HAWTHORNE — A springtime overnight drinking party on a ballfield about 15 miles southeast of Superior, Wisconsin, ended with the stabbing death of Rose Mary (Krawza) Wermter more than 45 years ago. But investigators still don’t have a clear picture of the events that led to the brutal slaying of the 27-year-old South Range woman.
Nevertheless, authorities have not given up on efforts to determine who was responsible and bring them to justice.
Douglas County Chief Deputy Sheriff Gerald Moe has been pursuing answers for decades, with FBI lab evidence indicating that as many as six people were directly involved at the crime scene.
“The case remains open, although inactive,” he said.
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Moe is still looking for further cooperation from any of the more than 60 people who attended the alcohol-fueled bash, at which many of the attendees were apparently underage.
“We are always willing to talk with anybody who feels they have information to share regarding the case,” Moe said. “We would be particularly interested in talking to the teenagers who were there. They would be anywhere from 55 to 65 years old now. Some have been identified. Many have not.”
Wermter’s nude body was recovered shortly before 5 p.m. April 19, 1980, reportedly hastily covered over with forest floor duff in a patch of swampy woods that bordered the playing field. She had stab wounds to her neck and upper chest.
A blood trail suggests the initial attack occurred on the ballfield and her assailant then dragged her out of view and into the woods.
Wermter left behind a husband, Dale Wermter, who died in 2011, and their son, Robert. Both father and son were together at home that evening.
She had last been seen in the early morning of April 19 at a bonfire, where partiers say they saw Randall “Randy” Luostari, the initial prime suspect in the murder, put an arm around Wermter and later walk off with her.
Authorities wasted little time in their pursuit of Luostari, executing a search warrant at the 27-year-old man’s home in Maple. Sheriff’s deputies reported seeing a light flash on and then off as they approached the residence. When they entered, officers said they believed Luostari fled out the back.
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A multi-day manhunt ensued, with Luostari eluding authorities until his surrender April 24.
Luostari stood trial for murder but was acquitted Aug. 8, 1980, after about three hours of deliberation, when evidence brought forward by the prosecution did not prove sufficient to convince the jury.
Four years later, Luostari was convicted of an unrelated violent sex crime: the kidnapping and repeated sexual assault of a woman who was found chained up at his residence.
Although he has served his prison sentence, Luostari remains committed for treatment under Wisconsin’s sexual predator law.
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Still looking for closure in the death of Wermter, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office
reopened the case in 1982 and has not quit.
In a previous statement on behalf of Wermter’s family and friends, sister Robin Krawza described her as “a warm, caring, beautiful young woman.”
“Those that loved and cared about her not only live with the painful memory of the tragic loss but also the uncertainty resulting from lack of closure,” she wrote. “Whoever is responsible for her death must be held accountable.”
Submit tips about this case to the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office at 715-395-1230.
Peter Passi covers city and county government for the Duluth News Tribune. He joined the paper in April 2000, initially as a business reporter but has worked a number of beats through the years.
