Dateline: True Crime Weekly

The Dateline Correspondents' Year in Review: Year of The Cold Case

Air date: December 25, 2025
Host: Andrea Canning
Guests: Josh Mankiewicz, Keith Morrison, Lester Holt, Lux Lester

Episode Overview

This festive year-end special brings together Dateline’s all-star correspondents for a look back at the biggest stories of 2025—declared "The Year of The Cold Case." Andrea Canning leads a lively panel discussion on the year’s most memorable true crime cases, focusing on how breakthroughs in technology, persistent families, and sheer investigative resolve led to long-awaited resolutions in previously unsolved cases. The group swaps road stories, analyzes trends, shares standout interviews, and chronicles what was learned—offering both behind-the-scenes insights and heartfelt reflections on justice and loss.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Thematic Overview: 2025 as "The Year of the Cold Case"

• The correspondents reflect on how a remarkable number of old, unresolved cases saw breakthroughs this year.
• Advances in forensic technology and determined family advocacy emerged as crucial factors.

What Makes a Cold Case Warm Up? (02:29–06:50)

• Emotional Toll on Families: Families don’t see their loved ones’ cases as ‘cold’, and "never give up," as Lux Lester notes.
• Law Enforcement’s Personal Investment: Police often carry cold cases for years and treat them personally (Keith Morrison, 03:43).
• Technology, Timing & Resources: "Two things solve cold cases," Lester Holt remarks: "changes in circumstance... and technology" (05:42). DNA and forensic innovations now enable evidence testing that was previously impossible.
• Funding: Sometimes solutions hinge on "good old fashioned resources," Josh Mankiewicz points out, recalling the Haunted House DNA phenotyping (06:10).

Spotlight on Major Cases

The Crystal Rogers Case (02:30, 06:50–07:56)

• A decade after her disappearance, her boyfriend is finally tried and convicted.
• "It was more of... a big puzzle and you just start putting more and more of the pieces together." – Andrea Canning (06:50)
• "The answer's in the box... It's always somebody that you already interviewed and discarded," Lester Holt on the tendency for answers to hide in plain sight (07:23).

Haunted House Confessions & DNA Breakthroughs (02:49, 06:10–06:50)

• DNA phenotyping allowed investigators to create a suspect’s image. When published, it was so accurate the suspect fled—and later confessed during a church service (Josh Mankiewicz, 06:12).

Wisconsin 'Raising the Dead' Case (03:57–05:42)

• After decades, police exhumed a body to compare DNA but ultimately acquitted the primary suspect—who remains living in the community, with doubts still lingering (Keith Morrison).
• Police efforts and community speculation form a central narrative.

Missing in America: Nancy Snow (08:04–10:10)

• Daughter’s heartfelt memories of missing mom Nancy Snow delivered in moving clip (09:18–10:10).
• "I want justice to be served. I want to know the truth. I will never stop looking for our mom." – Nancy Snow’s daughter (10:00).
• Panel discusses how disappearances “split the lives of people in that situation into two.” – Lester Holt (10:12).

The Importance of Closure & Bringing Them Home (11:08–12:05)

• Investigators feel their job “isn’t done unless I can say that I’ve been able to bring your loved one home so that you can say a proper goodbye.” – (Josh Mankiewicz, 11:08).
• The pain of not knowing is often greater than finality—“this uncertainty…cannot get it out of their heads.” – Keith Morrison (11:08).

Behind the Scenes: Memorable Moments & Trivia

Most Datelines by State (15:02–15:52)

• Top states in 2025: New York and California—a tie, with Florida next (Andrea Canning, 15:39).

Overseas & On the Road (16:00–18:36)

• Albania: Josh traveled for the Dr. Schwartz case, spending more time getting there than on the ground (16:00).
• Texas Death Row: Lux Lester interviews Robert Roberson, whose execution is stayed due to new science on shaken baby syndrome (18:02).
  • "How are you preparing for your own death...?" "I'm at peace if it happens, but I'm not ready because I don't think I should be executed when I'm innocent." – Robert Roberson (18:44).

The Lori Vallow Prison Interview (19:38–21:48)

• Keith Morrison recalls: "She wanted to sabotage at every turn. It was quite an experience." (20:06)
• Audience and host reaction: "You cannot be rude to Keith like that, or you will suffer our wrath." – Lester Holt (20:50).
• Lori: "I thought we were gonna be friends, Keith."
  Keith: "Did you watch your children die?"
  Lori: "I was not there."
  Keith: "You did not kill a soul. ... You didn't do any of those things you've been convicted of doing?"
  Lori: "Correct." (21:26–21:48)

Wheel of Fortune Connection (22:03–22:22)

• Both Lori Vallow and Donna Adelson were contestants.
  • "Puzzle was mischief maker, right?" – Josh Mankiewicz (22:17).

The Phantom—A Detective’s Admission (22:22–24:30)

• Detective Martinez felt like “a puppet” after realizing he was misled by the real stalker (23:26).
• Family now advocates for Kristiel’s Law, to expedite digital evidence in active threats (24:21).

Persistence of Families: Jazzy Pace Case & Beyond (25:59–28:54)

• The Pace family’s proactivity unlocked the key evidence police missed; "It was a risk that they took and it paid off for them." (Josh Mankiewicz, 26:18).
• Andrea shares the story of Ashley Schwam in her Ontario hometown, emphasizing the visceral force of familial instinct ("her sister was screaming at her from her gut," 27:04–28:54).

Rapid-Fire News: Big Trials & Notable Cases

Heist at the Louvre (30:13–30:41)

• The panel jokes about the French approach to work-life—robbery happened in broad daylight.

Sean Combs’ Trial & Karen Reed Acquittal (30:43–31:44)

• Case details shocked those who long knew him (Sean Combs) and Karen Reed's verdict drew thunderous court applause.
  • “Outside of O.J., that was maybe the biggest trial I’ve seen.” – Andrea Canning (31:25).

Idaho Student Murders—Bryan Kohberger Plea (32:11–33:34)

• Series of admissions in court recounted.
  • “Let me ask you, did you kill and murder Madison Mogan?...” “Yes.” – Keith Morrison & Lux Lester (32:28).
• Strength of the prosecution’s evidence drove the plea.

The Menendez Brothers Parole Denial (33:34–34:47)

• The brothers denied parole, despite surging public advocacy after a Netflix documentary. Clemency seen as unlikely given the current political climate.

Lighter Moments & Holiday Traditions (35:06–35:56)

• Banter about hosts’ holiday traditions, including watching A Christmas Story and A Muppet Christmas Carol (35:14–35:41).
• Lester quips about “buffing Keith’s car" as a tradition (35:14).
• Andrea: “We just hope that all of our viewers have a safe and happy holiday. One thing you can do is you can listen to Keith reading the Snow Queen. Just search for Morrison Mysteries..."

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (by Timestamp)

• On families’ role in cold cases:
  "These are not cold cases to them." – Lux Lester (03:29)
• On the tenacity of police:
  "They carry them around with them. They take it very personally." – Keith Morrison (03:43)
• On DNA-driven breakthroughs:
  "They took the DNA and essentially made a picture of what they thought the suspect looked like. And it turned out to be a dead ringer..." – Josh Mankiewicz (06:12)
• On closure and loss:
  "The idea that you move on from this or that there's something called closure is nonsense. It change[s] you forever." – Lester Holt (10:12)
• On the importance of answers:
  "Part of that getting answers for the family is bringing their loved one home in whatever way that looks like." – Josh Mankiewicz (11:08)
• On the pain of not knowing:
  "The uncertainty is the thing that gnaws away day after day." – Keith Morrison (11:08)
• On journalist vulnerability:
  "It was just kind of like an earth shattering moment of like the realization that I was on the wrong path." – Detective Andrew Martinez (23:17)
• On community reactions to court cases:
  "The thunderous applause and screams from outside... was like nothing I’d ever seen before." – Andrea Canning (31:25)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Theme Introduction/The Year of the Cold Case: 02:21–02:49
• Wisconsin ‘Raising the Dead’ Story: 03:55–05:42
• Haunted House and Use of DNA Phenotyping: 06:10–06:50
• Crystal Rogers Case: 06:50–07:56
• Nancy Snow Segment: 08:20–10:10
  Heartfelt family interviews, grief and hope
• Jazzy Pace Case & Role of Family: 25:59–28:54
• Quick Trivia (States with Most Datelines, Wheel of Fortune convicts): 15:02–15:52, 22:03–22:22
• Memorable Reporter Road Stories: 16:00–21:48
• Rapid-Fire News Section: 30:13–34:49
• Closing Holiday Traditions: 35:06–35:56

Conclusion

The correspondents conclude with warmth and solidarity for families impacted by loss, underscoring the power of justice (and journalism) when institutions, new technology, and persistent families come together. From DNA surprises to court confessions, the episode offers a compelling blend of heartfelt storytelling, sharp humor, and dedication to truth—making it both a celebration of the year’s reporting and a powerful meditation on the cost and value of justice.

"We just hope that all of our viewers have a safe and happy holiday." – Andrea Canning (35:41)

For more Dateline stories or to revisit some of these cases, check the Dateline: True Crime Weekly archives or search "Morrison Mysteries" for Keith’s holiday reading.