Serial Killer? Jefferson Davis Parish, Louisiana 7 dead women since 5/05

[Nut44x4]

I don't feel that way either. I do know many people do...it is sad. A good example is comparing Ted Bundy's co-ed victims to the victims of Gary Ridgway/Green River Killer. The public responded quite differently to those.  I don't have a professional answer, but my opinion is, well, pure prejudice and ignorance is what drives people to react or not react the way they do. Victims are victims, regardless of lifestyle/etc. The only thing that should matter is   

[cartfly]

Jennings killings focus of Web site
Task force investigates 8 deaths

Tina Marie Macias • tmacias@theadvertiser.com • September 2, 2009

The multiagency task force looking into the murders of eight Jennings women has launched a Web site for the public to relay tips to investigators.
Advertisement

The Web site is www.jeffdaviscrimes.net, Jefferson Davis Parish Sheriff Rickey Edwards said in a news release Tuesday.

"We believe that there are individuals who have information that have not come forward," Edwards said in the release.

Since 2005, Loretta Chaisson Lewis, Ernestine Daniels Patterson, Kristen Gary Lopez, Whitnei Dubois, Laconia "Muggy" Brown, Crystal Benoit Zeno, Brittney Gary and Necole Jean Guillory have gone missing and turned up dumped in fields and canals.

It is believed that one person is responsible for the killings.

Some victims' family members have said they are frustrated by the lack of suspects and contact with local law enforcement.

Soon after 17-year-old Gary's body was found in November, officials promised a Web site.

Guillory, 26, was found dead last month. Edwards could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Some residents also are taking their fight online.

A group about the Jennings killings on the social-networking Web site Facebook.com had more than 500 members Tuesday.

"Cease fire in Jefferson Davis Parish" is a group "for people who want to get information about supporting nonviolence" in Jeff Davis according to the group description.

Creators of the group are encouraging members to call community leaders every Monday to keep the killings fresh in their minds. Members are also encouraged to contact high-profile activists like Jesse Jackson and the Rev. Al Sharpton, as well as prominent TV personalities who discuss crime on their shows.

Anyone with information about the eight murders can contact the Task Force through the Web site or the tipline at (337)824-6662.

"Even if you think the information is not important or has already been reported previously, please call: Your information may be the call that saves lives," Edwards said in the release.

People providing information may remain anonymous.

The task force is comprised of law enforcement investigators from the Acadia, Calcasieu and Jefferson Davis Parish sheriff's offices, Jennings Police Department, 15th and 31st District Attorney's Offices, state police Region 2 investigations, state attorney general's office, and the FBI.
http://www.theadvertiser.com/article/20090902/NEWS01/909020324&referrer=FRONTPAGECAROUSEL

[Lovinlife]

Jeff Davis victims in national spotlight
Posted: Sep 29, 2009 8:18 PM EDT Updated: Sep 30, 2009 12:03 PM EDT

By Theresa Schmidt - bio | email

LAKE CHARLES, LA (KPLC) - National publicity is something some family members are striving for as they push for a break in the case of the Jeff Davis eight, the women from Jefferson Davis Parish whose deaths remain a mystery. This weekend the family got some of what they want.

They are eight women whose paths crossed and family members grow increasingly impatient as they seek justice. They hope a national platform such as CNN will help spur the interest that will lead to tips that will solve the cases... Mike Dubois is the brother of Whitnei Dubois-- the 4th woman who died in May 2007. Said her brother, not long after the young woman was found.  "She is a human being and she didn't deserve to die like she did. She had her problems but she's still a human. She wasn't an animal."

As he said on CNN he wants an outside independent agency with greater resources and technical capabilities to come in. "This is larger than the Jeff Davis Parish or the Jennings Police Department can handle and it's obvious that this is still going on today and I believe we will have still more murders yet to come because I think it's bigger than they are."

Dubois is one of the family members who've hired private investigator Kirk Menard also participated in the national broadcast. He talked about the surveillance video of the latest victim, Nicole Guillory, who was photographed as part of his undercover investigation into the activities of associates of the victims. The family released the video hoping it would lead to someone remembering seeing her. As well he told CNN that he believes some will talk to private investigators him who are not willing to speak to law enforcement. "One advantage that we have that law enforcement doesn't seem to have is, whereas they have access to forensics and DNA we have access to several sources on the streets that we can gather information and pass it on to the task force and law enforcement."

 Menard and Dubois expected further interviews in the national forum in the days ahead.

Some family members take issue with the sheriff's refusal to characterize the case as the work of a serial killer.  In response, Sheriff Ricky Edwards says, "As our investigation continues it is obviously not complete because we have not brought anybody to justice the analysis of our investigation at this time concludes that right now we believe that we have one offender common among all of them but that is inconclusive at this time as to say that we can say it's only one. Until we get further developments to keep it at one or lead others into it we're going to continue to say that we are investigating it booth as individuals and collectively as one offender.

http://www.kplctv.com/Global/story.asp?S=11227556

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.theadvertiser.com/article/20091029/NEWS01/910290326
Officials confirm serial killings

Tina Marie Macias • tmacias@theadvertiser.com • October 29, 2009
Officials investigating the deaths of eight Jefferson Davis Parish women called the murders the work of a serial killer for the first time Wednesday.

Since 2005, Loretta Chaisson Lewis, Ernestine Daniels Patterson, Kristen Gary Lopez, Whitnei Dubois, Laconia "Muggy" Brown, Crystal Benoit Zeno, Brittney Gary and Necole Jean Guillory all went missing. Their bodies later were found in fields and canals.

It long has been believed that one person is responsible for the killings, but Sheriff Ricky Edwards always has stopped short of calling the deaths serial killings.

"As we have stated in previous releases, it is the collective opinion of all agencies involved in this investigation that these murders may have been committed by a common offender," he said in a release. "For that reason, the label 'serial murder' is applicable. However, we have not used that label when referring to this investigation because it does not benefit us in our goals to identify and apprehend the offender, nor does it prevent further loss of life. Labels are sometimes confusing and are subject to misinterpretation."

Edwards and representatives from six agencies of the 15-member multiagnecy investigative team held a news conference to give an update on the investigation.

Edwards did not take questions at the news conference, nor did he return multiple phone calls requesting an interview Wednesday.
The victims likely knew each other and were all known to live or hang out on the crime-ridden south side of Jennings. Brittney Gary and Kristen Gary Lopez were cousins. All were known to use crack cocaine and sometimes sell themselves for the drug.

The investigative team has not identified a lead suspect, but have considered several suspects or persons of interest, according to a release. Investigators have followed nearly 1,000 leads and interviewed 500 people.

"Some of the information received in the course of this investigation has lead to progress in other unrelated cases, such as narcotic and burglary cases."

[Nut44x4]

Baton Rouge Police Department detectives Sgt. Chris Johnson, left, and Cpl. Larry Maples, right, transport Jeffery Lee Guillory, 43, of Lafayette into an awaiting vehicle outside police headquarters in Baton Rouge Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2009. Guillory is a suspect in the deaths of three women dating back as far as 10 years.

Published: Dec 17, 2009

Baton Rouge Police first identified serial killer suspect Jeffery Lee Guillory in Sylvia Cobb’s 2001 murder in 2006, police said at a press conference today.

He was connected to the murders of Renee Newman in 2008 and Florida Edwards earlier this year, Sgt. Don Kelly said.

Guillory, 43, was arrested Wednesday. However, he has been in jail on unrelated charges from Lafayette and Baton Rouge since January 2008.

Guillory, who was last known to live in Lafayette, was originally identified as a possible suspect in Cobb’s killing when his fingerprint was found at her murder scene, police have said,

On Sept. 15, 2006, Guillory was arrested in Baton Rouge on drug, alcohol and traffic related charge, Kelly said. Twenty-four to 48 hours later, his fingerprints matched those found on a Budweiser Lite beer can recovered at Cobb’s murder scene, he said.

Authorities interviewed Guillory the same day about Cobb, Newman and Edwards. At the end of the interview, they collected his DNA.

However, police did not think they had enough evidence to arrest Guillory in Cobb’s death, and they released him, Kelly said.

Police had no contact with Guillory in 2007, he said.

Additional testing by the State Police Crime Lab in August 2008 led them to contact Baton Rouge Police. Guillory’s DNA matched DNA found at Newman’s crime scene in 2002, Kelly said. In March 2009, police tied his DNA to evidence left at Edwards’ murder scene in 1999.

Since 1999, a total of 10 women — including Edwards, Cobb and Newman — have been stabbed, strangled or beaten in a 4-square-mile area east of downtown, according to The Advocate’s archives.

Police formed a task force in 2000 to investigate whether six of the killings, which came over a 10-month period in 1999 and 2000, might have been committed by one person, but disbanded the task force without a conclusion.

Most of the victims were black women between the ages of 29 and 46. Most were found naked or partially naked in or near parks or vacant buildings. And, most had criminal records that included arrests for prostitution or drugs.

Edwards was found strangled on Sept. 3, 1999, inside the old Dynasty Lounge in the 1100 block of North Boulevard after police received an anonymous call alerting them to the body, police have said.

Newman was found strangled on April 11, 2002, in some landscaping near the back of the old Maison Blanche/Goudchaux’s building in the 1600 block of Laurel Street, police have said.

She was last seen alive the day before when she got a phone call and left her North Boulevard home.

Newman was dressed when she was found and there is no evidence she was raped, police said at the time. Investigators don’t know if she was robbed.

Cobb was found inside an abandoned house at 681 N. Acadian Thruway West after being reported missing a day earlier.

She was last seen four days before her death when she got into a red truck that had pulled up to her Baton Rouge home.

Authorities said Cobb had been dead three or more days by the time her body was found and that she died from a blow to the head.

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/breaking/79543102.html?showAll=y&c=y

[Nut44x4]

Police Suspect Louisiana Man Is Serial Killer
Monday December 21, 2009
A Lafayette, Louisiana man has been charged with the murder of three women in Baton Rouge dating back to 1999 and suspect that he may be involved in several other unsolved murders. Jeffrey Lee Guillory was charged with three counts of second-degree murder.
Guillory has been in jail since March 2008 on an unrelated bank fraud charge involving a stolen ATM card.

Guillory, 43, has officially been charged in the deaths of Florida Edwards, 36, in 1999, Sylvia Cobb, 36, in 2001 and Renee Newman, 46, in 2002. But he is suspected in more deaths in the Baton Rouge area.

Suspected in More Murders

In addition, investigators are looking into Guillory's possible involvement in several unsolved murders in Jefferson Davis Parish. Guillory is from Lafayette. Baton Rouge is east of Lafayette and Jeff Davis Parish is to the west, all connected along Interstate 10.

Guillory was originally linked to the murder of Sylvia Cobb by a fingerprint found on a beer can at the scene of the crime. Investigators used DNA evidence to link him to the murders of Edwards and Newman.

Authorities plan to test DNA evidence to see if Guillory can be linked to other cases.

http://crime.about.com/b/2009/12/21/police-suspect-louisiana-man-is-serial-killer.htm

[Nut44x4]

The bodies of eight women have been found near Jennings, La., since May 2005, including Kristen Gary Lopez in this canal on March 18, 2007.

8 Deaths in a Small Town, and Much Unease

JENNINGS, La. — Every few months for the last four and a half years, someone driving the back roads here in Jefferson Davis Parish has come across a body.

They fit the same pattern: The bodies have been those of young women raised by extended families in the nearby towns of Lake Arthur and Jennings. At some point, the women lost their footing and succumbed to the undercurrent of drugs and prostitution that has been steadily eating away at the parish.

Since May 2005, there have been eight such discoveries in this quiet countryside of rice and crawfish farms in southwestern Louisiana. The most recent was in August.

The women appear to have been murdered, but most of the bodies were found in such a state of decomposition that the causes of death have not been determined. The victims were black and white, aged 17 to 30. Most knew one another or were even related, members of a small circle in a small town.

The deaths have caused considerable soul-searching among victims’ relatives here worried about the plague of drugs and prostitution that might have contributed to the women’s deaths. There has also been anger at what many local residents view as missteps by sheriff’s investigators, like lost or missing evidence, and fury at the possibility that a serial killer might be loose.

“Whoever is doing this, I don’t know how they sleep at night,” said Sarah Benoit, the mother of Crystal Benoit Zeno, a cheerful, mischievous 24-year-old whose body was discovered by hunters in a dry canal in September 2008. “I just don’t understand.”

Long a stopping-off point for drug traffickers along Interstate 10, Jennings, the parish seat, has a thriving crack trade, which turns many young men to crime and women to prostitution.

The sight of young women walking among the derelict houses on the south side of town once brought dismay to parents. Now a woman alone evokes dread.

“My girls won’t go anywhere unless someone’s with them,” Ms. Benoit said.

At Tina’s, a one-room bar where some of the victims used to come, rumors and theories abound. Law enforcement officials are treating the deaths as if they were murders committed by a “common offender” — a serial killer — but emphasize that is not a sure thing. It is not clear if the deaths are related or — because of decomposition — if they are all even murders.

Four people have been arrested or have had arrest warrants issued in connection with the deaths. Two were even held on murder charges for months before being freed because of evidence problems; the other two were never charged.

Frankie Richard was one of those two. A onetime owner of local strip joints, Mr. Richard (pronounced REE-shar) has a history of assault arrests. He admits to being a crack addict and claims to have had sex with most of the victims. He was among those last seen with Kristen G. Lopez, whose body was found floating in a canal on March 18, 2007.

A woman who was with Mr. Richard and Ms. Lopez at a cheap hotel just before Ms. Lopez disappeared told the police that Mr. Richard and his niece had killed Ms. Lopez. Soon after, the woman recanted her statement.

“I have my suspicion about who done it,” Mr. Richard, 54, said, sitting on the front porch of his childhood home on a chilly Sunday afternoon, still reeling from what his mother said was a three-day binge. “But I don’t want to pin the tail on no donkey because I don’t want false allegations to cause a family to go through what mine did.”

Mr. Richard was in rehab when one of the victims died, Sheriff Ricky Edwards said.

The pace of the investigation, and the apparent mistakes along the way, have tested the town’s patience. In 2007, the chief of detectives in the parish sheriff’s office made a deal to buy a pickup truck from an inmate in the parish jail, a woman he knew to be an acquaintance of one of the victims. A witness later said she saw Ms. Lopez in that same truck on the day of her disappearance, but by then the detective had washed and resold the truck.

The detective was fined and taken off the investigation. He now supervises the evidence room at the sheriff’s office.

Over time, dissatisfaction has turned to outright suspicion that the local police are involved in or are covering up the deaths. In a small town like Jennings, where law enforcement officers, victims and criminals are often related by blood and friendship, the police’s failings inevitably take on an ominous cast.

Some victims’ relatives who consider the police ineffective, or worse, have turned to Kirk Menard, a private investigator with a background in workers’ compensation and insurance fraud cases, but not in homicide. (Mr. Menard is perhaps uniquely qualified in one respect: his stepfather, who died last year, was the brother of Richard E. Hickock, one of the Clutter family killers profiled in Truman Capote’s “In Cold Blood.”)

For months, Mr. Menard has been secretly videotaping women who fit the profile of the victims, hoping to catch license plates when the women get into strangers’ cars. This past June, he made a short video of Necole J. Guillory, 26, walking along the street. Two months later, her body was found by weeding crews along Interstate 10.

Sheriff Edwards acknowledges that many residents distrust the investigation, but said the dissatisfaction arose mainly out of frustration. In December 2008, he set up a task force of law enforcement officials from nearby parishes, the state police and the F.B.I. Several victims’ relatives said they were reassured by the diligence of the task force, which works out of a nondescript storefront in a rundown strip mall.

But for now, investigators are still hoping for a break.

“This person will screw up, the right person will come forward and give us some information, and we will be able to bring justice for these ladies,” the sheriff said.

The relatives have learned to grieve in uncertainty. Many of the victims had already faced more hardship than anyone should — violent men, rape, mental problems, addiction — but there had always been the hope that, with love and support, they could make it through intact.

“It’s the school of hard knocks that they never got a chance to graduate from,” said Sonya Benoit Beard, sitting at her kitchen table over a pool of photographs of her bubbly cousin Whitnei C. Dubois, 26, whose body was found at a rural crossroads in May 2007.

Melissa Gary, the mother of Ms. Lopez, said she woke up every morning wondering what had happened to her child. When she shows up for work at the truck stop casino by the highway, she says she wonders if she is coming face to face with the killer.

Or the killer could be a complete stranger. She just does not know. Nobody knows.

“There’s eight murders in Jeff Davis parish, and not one’s been solved,” Ms. Gary said, breaking down in tears.

“Something is wrong in this parish,” she said. “Something is wrong in Jeff Davis Parish.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/02/us/02serial.html

[Nut44x4]

from the link above........

[MuffyBee]

from the link above........

 

[SaintsGirl25]

Still NOTHING no leads....no updates......they were doing DNA testing on the LE....haven't heard anything back from that yet either.

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.klfy.com/Global/story.asp?S=11911094
Jeff Davis 8 Remembered

Posted: Feb 1, 2010 04:46 AM
Eight girls from Jeff Davis Parish captured the nation's attention when a they were murdered by a serial killer that remains on the loose.

To show law enforcement that they haven't been forgotten, family members held a march through Jennings Saturday in their memory.

Friends and family prayed together, as they remembered the eight women. Rather than walk the streets of Jennings with tears in their eyes, the group marched to the rhythm of some upbeat music.

The dozens of people involved in the march were walking not only to remember the eight women's lives, but to celebrate the birthday of Laconia "Muggy" Brown, who would be 25 this week.

Laconia left behind a little boy named Jaheim, who is now four years old.  Family members say he asks about his mother every day.

Those close to the victims still have many questions about what happened to their loved ones, and why no arrest has been made yet.

To whoever's behind the grisly deaths, family members have a few words they'd like to say.

"They don't have no right taking these girls life the way they did. That's somebody's loved ones, that's somebody's sister, that's somebody's mother" said Kindra Brown.

"Walk up to me and do what you did to this woman, these women, because of something they did in life, we all did wrong. We all have our ups and downs. But if this is your up, I will show you a down" said Emile Lyons.

Katie Johnson

Video  http://www.klfy.com/global/video/flash/popupplayer.asp?ClipID1=4504547&h1=Jeff%20Davis%208%20Remembered&vt1=v&at1=News%20-%20Hard%20News&d1=111167&LaunchPageAdTag=News%20-%20Hard%20News&activePane=info&rnd=15307777

[cartfly]

Jeff Davis murder search alive on the Web

amcelfresh@theadvertiser.com • Death lives online.

 • January 8, 2011

     
Amanda McElfresh

Do a simple Google search for "murder forum" or "serial killer forum" and you'll get thousands of hits, leading you to a vast subculture of sites where victims' family members or crime buffs gather to talk about some of the most mysterious murders in the country.

A few of these sites and forums are devoted to the eight Jefferson Davis Parish women who have been found murdered since May 2005.

Jefferson Davis Parish Sheriff Ricky Edwards confirmed that investigators keep an eye on message boards, blogs and online sites to see if any tips can be gleaned from the postings.

"We follow up on everything that's out there. We stay informed and do everything we can to bring justice for these victims," Edwards said. "We do monitor everything — news reports, blogs, anything that is out there."

For better or for worse, there's been little information about the murders released publicly over the past several months. The good news is that no homicides connected to the eight women's deaths have been reported since August 2009. But no suspects have been named, and all of the cases remain open.

That quietness spills over into the online community, since many blogs and forums see more traffic and postings when new information develops.

Still, the postings indicate that there are still family members searching for answers, individuals doing their own research and rumors running rampant throughout town.

But most of the blogs and forums are run by anonymous individuals, many of whom allow visitors to post theories, comments and information by using only a screen name.

In most cases, a handful of people post hundreds, even thousands of times.

On the Murder in Jeff Davis Parish forum, there's a separate message board for each victim, as well as discussion sections for other local murders, general Jeff Davis Parish crime and the efforts of law enforcement.

The forum administrator, who also runs a companion blog about the murders, exchanged several e-mail messages with The Daily Advertiser earlier this week, but, like most forum posters, is choosing to keep their identity private.

However, even though there are few real names associated with the online postings, what comes across is a strong desire to share even the smallest bits of information, ideas and theories in the hope that somehow, the mysteries can be unlocked.

"I'm sure most of you who read this blog, and the discussion forum, have noticed that ideas are posted and it's not too long after that, suddenly that idea becomes reality," someone with the screen name "livinginfearinjdp"

posted on the JDP Killer blog last May. "... So we are doing good here and making headway. As hard and heart-wrenching as it is for the families, friends, us living in the parish to rehash the same thing over and over, it is a necessity. We HAVE to keep speaking out!!!"

There's one official site, jeffdaviscrimes.net, created by law enforcement authorities in August 2009 "to expose each case to as many people as possible," according to its description.

"You may have information that could lead to an arrest and subsequent prosecution," the site implores. "In all of these instances, a criminal is free, and the families miss their loved one. It is the sincere hope of the law enforcement community that your tip could provide their families with much-needed closure."

The site provides a brief description of each victim, along with their photos, as well as general information on violent offenders and a link to contact investigators.

Edwards said the site has yielded a few tips, but he could not elaborate on what those are or how that information has been used in the investigation.

"It's been a bumpy road but I like where we all seem to be at now," the Murder in Jeff Davis forum administrator posted earlier this week. "There was NEVER any doubt where everyone's heart, soul and good intentions were, though. I'm just happy there's at least a few people still around at all."

  http://www.theadvertiser.com/article/20110108/NEWS01/101080318/1002/Jeff-Davis-murder-search-alive-on-the-Web

[SaintsGirl25]

from the link above........