicist" asked them was, "Have you spoken to Ron Rugen yet?"
I never made a dime off this case. I am not complaining, I am just affirming that. I never asked for any money. I just wanted to help.
I started working it as a former broadcast journalist and a parent. People close to the case started talking to me and grew to trust me. I reported in my blogs what I was finding out in hopes that others might see it, in case they may have something to contribute and share with authorities.
Coming full circle, there will be some people that will see these alleged age-progressive photos and it will tug at their hearts. Please do not let your emotions overwhelm you. I would be shocked to believe that Lisa is still out there somewhere nearly 12 years old.
Just say a prayer for whomever is responsible for whatever happened to her.