15 years later: How Joel Lovelien's slaying, and a trial verdict, still haunt many involved

Editor's note: This is the last scheduled article for season 8 of Dakota Spotlight. To read all articles on this case, go here.

GRAND FORKS — It has been more than 15 years since Joel Lovelien was found dead outside the Broken Drum Bar in Grand Forks. It's been more than 14 years since Travis Stay was found not guilty in Lovelien's murder.

And what's left: few answers, but a lot of hurt — a lot of harm.

Obviously Lovelien's loved ones remain bereft of his big heart, his big sense of humor. But there were other victims here. There remains no justice for Joel. To this day, nobody has yet been found guilty of his murder. It remains unresolved.

Hence, the clouds of doubt and accusation remain heavy over Stay and several of those on the party bus who approached Lovelien that fateful night, even as they've tried to moved on and live their lives.

Listen to Episode No. 7 — 15 Years Later

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In this episode, Dakota Spotlight speaks to some of those best positioned to address the matter 15 years later: Erika Lovelien — Joel Lovelien's sister, Peter Wold and Nancy Yon — the lawyer and prosecutor who dueled in the Travis Stay case, Healther (Holter) Keena — who experienced a creepy invasion of her wedding due to lingering suspicion about her then-fiancé, and the Grand Forks Police Department sergeant who continues to check out any new clues in the Lovelien case.

Do you have information or tips about the murder of Joel Lovelien? Use the tip411 app (you may remain anonymous) or call the non-emergency number at Grand Forks Police Department : 701-787-8000.

1/10: Joel Lovelien, at various stages of his life, with family members and friends. Joel is remembered as a kind, goofy and generous man.Photo illustration by James Wolner / FNS, photos courtesy of Erika Lovelien, Dana Kelly

2/10: Anna Barrett, dressed for Halloween partying as socialite reality star Paris Hilton, poses next to James Wavra, who is wearing a hunter costume. The two were some of the revelers who visited the Broken Drum bar in Grand Forks on the night of Oct. 27-28, 2007.

3/10: Joel Lovelien

4/10: Grand Forks police took a photo of Travis Stay's bruised face as evidence. It is shown here backed by a photo of cemetery by which he walked home the night of Joel Lovelien's death, Oct. 28, 2007.

5/10: Grand Forks Police investigators examine part of Travis Stay's Halloween costume. The bloodied sweatshirt was confiscated with Stay's permission and held as evidence against him in the 2007 murder of Joel Lovelien. Stay was found not guilty in a court a year later.

6/10: Joel Lovelien

7/10: Joel Lovelien is show in this surveillance camera footage screengrab from the Broken Drum bar in Grand Forks, North Dakota on Oct. 27, 2007. Lovelien was later killed in the parking lot outside the bar.

8/10: Travis Stay — center in yellow — is show in this surveillance camera photo footage screengrab from the Broken Drum bar in Grand Forks, North Dakota, the night Joel Lovelien was killed, in the early morning hours of Oct. 28, 2007. Stay was later the prime suspect in the case.

9/10: The Broken Drum Bar

10/10: The front entrance of the Broken Drum bar in Grand Forks, North Dakota, Oct. 28, 2007.

Joel Lovelien was beaten to death outside the Broken Drum bar in Grand Forks in the early morning hours of Oct. 28, 2007, amid a night of Halloween revelry. Nobody has ever been found guilty for his murder.

Suspicion immediately fell on a variety of costumed partiers that night, including some dressed as a lion, the joker and a hunter. Local police and prosecutors thought they had their man, the one dressed as a lion that night: Travis Stay. But Stay was found not guilty in December 2008 in a high-profile trial -- a sensational result that has made the case a staple of true crime shows, including the Dateline TV program.

Welcome to Dakota Spotlight's eighth season: "Unresolved: The Murder of Joel Lovelien." With unprecedented access to case files and evidence, prosecutors, police, witnesses and family members, Dakota Spotlight creator and host James Wolner will use his unique investigation and reporting style to pursue the case's central questions: Who killed Joel Lovelien? Why was Travis Stay found not guilty? And why does so much suspicion linger around others in this case?

• Anna Barrett: Dressed as Paris Hilton and left the Broken Drum arm in arm with James Wavra. Witnessed altercation with Travis Stay.
• Jon Deziel: Dressed as a clown. Interviewed by Grand Forks investigators the night Joel died.
• Archie Ingersoll: Former reporter at the Grand Forks Herald and current news editor for The Forum of Fargo Moorhead. Reported on the trial in 2008.
• Heather (Holter) Keena: Party bus passenger and Jon Deziel's girlfriend.
• Bryce Larson: Dressed as a cowboy. Interviewed by Grand Forks investigators the night Joel died.
• Erika Lovelien: Joel Lovelien's older sister.
• Joel Lovelien: 38 years old, a technical systems analyst for Altru Hospital. Joel went to the Broken Drum bar with his fiancée
• Travis Stay: A reveler at the Broken Drum bar that night who was driven home with blood on his lion costume. He was later charged with Lovelien's murder and found not guilty in December 2008.
• Steven Raasakka: Was walking home in the alley between 10th Avenue North and 11th Avenue North at approximately 12:20 a.m., Sunday, Oct. 28, 2007 when he encountered a seemingly intoxicated Travis Stay. Stay took a swing at Raasakka but missed and then fell to the ground. 
• Duane Simon: Former Grand Forks police detective, chief investigator into the murder of Joel Lovelien in 2007.
• Rory Suby: Current Grand Forks police sergeant. Responsible for following up on new leads and tips about the Joel Lovelien case.
• James Wavra: Dressed as a hunter. Involved in a short fight with Travis Stay. Interviewed by Grand Forks investigators the night Joel died.
• Peter Wold: Travis Stay's defense attorney in the 2008 trial of Travis Stay.
• Nancy Yon: Former Grand Forks County state's attorney. Prosecutor in the 2008 trial of Travis Stay.

• Paul Balstad: A taxi driver in Grand Forks the night Lovelien was killed, he drove Travis Stay home and noticed he was dazed, had blood on him and looked like he had been in a fight.
• Heather Eastling: Joel Lovelien's fiancée in 2007.
• Mike Ferguson: Grand Forks Police sergeant.
• Mike Flannery: Former Grand Forks police detective, processed the "party bus" in search of blood. No blood was found.
• Jennifer Holter: Party bus passenger and sister to Heather Holter.
• Heidi Hosley: Joel Lovelien's ex-wife and mother to Joel's daughter Alexa.
• Leslie Hovda: Joel Lovelien's niece.
• Dana Kelly: Friend and colleague of Joel Lovelien.
• Jennifer Kohl-Fichtner: Friend and colleague of Joel Lovelien.
• William Macki: Grand Forks Police sergeant.
• Eli McVey: Travis Stay's childhood friend. Accompanied Travis on the party bus. Has no recollection of being at the Broken Drum Bar but paid for a drink there with a debit card. Was awake when Travis arrived at home covered in blood.
• Cora Lee Taylor: Travis Stay's roommate. Partied with Travis and others on the party bus. Spoke with Travis the next morning about his injuries and condition. 
• Keith Swartz: Discovered Lovelien in the parking lot of the Broken Drum bar.