Cold Case Files – REOPENED: The Closers

Date: August 28, 2025
Host: Brooke Giddings (with archival narration by Bill Curtis)
Podcast: A&E / PodcastOne

Episode Overview

This episode examines the 1983 cold case murder of Elaine Graham, a young nurse and mother from Los Angeles, whose killer eluded authorities for decades. Through detective interviews, family member perspectives, and advances in forensic science, the story reveals how dogged investigators and emerging DNA technology finally closed the case. The episode delves into the emotional toll on detectives and families, highlighting the long-term effects of unsolved murders.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Disappearance of Elaine Graham

• Background: Elaine met her husband Stephen while working at Cedars Sinai. By 1983, they had settled into their dream home with their two-year-old daughter, Elise.
• The Day of Disappearance: On March 17, 1983, Elaine dropped off her daughter at a babysitter’s house and went to her university classes. She never returned to pick up Elise.
• Initial Discovery: By evening, her absence raised alarms. Her husband, Dr. Stephen Graham, reported her missing.
  • “If she didn’t pick up our daughter, I think she’s dead.” – Dr. Graham to Detective Buck [05:15]
• Media Interest: With a respected doctor for a husband and a missing young mother, the case quickly grabbed LA media attention.

2. The Investigation Begins

• Red Flags & Early Suspects: Detectives immediately began checking hospitals and the morgue, suspecting foul play due to Elaine's reliable habits.
• Discovery of Elaine’s Car: Five days later, Elaine’s yellow Volkswagen Bug was found abandoned 60 miles away in Santa Ana.
  • “Nothing inside the car tells detectives how it got there or where its owner might be.” [07:57]
• Forensic Efforts: Despite extensive searches and luminol tests, investigators found no useful evidence in the car.

3. A New Suspect: Edmund Marr

• Anonymous Tip: An informant pointed detectives toward Edmund Marr, whose troubled background included drug abuse, violence, and a recent Army discharge.
• Family Member Accounts: Marr’s sister, Cat Stevenson, detailed his strange and despondent behavior the night of Elaine’s disappearance.
  • “He was very reserved, almost depressed and quiet.” – Cat Stevenson [10:13]
• Background Checking: Detectives learned Marr was recently arrested for armed robbery.
• Interrogation: Marr denied ever knowing or seeing Elaine Graham. His lack of emotion unsettled detectives.

4. Finding Elaine Graham’s Remains

• Discovery: Eight months after the disappearance, hikers found a skeleton in nearby hills, which dental records confirmed as Elaine.
• Forensic Evidence: Toolmark experts detected stab wounds in Elaine’s vertebrae, indicating a stabbing death matching the profile of a particular dagger.
  • “This defect… was recognized as a linear crack in the bone on the front surface.” – Detective Bill Buck [14:11]
• Key Evidence: A dagger found among Marr’s belongings at the time of his robbery arrest closely matched the wounds.

5. The Long Road to Charge Marr

• Knife Analysis: Forensic tests on the dagger revealed type A blood (Elaine’s blood type), but technology in 1983 could go no further.
  • “Inside of the handle, you could physically see what looked to be a kind of dark red, dried, flaky material…” – Detective Bill Buck [17:12]
• Frustration: Without more, the DA declined to file charges, a severe disappointment for detectives who had invested years into the case.
  • “It was a bad feeling, but we just continued working it. Homicide detectives… just continue to grind.” – Detective Bill Buck [18:04]

6. Cold Case Resurrection & Breakthroughs

• New Cold Case Unit: Nineteen years later, LAPD reopens Elaine’s case, bringing fresh eyes and DNA technology to the long-dormant file.
• DNA Testing: Advanced testing on the dagger’s blood established it as female type A blood, but Elaine's cremation prevented direct DNA matching.
  • “And now the defendant was in the position of, even if it’s not Elaine’s blood, well, whose female blood is underneath your dagger?” – Detective Bill Buck [23:05]
• Reverse Paternity: Investigators used a sample from Elaine's daughter Elise, stripping out her father’s DNA, to show the blood could plausibly be from Elise’s biological mother.

7. Family Surveillance and Marr’s Slip-up

• Renewed Pressure: Detectives warned Marr’s family by planting news stories and monitored their calls, re-engaging old suspicions.
• Crucial Admission: In a secretly recorded family conversation, Marr’s cousin admitted he had confessed to stealing Elaine’s car—a detail he’d previously denied.
  • “Yeah, he said he took the car right away.” – Edward Cardona [28:11]
• Arrest: With the new evidence, detectives finally arrested Edmund Marr in 2005.

8. Justice & Impact

• Conviction: Marr avoided trial by pleading guilty to second-degree murder.
• The Victim’s Daughter Confronts The Killer:
  • “I would wish to see her the way you saw her, Edmund. Did she look something like I do now? I've been told that I have her cheekbones.” – Elise Graham [28:49]
  • “But I ask you, where was that mercy from my mother 22 years ago when you so selfishly and unnecessarily took her life?” – Elise Graham [29:25]
• Detective Reflection:
  • “This case was the only one that I left behind that I really wanted to see solved.” – Detective Bill Buck [29:34]
• LAPD’s ‘Closers’: The episode closes on a tribute to cold case detectives, described as "closers," who make it their life’s mission to bring resolution to victims' families.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Detective Bill Buck on the emotional toll of cold cases:
  “When you come over here, you don’t get too wrapped up into it until you actually pull out the book and start going through the photographs... the ones that get you are the ones of the victim while he or she was alive.” [02:53]

• On the importance of persistence:
  “Homicide detectives are guys that just continue to grind, and they just keep looking for that thread…” [18:04]

• On the calling of cold case work:
  “And when I was assigned this unit and we started working these cases, I think I figured it out.” – Detective Bill Buck [29:59]

Key Timestamps

• 00:00–05:35 – Background on Elaine Graham’s life and disappearance
• 06:01–07:57 – Car is found, initial investigation details
• 09:40–11:28 – Introduction of Edmund Marr as a suspect
• 13:06–14:30 – Discovery and identification of Elaine’s remains
• 15:31–18:51 – Evidence against Marr, frustration at lack of strong case
• 19:47–24:23 – Cold case unit uses new forensic tools; reverse paternity test
• 25:01–27:07 – Detectives revive public interest to pressure Marr’s family
• 27:22–28:11 – Marr’s cousin admits knowledge about Elaine's car
• 28:49–29:34 – Elise Graham confronts Marr in court
• 29:59–30:33 – Reflections on the significance of cold case closure

Tone & Style

The episode is empathetic but matter-of-fact, often somber and deeply respectful to victims and law enforcement. The perspective of both detectives and family members is presented with care, highlighting both procedural detail and the intense emotional impact.

Conclusion

“REOPENED: The Closers” is a powerful testament to the enduring work of cold case detectives. Through persistence, evolving technology, and the unwavering support of victims’ families, justice was finally served for Elaine Graham, decades after her life was tragically cut short.