In February 1986, 29 year-old nursing director Sherri Rasmussen was found murdered inside the Los Angeles home she shared with her husband, John Ruetten. She had been beaten, bitten and shot three times in the chest. At first, investigators believed she had been killed during a burglary that had gone wrong.
But there was another possibility much closer to home.
Before marrying Sherri, John Ruetten had previously dated Stephanie Lazarus, who was an officer with the Los Angeles Police Department. Prosecutors later argued that Lazarus had been deeply upset by Ruetten’s relationship with Sherri and saw her as a romantic rival. Sherri’s family had reportedly raised concerns about Lazarus early in the investigation, but she was not treated as a serious suspect at the time.
The case eventually went cold, and Lazarus continued working for the LAPD. She spent more than 25 years with the department and eventually became a detective specialising in art theft.
The breakthrough came decades later when cold case investigators re examined evidence preserved from the original crime scene. A saliva sample taken from a bite mark on Sherri’s body was tested using DNA technology that had not been available in 1986. The DNA pointed investigators towards a woman, and ultimately towards Lazarus.
In 2009, Lazarus was arrested. During her trial, prosecutors argued that jealousy had driven her to murder Sherri and that the original investigation had failed to properly examine evidence pointing towards her.
In 2012, a jury found Stephanie Lazarus guilty of first-degree murder. She was later sentenced to 27 years to life in prison.
One of the most disturbing parts of this case is that the person eventually convicted of the murder was herself a police officer — and went on to have a long career in the same department investigating crimes while Sherri’s murder remained unsolved.
The case also raised uncomfortable questions about whether the original investigation simply followed the wrong theory, or whether Lazarus’ position within law enforcement made investigators less willing to consider her as a suspect.
But there was another possibility much closer to home.
Before marrying Sherri, John Ruetten had previously dated Stephanie Lazarus, who was an officer with the Los Angeles Police Department. Prosecutors later argued that Lazarus had been deeply upset by Ruetten’s relationship with Sherri and saw her as a romantic rival. Sherri’s family had reportedly raised concerns about Lazarus early in the investigation, but she was not treated as a serious suspect at the time.
The case eventually went cold, and Lazarus continued working for the LAPD. She spent more than 25 years with the department and eventually became a detective specialising in art theft.
The breakthrough came decades later when cold case investigators re examined evidence preserved from the original crime scene. A saliva sample taken from a bite mark on Sherri’s body was tested using DNA technology that had not been available in 1986. The DNA pointed investigators towards a woman, and ultimately towards Lazarus.
In 2009, Lazarus was arrested. During her trial, prosecutors argued that jealousy had driven her to murder Sherri and that the original investigation had failed to properly examine evidence pointing towards her.
In 2012, a jury found Stephanie Lazarus guilty of first-degree murder. She was later sentenced to 27 years to life in prison.
One of the most disturbing parts of this case is that the person eventually convicted of the murder was herself a police officer — and went on to have a long career in the same department investigating crimes while Sherri’s murder remained unsolved.
The case also raised uncomfortable questions about whether the original investigation simply followed the wrong theory, or whether Lazarus’ position within law enforcement made investigators less willing to consider her as a suspect.