Serial Killers & Murderous Minds: Jeff Davis 8 Pt. 1

Published: April 13, 2026
Hosts: Vanessa Richardson & Dr. Tristin Engels (Forensic Psychologist)
Main Theme:
A deep dive into the chilling case of the “Jeff Davis 8” – a series of mysterious murders of vulnerable women in Jennings, Louisiana, in the 2000s. The episode explores the complex intersection of serial killings, systemic law enforcement corruption, sex trafficking, and the psychology of both offenders and victims.

Episode Overview

The hosts examine how a string of suspicious deaths in Jennings, Louisiana, became entangled with severe law enforcement corruption, leaving the community gripped by paranoia and fear. The episode investigates the criminal landscape of Jefferson Davis Parish, the power dynamics of exploitation, and the failure of justice for the victims—raising haunting questions about what enables predators to operate in plain sight.

1. Setting the Stage: Jennings, Louisiana & The Seeds of Corruption

[00:11–06:06] Vanessa Richardson & Dr. Tristin Engels

• Backdrop: Jennings, a small, impoverished town off Interstate 10, known as a drug trafficking corridor.
• Systemic Corruption:
  • Local law enforcement embroiled in drugs and abuse since the 1980s.
  • Drugs and evidence repeatedly vanished from police custody.
  • The Jefferson Davis Parish Jail gained a reputation for officers selling drugs, coercing, and sexually assaulting inmates—especially women.
• Quote (Dr. Tristin Engels, 06:06):
  “Corruption at this scale usually develops gradually... There can be intense pressure to conform to the group… that's why you hear about the ‘blue wall’ in law enforcement or the ‘green wall’ in corrections—it's the expected code of silence.”

Key Insights:

• Personalized psychological screening for officers can weed out some risk factors, but toxic culture is equally dangerous—corruption becomes normalized and entrenched.
• Victims in incarceration face compounded trauma, without a safe escape, often rendered voiceless and disbelieved because of their status.

2. The Web of Exploitation: Frankie Richard & Power Dynamics

[10:17–13:26] Vanessa Richardson & Dr. Tristin Engels

• Frankie Richard:
  • Local drug dealer, self-described strip club owner but in reality an accused sex trafficker.
  • Exploited vulnerable women by paying them with drugs or meager cash; operated a known crime hub at the Boudreau Inn.
  • Suspected links with local law enforcement insulated him from prosecution.
  • Victims, including Nicole Jean Geary, became caught in cycles of dependence, abuse, and forced informant work.
• Quote (Dr. Tristin Engels, 11:32):
  “Traffickers intentionally target people who are already vulnerable… By controlling access to drugs, money, or a place to stay, the trafficker creates a system where the person becomes dependent for basic survival and addiction.”
• Criminal Versatility:
  In such networks, violence and witness intimidation can escalate.

3. Victims’ Plight: Nicole Geary & Coercive Cycles

[14:30–18:25] Vanessa Richardson & Dr. Tristin Engels

• Nicole’s Story:
  • Caught in a loop: drugs, incarceration, informant work for police.
  • Sexually exploited in jail, including being coerced into sex with the jail’s warden, Terry Geary, her cousin.
  • Police-offender line blurred; Nicole and others exploited from all sides, with police facilitating her return to Frankie’s world.
• Psychological Barriers to Speaking Out:
  • Entrenched fear of retaliation and lack of trust makes whistleblowing seem more dangerous than enduring abuse.
  • “When someone is worried about housing, or they’re in active addiction… speaking out can mean risking the only resources that they currently have…” (Dr. Engels, 17:10)

4. The Failed Federal Intervention

[18:25–20:00] Vanessa Richardson

• In 2002, the FBI investigated based on Nicole and others’ testimony.
• Three jail staff (not including warden Terry Geary) were tried—only minor convictions resulted.
• The system’s failure left women like Nicole more insecure, fearing deadly retaliation and seeing federal authority as yet another dead end.

5. The Murders Begin: Loretta Chison

[20:00–29:55]

• Loretta’s Background:
  • Substance abuse struggles; coerced into sex with warden Terry Geary from adolescence (statutory rape, uninvestigated).
  • Relationship blurred by grooming—abuse disguised as affection.
• Death:
  • Last seen partying with Frankie and others; body found in a canal.
  • Cause of death undetermined (drugs and alcohol in system).
  • Police declined to investigate further; family and locals outraged at lack of inquiry.
• Quote (Dr. Engels, 22:08):
  “Consent requires the capacity to give it freely, without coercion, power imbalance, or compromised judgment… In that environment, genuine consent isn’t meaningfully possible.”

6. Pattern of Neglect & Discrimination

[29:55–33:22]

• Marginalized victims like Loretta get less investigative effort due to bias regarding their lifestyle.
• Law enforcement training includes implicit bias modules, but “real change requires a complete system overhaul… training alone, without structural accountability, has limited impact on the actual behavioral changes we need to see.” (Dr. Engels, 31:25)

7. The Second Body: Ernestine Patterson

[33:22–36:36] Vanessa Richardson & Dr. Tristin Engels

• Found in a different canal, her throat slit—officially a homicide this time.
• Last seen with Muggy Brown, who eventually implicates Byron Jones and Lawrence Nixon as possible perpetrators.
• Six months pass before arrests; no physical evidence found. Charges dropped, no accountability.

8. Heightened Fear: Kristen Lopez & the Expanding Death Toll

[38:20–44:21] Vanessa Richardson & Dr. Engels

• Kristen Lopez:
  • Sex worker and police informant, closely linked to previous victims and Frankie Richard.
  • After being threatened by Frankie for cooperating with police, she disappears; her body is found in a canal.
  • Cause of death undetermined due to decomposition; police rapidly dismiss Frankie as a suspect.
  • Families and townspeople perceive law enforcement as protecting their own.
• Quote (Dr. Engels, 39:58):
  “This is a trauma bond where the same person who creates the danger also becomes the perceived solution to it.”
• Law Enforcement’s Loyalty Issues:
  • Investigators’ proximity to Frankie complicates the objectivity and pursuit of justice: “...when the potential suspect has close ties... those evidentiary thresholds can stop being neutral and start being personal.” (Dr. Engels, 44:21)

9. Official Denial & Public Distrust

[47:29–51:43]

• Reluctance to declare the women’s deaths as murder (except Ernestine’s); families interpret it as deliberate minimization.
• Sheriff’s public emphasis on “high-risk lifestyles” of victims triggers outrage and escalates community suspicion.

10. The Fourth Victim: Whitney Dubois

[48:46–52:43] Vanessa Richardson

• Devastating pattern: another woman, connected to Frankie, found dead with cause undetermined.
• Police arrest Frankie and his niece Hannah after a former associate testifies, then quickly release them when charges are dropped.
• Testimony reveals potential destruction of evidence by law enforcement; an officer who tried to alert the FBI is fired for whistleblowing.
• Quote (Vanessa Richardson, 55:44):
  “The next time a woman wound up dead, her proximity to law enforcement forced people to wonder if the police weren’t just apathetic, but if they’d been behind the deaths all along.”

11. Notable Quotes & Moments

• On Law Enforcement Corruption:
  “Even individuals who don’t participate in corruption often stay silent about it. And silence can become part of the culture itself.” (Dr. Engels, 06:06)
• On Coercive Environment for Victims:
  “The victim often has no ability to remove themselves from that situation… that creates an extremely powerless situation.” (Dr. Engels, 08:51)
• On Systemic Failure:
  “...training alone, without structural accountability, has limited impact... real change requires a complete system overhaul.” (Dr. Engels, 31:25)

12. Emotional Tone & Style

• The episode is deeply empathetic toward the victims and their families.
• Vanessa’s narration is solemn, direct, and earnest, while Dr. Engels delivers psychologically nuanced, compassionate, and candid analysis, frequently drawing from personal experience in corrections.
• The tone is investigative and skeptical, emphasizing the failures and biases within formal systems alongside the personal tragedies.

13. Key Timestamps

• Town & Corruption Beginnings: 00:11–06:06
• Psychology of Corruption: 06:06–08:33
• Impact on Victims in Jail: 08:33–10:17
• Frankie Richard’s Empire: 10:17–13:26
• Cycle of Coercion (Nicole’s Story): 14:30–18:25
• Failed FBI Intervention: 18:25–20:00
• Loretta Chison & Grooming: 20:00–29:55
• Law Enforcement Bias: 29:55–33:22
• Second Murder – Ernestine: 33:22–36:36
• Kristen Lopez – Fear Mounts: 38:20–44:21
• Investigative Hesitancy: 47:29–48:46
• Whitney Dubois & Lost Evidence: 48:46–52:43
• Whistleblower Fired: 52:43–55:44

14. Conclusion

Part one ends with tensions in Jennings at a breaking point as women connected to Frankie Richard—and, disturbingly, to law enforcement—are dying at an alarming rate, with little to no justice and mounting suspicion of a possible cover-up. The community’s trust in institutions is shattered, and the chilling question lingers: were the killers protected (or even enabled) by those sworn to stop them?

To be continued in Part 2.