REOPENED: Ice Cold in Denver

Summary

Cold Case Files: REOPENED: Ice Cold in Denver

Podcast: Cold Case Files
Host: A&E / PodcastOne, Paula Barros
Episode Date: January 22, 2026

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Overview

This episode of Cold Case Files revisits the brutal 1980 murder of Helene Pruszynski, a 21-year-old journalist-in-training whose life was cut short soon after she began an internship in Denver, Colorado. After going cold for nearly four decades, the case is finally solved thanks to advances in forensic DNA technology and the relentless advocacy of Helene’s friends, family, and a dedicated cold case unit. The episode explores the emotional journey from Helene’s disappearance through to the groundbreaking arrest and conviction of her killer, James Curtis Clanton.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

The Discovery of Helene Pruszynski’s Body

• [01:12-03:04]
  On a cold January morning in 1980, a woman and her children spot a body in Daniels Park, Colorado. Law enforcement arrives to a disturbing scene:
  • The victim, later identified as Helene Pruszynski, is found partially nude with her hands bound behind her back, a gag in her mouth, and multiple stab wounds.
  • The frozen ground preserves tire and boot prints, offering rare forensic clues in the era before widespread DNA analysis.

“You can't get a scene that has more tragedy in it… Law enforcement was really at that point just starting from scratch.” – Investigator [02:48]

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Helene’s Background and Relocation to Colorado

• [04:16-06:29]
  Through heartfelt stories from friends and colleagues, a portrait of Helene emerges:
  • Talented in journalism, singing, and community involvement; “She just did it all.” [04:49]
  • Had just moved to Denver for her dream internship at KHOW radio, where she quickly impressed her professional mentors.

“She was really not like an intern. She was more like a regular professional journalist.” – Mike Anthony, News Director [05:53]

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The Frantic Search and Devastating Discovery

• [06:36-09:18]
  After Helene’s failure to return home, loved ones and police launch a search. Her body is confirmed by a colleague:
  • Helene had been missing since leaving the radio station around 6:00 pm.
  • Bob Scott, a reporter and friend, is the tragic identifier at the crime scene.

“It was the worst thing I ever had to do, and it’s never left my mind.” – Bob Scott [09:14]

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Early Investigation Stalls

• [09:33-14:50]
  The autopsy confirms sexual assault and multiple stabbings. Although evidence is meticulously preserved, 1980s technology offers few paths forward.
  • Critical witness reports a suspicious male and car at the scene, helping generate a composite, but leads dry up.
  • Helene’s family and friends are left devastated, and the case goes cold within a year.

“There just wasn’t any more leads for detectives to go off of. In the 80s, DNA wasn’t something that you can go test to figure out who it was. There were no fingerprints…” – Cold Case Team Member [14:56]

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False Confessions: The Lucas & Toole Distraction

• [15:11-17:17]
  In 1984, serial killers Henry Lee Lucas and Otis Toole falsely confess to Helene’s murder.
  • They echo details already released in the media, but key facts (e.g., claiming Helene was shot) are wrong, confirming their story is not credible.

“As it turns out, Ottis Toole and Henry Lee Lucas…fabricated information that can quickly be discredited.” – Narrator [17:17]

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Victim Advocacy and Relentless Pursuit of Justice

• [18:13-21:18]
  Despite the cold trail, Helene’s high school friends create a scholarship and constantly push investigators.
  • One friend builds a website with tracking features hoping the killer might visit.
  • Regular check-ins with detectives and media outreach keep Helene’s story alive.

“Mine wasn’t golf. Mine was solving Helene’s case for her family…when Kimberly makes a promise, there’s no breaking that promise.” – Helene’s Friend [19:03]

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Breakthrough via Genetic Genealogy

• [21:33-25:23]
  In the 2010s, a new sheriff establishes a specialized cold case unit.
  • Investigators collaborate with United Data Connect, using genetic genealogy to build a DNA family tree and identify partial matches.
  • The breakthrough comes when the killer’s biological mother, who had placed two sons for adoption, is found. One son is ruled out; focus turns to Curtis Allen White.

“Genetic genealogy is using a DNA technique that then allows you to apply genealogy techniques…” – Mitch Morrissey [22:43]

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Closing In: The Identification and Arrest

• [25:23-27:24]
  • Curtis Allen White had a history of violent sexual assault and changed his name to James Curtis Clanton.
  • Living in rural Florida as a truck driver, Clanton is surveilled by undercover officers, who obtain his DNA from beer mugs at a bar.
  • The DNA matches the evidence collected in 1980.

“Within days, those detectives got back a positive result, that the DNA that was found on the beer mugs matched the DNA that he had left 40 years earlier…” – Detective [27:24]

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The Confession and Prosecution

• [29:59-33:37]
  • Clanton is confronted and arrested under a ruse, then confronted with evidence and confesses during interrogation and on the flight to Colorado.
  • He describes stalking Helene, kidnapping her at knifepoint, and ultimately assaulting and killing her.

“He knew he was going to grab a girl, kidnap her, rape her and kill her.” – Narrator [33:24]

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Bittersweet Resolution

• [33:49-35:32]
  • Helene’s friends and family, many of whom kept her memory alive for decades, finally experience the relief of justice – though the loss remains profound, as her parents and brother had passed away before the case was closed.
  • Clanton pleads guilty in 2020 and is sentenced to life in prison.

“We can soften the edges around the broken pieces of our hearts and be with Helene in a different way now…not being buried in her murder, but being buried back into the joy and the spirit of her life.” – Helene’s Friend [34:40]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “She was always smiling. Always smiling…I made a promise to her parents that I would not rest until we found out who, why, how, and get the answers for them.” – Helene’s Friend [00:45]
• “It was mind boggling how many people played a significant role in all of this. We will forever be grateful for everything that they did.” – Helene’s Friend [34:40]

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Important Segment Timestamps

• [01:12] – Discovery of Helene’s body in Denver
• [04:16] – Insight into Helene’s life and aspirations
• [09:33] – Autopsy details and the critical preservation of evidence
• [14:56] – Case grows cold after exhausting leads
• [15:20] – Serial killers’ false confessions
• [21:33] – Cold Case unit re-opens investigation with advanced DNA tools
• [25:23] – Identification and investigation into Curtis Allen White/James Curtis Clanton
• [27:24] – DNA match confirms the killer’s identity
• [33:49] – Family and friends react to resolution; Clanton is convicted

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Tone and Language

This episode balances empathy for the victim and her loved ones with methodical, detailed recounting of the investigation and forensic breakthroughs. The narrative is measured, respectful, and often poignant, especially when amplifying the voices of Helene’s friends and journalistic mentors.

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Conclusion

Ice Cold in Denver is both a testament to the impact of loss and the determination of loved ones and investigators to seek justice, no matter how much time passes. The story underscores not just technological advancement, but also the enduring human drive to seek closure and honor those stolen by violence.

Transcript

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[Narrator]

This episode contains descriptions of violence and sexual assault. Listener discretion is advised. My philosophy on life. You should just be yourself and make.

[Helene's Friend]

The best of everything and smile.

[Narrator]

That's what I do all the time.

[Helene's Friend]

I met helene in the 1970s. She was always smiling. Always smiling. I can still. I can still hear Helene's voice. I can still feel her presence. And that's why I made a promise to her parents that I would not rest until we found out who, why, how, and get the answers for them. And I made a promise to her because it shattered all of us.

[Narrator]

There are 120,000 unsolved murders in America. Each one is a cold case. Only 1% are ever solved. This is one of those rare stories. It's cold in Douglas County, Colorado, on the morning of January 17, 1980. A woman and her children are driving through Daniels Park, a wide open expanse of land along County Road 67. Snow still sits on the frosty ground throughout the fields, but. But something catches her son's eye as he glances out the window. The woman can't pull over because she has her kids in the car, so she drives on and finds a road worker. She tells him that she thinks there is a woman's body in the field. Douglas county sheriff's officers arrive at the scene and find the body of a young female lying on her back. It's a disturbing scene, so the deputies call in the Colorado Bureau of Investigation for help. Douglas County Sheriff Tony Spurlock and Lt. Tommy Barela recall how the victim was found.

[Investigator]

She was nude from the waist down, but wearing socks. Those are strong indicators that this is a sex assault murder. It appeared that she had some kind of gag around her face and mouth and it looked like her hands were bound behind her back. When they rolled her body over, it was clear that she had been stabbed numerous times.

[Cold Case Team Member]

It was dark and wet where she had been bleeding into the ground. So they knew that this was probably where she was killed.

[Investigator]

You can't get a scene that has more tragedy in it, no one knew who this individual was. Law enforcement was really at that point, just starting from scratch. Who is this in the field? How did she get here and what happened to her?

[Narrator]

The large red stain where the victim had bled out is a stark contrast to the glistening white patches of snow throughout the muddy field. The cold weather is surprisingly beneficial to crime scene investigators. Tire tracks and footprints are preserved in the frozen ground. Two sets of footprints can be seen going into the field, but only one is seen leading out of the field. It looks like a boot print. So investigators know that the victim had not just been dumped there, they had been led there and killed. They still have no idea who she is, though. There are no women matching the description listed as missing in Douglas county. So they check with the neighboring towns. It doesn't take long for Englewood police officers to contact them and say that a 21 year old woman had been reported missing the night before. Her name is Helene Pruszynski. Helene was the youngest child of Chester and Henrietta Pruszynski. She was born in New York and spent some of her childhood in Long island before the family moved to Hamilton, Massachusetts, a small town north of Boston. She attended Hamilton Wenham Regional High School, where she met her friends Mitch Sherman Theulin and Kimberly Latourette.

[Helene's Friend Kimberly or Mitch]

I first met Helene freshman year in high school. We had study hall and I met her there. There was a group of girls that all had the same schedule and we all made a. A quick, close connection. She very much wanted to be part of the school and part of different organizations. Very much into drama, very much into the school spirit. She was into poetry. She was into singing. She had a beautiful voice.

[Helene's Friend]

She was in cheerleading. She was the editor of the school newspaper. She was on the honor roll. She was in the homecoming court. She just did it all.

[Narrator]

Helene was interviewed for the school radio show before she graduated. It was the beginning of a promising career as a broadcaster.

[Helene's Friend]

Philosophy on life.

[Detective or Interviewer]

Your philosophy on life.

[Narrator]

Yeah, I have one.

[Helene's Friend]

You should just, I don't know, be.

[Narrator]

Yourself and make the best of everything.

[Detective or Interviewer]

Smile. Smile.

[Narrator]

Yeah, that's what I do all the time. Helene left home and began studying journalism at Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts. And during her senior year in 1979, she landed her dream internship at KHOW in Colorado. Helene's classmate had also gotten a position at khow, so they stayed together with Helene's aunt and uncle just to bus ride away from their new job. News director at the station, Mike Anthony and reporter Bob Scott. Remember the potential Helene showed from the start.

[Mike Anthony (News Director)]

You couldn't ask for much more out of an intern. She was spot on everything that she did. I'd be in the anchor booth getting ready to do a newscast and a bulletin would come across and she'd always grab it and slip it to me. She was really not like an intern. She was more like a regular professional journalist.

[Bob Scott (Reporter)]

I was so impressed with her from day one because at the end of each shift she would call me on the two way and say, how can I do this better? She was a hard worker. She wanted to do her job right and worked very hard to accomplish that.

[Narrator]

Helene had been working on January 16th and Mike had been one of the last people to speak with her before she went missing.

[Mike Anthony (News Director)]

It was a cold day and it looked like it was going to snow. Helene came in the news booth and said, it's starting to snow outside and I'm a little concerned about my bus ride home. And she said, could I leave a little bit early if I need to? I said, if you'll wait 15 minutes, I'll give you a ride home. I said I'd feel a lot better if you let me take you home. She thought about it for a minute and she said, no, I think I'll just ride the bus. I left the station that night to go home, which was about 6:15. The phone rang about 8:30 or 9:00 clock and it was Helene's aunt. And she said, helene has not come home yet. Do you know if she went someplace that I'm not aware of? And I said, no. She left the station right around 6 o'. Clock. Said she was going to catch the bus and go straight home.

[Narrator]

It usually takes Helene an hour to get back home after work. But as time passes, her aunt and uncle become more concerned and they contact the Englewood Police Department to report her missing.

[Investigator]

The Englewood Police Department, you know, searched the area of the bus stop that she was dropped off at as well as where she would have been picked up at. And then kind of the route between those two, the general area. They, you know, contacted businesses in the area. Did they see anyone that looked like, you know, a 21 year old young lady, you know, walking? They knew the route that she walked. Did anyone see her?

[Narrator]

Helene's colleagues at the radio station joined the search. They drive around town and along the route Helene would have traveled. One of the reporters, Bob, tries to get more information from the sheriff's office.

[Bob Scott (Reporter)]

I just, I just kept hoping there's some other explanation. We just kept hoping for some miracle that she would be okay. I was at the sheriff's office, Talking to a couple of investigators, See if they had any idea, anything else we could do. My best friend was a captain, and he said, we just had a call from Douglas county that they found a body of a young female, and they want you to go out and see if you can identify it. I just knew this had to be her. This was the only reported missing young female. I just sickened my stomach. I didn't want to go to the scene and identify the body, but didn't have any choice. We drove down to the location. I had to get out and walk out into the snowy field. But as soon as I got to the body, I knew it was her. I instantly knew it was her. It was the worst thing I ever had to do, and it's never left my mind.

[Narrator]

Helene's remains are taken to the medical examiner's office for an autopsy. The coroner determines that she had been stabbed nine times in the back. Her death had been caused by severe blood loss and collapsed lungs. She had also been sexually assaulted.

[Cold Case Team Member]

They were able to find some fluid, some dry fluid. Could possibly be saliva or. Or it could be semen. So they took samples of it and they preserved it. And in 1980, nobody really knew what DNA was, but for whatever reason, the people working on this case just did a phenomenal job of preserving all of her evidence.

[Investigator]

The way that she was murdered does give an indication that this is a crime of passion, and so that sometimes leads to an individual who might know her.

[Narrator]

The violence and brutality of the murder indicate that Helene had been killed by someone she knew. But she'd only just moved to the area, and the only people she knew were her co workers at khow.

[Mike Anthony (News Director)]

I was contacted by several investigators after the day that Helene was found, and they wanted all the information I could give them about people that worked for me, People in the radio station, anybody she had come in contact with, or if there was anybody I thought that might want to harm her.

[Narrator]

Helene had worked just two weeks of her internship, but her colleagues are eager to help the police catch her killer. They issue a reward of $10,000 for any information and keep the case in the news. In the hope of someone coming forward.

[Cold Case Team Member]

A lady contacted law enforcement. She had saw a vehicle parked on the side of the road in the location that Helene's body was found. She saw a male suspect that was appeared to be kneeling down by the rear of the vehicle and looked toward her.

[Investigator]

Investigators used hypnosis and a crime scene sketch artist to develop a composite of a suspect that she thought she had seen.

[Cold Case Team Member]

They have a composite of this white male with, you know, thick hair, kind of parted to the side with the mustache. But it was aired and nothing ever came of it.

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[Narrator]

Helene's friends and family in her hometown are shocked and devastated by the news of her brutal murder.

[Helene's Friend]

Going to her wake and her funeral was surreal, absolutely surreal.

[Helene's Friend Kimberly or Mitch]

It was very hard to get through. I remember sitting there surrounded by my friends. We all held hands. We all cried a lot.

[Narrator]

Helene's family is shattered by the loss of the youngest child. The toll it takes on them will last for the rest of their lives.

[Helene's Friend]

What could we say to her parents? When I looked at them, all the light had gone out of them and their eyes were just hollow and it was just really hard. They were never the same.

[Narrator]

Investigators continue searching for Helene's killer. But more than a year after the murder, the case goes cold.

[Cold Case Team Member]

There just wasn't any more leads for detectives to go off of. In the 80s, DNA wasn't something that you can go test to figure out who it was. There were no fingerprints, so the case became a cold case.

[Narrator]

That is until 1984, when a confession from a notorious pair of serial killers jump starts the investigation once more.

[Detective or Interviewer]

Did you kill that girl? Has a green thing around her neck. Yeah. You remember her for sure? Yeah. There's no doubt in your mind? No doubt.

[Narrator]

It's been four years since 21 year old Helene Pruszynski was brutally murdered in Colorado. And and two men who claim they've killed hundreds of women say that Helene is one of their victims.

[Detective or Interviewer]

Okay, the time is 11:20am we're back in our interview with oddest Tool. Do you remember if you were sitting at the bus stop waiting for somebody to get off or did. I wouldn't just pull up on the bus stop, wait for somebody to get off my bus and ask me where we're out. Was this girl right at the bus stop or was she? I say she was waiting for the bus. Was Dan show a Cole out there too as it's snowing outside. Somebody comes along, offers a ride, they gonna take a ride instead of waiting on the bus.

[Narrator]

Henry Lee Lucas and Otis Toole are known serial killers in the United States who have confessed to numerous murders. They've been in Colorado and Otis Toole claims that they killed Helene.

[Detective or Interviewer]

She was found in a field, wasn't she? In a big open field not too far from the road.

[Narrator]

Otis Tool says that Henry Lee Lucas tied Helene's hands up. But much of his confession contained things that had already been published in the media.

[Investigator]

During the interview with these two individuals, investigators were getting a lot of information that was common in the Helene crime scene that she was abducted, that she's taken to a field, that she was sexually assaulted, that she was stabbed, and then one of them said that they had shot her in the head. That caused the investigators to pause, because we know that that didn't occur.

[Detective or Interviewer]

Everything you told us today about that.

[Narrator]

Girl that we showed you the picture of, that's true.

[Detective or Interviewer]

Yeah. You can't just make that up out of your mind. You don't think I'm that smart, do you? I can make up all that.

[Narrator]

As it turns out, Ottis Toole and Henry Lee Lucas confess to numerous other murders they didn't commit because they want to be notorious serial killers. They repeat details about Helene's death known through the media and fabricate information that can quickly be discredited without a solid case against them. Investigators rule the pair out. They did not kill Helene. Helene's friends and family do their best to keep her memory alive, and they continue to check for new leads in the case.

[Mike Anthony (News Director)]

I continued to follow everything that took place, and I checked back frequently with people that I knew in Denver to see if anything had ever been discovered and if they were on any trails or had any new input. And every time I checked back, it was nothing. Nothing.

[Helene's Friend]

Some people were frustrated thinking, you know, we'll never know. But it certainly never left our minds. And we were always talking with one another about what else could we do. Over the years, we stayed in touch with Helene's family.

[Helene's Friend Kimberly or Mitch]

It was difficult because it was way before cell phones and social media, but I stayed connected with her sister. I stayed connected with her parents. I used to go and visit them, but, you know, you look around the room and who's missing? Helene. And that never should have been.

[Narrator]

Helene's parents establish a scholarship in her name to be given to a student each year that embodies the characteristics she had. Her high school friends, Kimberly and Mitch, and choir director Cece Faulkner. Hunt never give up on their pursuit of justice.

[Helene's Friend]

We were all building families. Now we're married, we're having children, we're building careers. But this never left us, not for a moment. Then, outside of my marriage, outside of being a mom, outside of my career, you know, people say, well, what's your hobby? And mine wasn't golf. Mine was solving Helene's case for her family. Because we didn't think that her parents or her family should carry that burden, that we were going to start to just at least drive it with the detectives in the sense that we would be calling the detectives. Where are you on this case? Have there been any advancements I made a promise to her parents that I would not rest until we found out who, why, how, and get the answers for them. And when Kimberly makes a promise, there's no breaking that promise.

[Narrator]

Years stretch into decades, and there are no leads to pursue. With the evolution of forensic technology, the evidence is logged into the database in the early 2000s. The DNA sample is run through the Combined DNA Index System, also known as CODIS. But there is no match. It seems that Helene's killer has gotten away with murder. On the 26th anniversary of Helene's death in 2006, Kimberly and CeCe and other members of the original Harmony Choir travel to Colorado and retrace Helene's steps. They contact every media outlet. Helene's case is headline news. But the outreach doesn't bring the spark they hope for. Kimberly tries something else, building a website dedicated to Helene's case.

[Helene's Friend]

I secured a friend of mine who is a software developer, and we built traps on the website to say if anyone goes to the website, we want to, you know, collect their IP address and we want to know how long they sit on each page of the website. And then they would generate a report and send the Colorado Bureau of Investigation a report of who went to that website in the hope that the killer would go to the website and we could find him that way because the DNA through the CODIS system, there were no hits. And so we were trying to find other ways to trap him.

[Narrator]

Kimberly keeps pushing for nine more years, asking to try new forensic techniques and desperately seeking answers. Eventually, things change within the police department. A new sheriff, Tony Spurlock, and a new unit heats the cold case up.

[Investigator]

So when I became elected sheriff, one of the first things I did is I created a cold case unit with a full time detective. And that unit, their only job really was to start from scratch. And I brought in Lieutenant Tommy Barella and I said, listen, I need you to solve those cases. I need you to make some, make some moves on us.

[Cold Case Team Member]

He established a cold case review team that's made of five civilians. Two of them are lawyers, one of them is a doctor, and the other two are people that had an interest in this. He really wanted us to put a lot of energy and work into getting these cold cases solved. And he said, you know, I would like to see two solved in the next two years.

[Narrator]

The renewed hope in the case centers around the DNA sample investigators had completed from Helene's body 40 years earlier. DNA technology wasn't around in 1980, but the cold case investigators have new tools that may help them identify Helene's killer. The investigators begin to work with United Data Connect. Co founder of the organization, Mitch Morrissey, explains the new technique they would be utilizing.

[Detective or Interviewer]

Genetic genealogy is using a DNA technique that then allows you to apply genealogy techniques, liken it to getting you in the ballpark. And now you use genealogy techniques to find your seed.

[Narrator]

The cold case team gives them the suspect's DNA, and the genetic genealogists build a family tree using commercial genealogy sites. They run the DNA through those sites and look for anyone with even partial DNA matches based on the science behind something called Centimorgans.

[Detective or Interviewer]

Centimorgans is a unit for measuring DNA. You and I may not be related at all, so there'd be no Centimorgans. If you and I were siblings, it would be a very high number.

[Narrator]

The genealogists work on building the family tree for weeks until they finally get a promising lead. Thanks to the advancements in DNA technology, investigators were able to identify what looked to be the killer's mother. Finding the mother of the person responsible for Helene's murder wasn't the home run investigators hoped for, though.

[Detective or Interviewer]

She was the mother of multiple kids. But the women could be thrown out right away. They didn't commit this crime because it was a male sample, it was a semen sample. But by all accounts and all records, she didn't have any boys. So we thought, this is a problem.

[Cold Case Team Member]

Everything was relooked at again, and phone calls started being made to possible family members in this. In this possible family tree, asking people if they would voluntarily give samples of their. Of their DNA. And as we're testing these people and getting their DNA, these synth the Morgans, the numbers are increasing. And as the numbers increase, that means we're getting closer and closer to our suspect.

[Narrator]

Detectives question the woman's relatives, and they discover that she had two sons and she had placed both of them up for adoption. Using contemporary research through old newspaper archives, the team finds an article about a reunion between this woman and her son. The article also references another son. They are able to eliminate one of the sons quite quickly because his DNA was already in the CODIS system and it did not match the DNA found at the scene. So they focus on the other son, Curtis Allen White. Curtis Allen White had committed a violent rape at knifepoint prior to 1980 and had been convicted. But DNA was not taken back then, and he was paroled to Colorado after serving a very short sentence.

[Cold Case Team Member]

He was out here during the time that Helene came here in 1979 and was out here during the time that Helene would have been murdered. So now we're feeling like, okay, this could be our guy. We check his fingerprints and they come back to a guy named James Curtis Clanton down in Florida. So detectives follow up on that and James Curtis Clanton is arrested in 1998 for domestic violence. And once they send the booking photo to us, when it was compared to the composite drawing that was given to us by a lady under hypnosis in 1980, we're almost identical. Now we know that Curtis Allen White and James Curtis Clanton are the same person.

[Narrator]

He changed his name to Clanton in 1982, and in 2019, he's living in a small town in rural Florida and working as a truck driver. Investigators are sure this is their guy. He looks just like the composite sketch from 1980. But they need to get his DNA to prove that he's the killer. It's now November 2019, and the detectives board a plane from Colorado to Florida to tail Clanton and discreetly obtain his DNA if possible.

[Detective or Interviewer]

When you're out looking for someone's DNA, you have to be careful. What you do is use undercover officers to surveil the individual and you're looking for abandoned DNA.

[Narrator]

Clanton wakes up early in the morning and drives off in his truck. By 3 or 4pm he's back at home and stays there for the night. His pattern of behavior gives the investigators no chance of getting a sample of his DNA without being noticed, until he decides to head to a local bar.

[Cold Case Team Member]

When he leaves, the waitress takes the mugs off the bar and puts them underneath. Doesn't wash them yet, just puts them underneath to wash them at a later time. And the detective is watching it and the owner comes in and meets us out back and hands us these mugs.

[Detective or Interviewer]

And within days, those detectives got back a positive result, that the DNA that was found on the beer mugs matched the DNA that he had left 40 years earlier on this poor victim's clothing. And we had our man.

[Cold Case Team Member]

James Curtis Clanton is our murderer. Now there's a murderer on the loose. So we send four detectives down to conduct 24 hour surveillance on him because anything he does at this, from this moment on, we would be responsible for.

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[Narrator]

It's December 11, 2019, one week since Clanton's DNA was confirmed to match the DNA found on Helene's body 39 years earlier. Investigators gather on Clanton's property and tell him that they are investigating a large insurance scam and his name came up as a suspect in a multi million dollar case.

[Cold Case Team Member]

We want to talk to him and try and get a confession, but I had never interviewed a murder suspect. Detectives in the Cold Case unit weren't comfortable interviewing the suspects for the same reasons. So we were wondering how we want to approach this. Who should approach it? What sex should the interviewers be? We're playing with very high stakes right now and we want justice for Helene and just arresting a person is injustice. Having that person, you know Being held accountable is justice.

[Narrator]

Clanton agrees to go to the police headquarters for an interview. In the interrogation room, Clanton begins to wonder if he will be able to get to work the next day. His question is answered when Corporal Trindle slides a photograph of Helene across the table. He makes it clear this isn't about insurance fraud.

[Detective or Interviewer]

You could probably tell by now that there's more to this than this financial case, right? So we talked about how I don't really care about stolen cars, 1980 in Colorado, but we do care about a young woman in Colorado in 1980 and we want to. I want to show you a picture of her and see if you recognize her. I think I want to turn now.

[Narrator]

The investigators are certain that they are face to face with Helene's killer and they let him know we actually have.

[Detective or Interviewer]

Do have a warrant for your arrest for first degree murder and kidnapping.

[Mike Anthony (News Director)]

For what?

[Detective or Interviewer]

First degree murder and kidnapping. That's what we got the wrong guy. We actually have your DNA in her head on her.

[Narrator]

James Clanton is arrested and turned over to the custody of the Union County Sheriff's Office, where he is held without bond pending his extradition. On the flight back to Colorado, Clanton opens up to Lieutenant Barella about that cold January night in 1980.

[Detective or Interviewer]

Do you remember what you were wearing?

[Cold Case Team Member]

You have been wearing cowboy boots, shoes.

[Detective or Interviewer]

I'm sure I was wearing cowboy boots.

[Cold Case Team Member]

What made Helene the right target?

[Narrator]

Faith. Clanton says he saw Helene stand up to get off the bus as he was driving past and he made a U turn as she was crossing the street. Clanton shows her his knife and she tells him she sees it. He put his arm around her and told her to come with him before he used the strap from her purse to tie her hands behind her back.

[Detective or Interviewer]

She didn't tell me about herself. She asked me what I was doing and I, I told her that I was kidnapping her for money. And she said, well, my parents don't have any money and, you know, stuff like that.

[Narrator]

I didn't tell her what I was.

[Detective or Interviewer]

Really doing until we got into that woodshed.

[Narrator]

During the six hour flight, Clanton and Lieutenant Barela speak about everything and anything. Clanton is adamant that he had not committed any other crimes beside Helene's murder. And he angrily tells the lieutenant that women have always been the cause of pain in his life. He knew he was going to grab a girl, kidnap her, rape her and kill her.

[Investigator]

It was one of those kinds of feelings where it, it hits you in the chest. You're like, we, we've got this guy.

[Narrator]

It's the news Helene's family and friends have been waiting almost four decades to hear. It is bittersweet as Helene's brother and parents passed away before her killer was caught.

[Bob Scott (Reporter)]

I was just amazed, just amazed and glad. I'm glad that they caught him.

[Helene's Friend]

That was a phone call I won't forget. Finally hearing that they got the guy was such a shock. It was just like this huge jolt of happiness.

[Mike Anthony (News Director)]

I was just totally elated that it finally happened after 40 years.

[Helene's Friend]

It was a relief. But there's never closure on something that's so heinous like this.

[Narrator]

In February 2020, James Clanton pleads guilty in a Colorado courtroom and is sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 20 years. It took 40 years and countless dedicated people to finally bring him to justice.

[Helene's Friend]

We went out for the sentencing of this murderer and we got in a big group for a group photo afterwards. And it was mind boggling how many people played a significant role in all of this. We will forever be grateful for everything that they did. The big void is now closed. And now we can really start with the healing. You can't heal when that wound remains open. And we'll never heal completely. But now we can soften the edges around the broken pieces of our hearts and be with Helene in a different way now, you know, not being buried in her murder, but being buried back into the joy and the spirit of her life.

[Narrator]

Cold Case Files is hosted by Paula Barros. It's produced by the Law and Crime Network and written by Eileen McFarlane and Emily G. Thompson. Our composer is Blake Maples for A and E. Our senior producer is John Thrasher and our supervising producer is McKamey Lin. Our executive producers are Jesse Katz, Maite Cueva and Peter Tyler. This podcast is based on A E's Emmy winning TV series, Cold Case Files. For more Cold case files, visit aetv.com.

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[Narrator]

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[Mike Anthony (News Director)]

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[Helene's Friend Kimberly or Mitch]

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[Helene's Friend]

This is the.

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[Narrator]

Never.

[Detective or Interviewer]

You're welcome.

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