On Wednesday, September 29, we were joined by Kyra Breslin for a CrimeConversation hosted by our own Kelly McLear. Breslin is the writer, producer, and host of the podcast "Finding Lauren," which delves into the unsolved disappearance of Lauren Spierer. Spierer was an Indiana University student who went out to party with friends on June 3, 2011, and was never seen again.
Breslin's connection to the case came when she transferred to Indiana University in her sophomore year and arrived to a flurry of missing posters, from the airport to all over campus. While she never knew Spierer, she did know a lot of her friends and classmates, and even lived in the same apartment complex that Spierer had lived in.
Breslin was perhaps predisposed to take an investigative and journalistic path, as her grandfather was the famous New York Daily News columnist Jimmy Breslin. The podcaster grew up hearing stories about her grandfather investigating the Mafia and receiving letters at work from David Berkowitz, the "Son of Sam."
Breslin said she'll never forget arriving on campus that first day, being overwhelmed by all the missing posters. It's been ten years since Spierer disappeared, and Breslin can't believe that no new information has come to light, that more people aren't talking about the case, and especially that it hasn't been solved yet.
McLear asked Breslin why she felt compelled to launch the podcast digging into Spierer's case. Breslin explained that not only has it always haunted her, but she was there, lived a very similar lifestyle, and knew the culture at the school. She felt she'd be able to shine a light on the still unsolved case while making the story come alive for her audience with her own personal insight and experiences at Indiana University.