Was Roxanne the Only One?

Summary

Podcast Summary: "Who Killed Roxanne?"

Episode: Was Roxanne the Only One?
Host: Charles Dowdy
Date: May 29, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode examines new developments in the 40-year-old cold case of Roxanne Sharp, a teenager who was raped and murdered in Covington, Louisiana in 1982. After decades of silence, indictments have been made, but the focus expands: Was Roxanne the only victim? Host Charles Dowdy explores the broader context of childhood sexual abuse in that era, the lingering trauma, progress in victim advocacy, and the long path toward closure for Roxanne’s family and community.

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1. Key Updates from the DA’s Office

[00:35–01:54] Elizabeth Othman, First Assistant DA

• Indictment Announced: Four individuals indicted in connection to Roxanne Sharp’s murder.
• Prosecution Team: Case will be prioritized and handled by Doug Fries (Chief of Criminal Division) and Gary Tremblay (retired federal prosecutor).

  "We did secure an indictment on Wednesday for four individuals... hopefully bring it to trial quickly." – Elizabeth Othman [01:00]

• Case Priority: Acknowledges the old age of the case—"definitely a priority."
• Due Process Reminder:

  "Any individuals mentioned in this podcast are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law." – Podcast disclaimer [01:54]

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2. Investigative Insights: Silence and Changing Times

[02:32–05:38] Host & Lt. John Heath Miller, LA State Police

• Pattern of Abuse: The investigation uncovered a pattern of assaults from the same period and neighborhood; other victims are now coming forward.

  "This podcast has brought other victims forward—children from that very neighborhood who were assaulted over 40 years ago, likely by some of the same people." – Charles Dowdy [03:20]

• Wall of Silence:

  "In 1982, these children had no voice... most of the time it was handled between families... there was nowhere to go beyond that." – Lt. Miller [04:36]

• Law Enforcement Changes: Lt. Miller reflects on improvements over his 30+ year career—digital reporting, social media, and wider support make it possible for past victims to find their voice.

  "You're also seeing people from 30, 40, even 50 years ago finally coming forward as victims of sexual abuse. They know they finally have a voice." – Lt. Miller [05:26]

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3. Expert Commentary: Offenders Rarely Have Just One Victim

[05:38–15:17] Interviews with Thomas Mitchell (Hope House), Brian Brown (Investigative Expert)

Who is Brian Brown?

• Background: Former Supervisory Special Agent, cyber crimes; now detective and Special Victims Unit investigator.
• Hope House Board Member: Organization provides counseling and advocacy for abused children.

Investigative Realities

• Patterns of Offending:

  "Very unlikely [that perpetrators have a single victim]... Usually when we recover a child, there are multiple victims. If they admit to one, there's going to be seven more." – Brian Brown [11:08]

• Multiple Assailants:

  "It's not uncommon... if it's in an area where there's a group of people that are like-minded, you can see that happening." – Brian Brown [13:16]

• Disclosure Barriers:

  "In the 80s... there was no Children Advocacy Centers... no counseling that was really promoted. Most people had to go sit and talk to a male and they've just been assaulted by a male... The average age of disclosure is in the 50s." – Brian Brown [13:40]

• Encouragement to Come Forward:

  "Stepping up and coming forward can save the life of another victim. You may help the process in the courtroom... You don't know how many other lives you're touching by coming forward." – Brian Brown [11:52]

Victim Support and Healing

• Role of Hope House: Provides forensic interviews for children; minimizes trauma during legal proceedings.
• Lifelong Trauma: Many victims turn to substance abuse; positive interventions now exist.
• Statistics:

  "Based on the last research that I saw... if unchecked and not arrested and stopped, [an offender] will have 87 victims on average, throughout a lifespan. And the average age of disclosure of a victim still today is 53 years old." – Thomas Mitchell [15:41]

Advice for Parents (Internet Safety)

• Open Communication:

  "You have to talk to your child... These predators spend all day finding ways to talk to your child." – Brian Brown [14:51]

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4. The Ripple Effect: Trauma and Hope in Roxanne’s Family

[18:02–29:23] Michelle (Roxanne’s niece), Charles Dowdy, Thomas Mitchell

• Family Trauma:

  "It's wild that, like, if you Google her name, like, a million things pop up. And that's overwhelming... It's always been very private and personal... now it's everywhere." – Michelle [18:02]

• Generational Impact: Ongoing grief, a “curse” or “cloud” carried by surviving relatives.

  "It just tore through everybody and everything, and everybody was left to deal with the aftermath... trying to put things back together, knowing that they're never going to be the same again." – Michelle [20:47]

• Hopes for Healing: Michelle recounts her mother’s fierce protectiveness, a response to Roxanne’s death, and the longing for closure and peace.

  "There has to be something good. There has to be justice and peace, and there has to be healing." – Michelle [25:59]

• A New Headstone and Resting Place: Community and family will come together to finally provide Roxanne a proper memorial, inter her mother’s ashes with her, and symbolically lay generational trauma to rest.

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5. Memorable Quotes & Moments

On Justice and Silence

• "The entire outlook on sexual abuse and law enforcement’s response... really needed to change." – Lt. Miller [04:36]
• "I think the average age of disclosure is in the 50s for a victim to come forward." – Brian Brown [13:40]
• "[A perpetrator] will have 87 victims on average, throughout a lifespan." – Thomas Mitchell [15:41]

On Family Impact

• "My mom felt like it was like a curse... It followed everybody. It was always there." – Michelle [20:58]
• "To be able to be with her in death, they wanted to make sure that everybody knew that that's what they wanted... to give her somewhere where people can go to... feel that she's at peace." – Michelle [26:55]

On Coming Forward

• "These victims, when they come forward, you don't know how many other lives you're touching." – Brian Brown [11:52]

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6. Key Timestamps for Segments

• Indictment Announced: [01:00]
• DA’s Approach/Priority: [01:36]
• Podcast’s Impact—Other Victims: [03:20]
• Silence in 1982: [04:36]
• Patterns of Abuse & Multiple Victims: [11:08]
• Challenges to Disclosure/Supporting Victims: [13:40, 15:41]
• Michelle’s Reflections (Family Trauma): [18:02, 20:47, 25:59]
• Plans for Roxanne’s Memorial: [26:55]

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Conclusion

While the prosecution of those indicted for Roxanne’s murder now moves forward, the true heart of this episode is the message that sexual abuse and violence inflict generational wounds—and that healing and justice often take decades. The podcast not only brings Roxanne’s story to the public but encourages other survivors to step forward, seek help, and know they are not alone.

"There has to be something good. There has to be justice and peace, and there has to be healing." – Michelle, Roxanne’s niece [25:59]

Resources/Contact:
Victims are urged to contact local advocacy groups or Louisiana State Police with information.
[Contact info given at end of episode.]

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For more information or to provide tips:

• Visit: whokilledroxanne.com
• Call Louisiana State Police: 985-635-3167
• Email: northshorecoldcasela.gov

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Transcript

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[Podcast Producer/Announcer]

The following is a production of North Shore Media Group.

[Charles Dowdy]

Got our first guest in the studio. The DA Comes in once a month and updates us on what's going on with his office. And he's not here today. We got somebody better. Am I gonna get you in trouble saying that? Elizabeth Othman is here? You are first. What's the title?

[Elizabeth Othman]

Officially First Assistant.

[Charles Dowdy]

Okay. And of course, we're talking about the Roxanne Sharp case. A little bit of news there, and I just wanted to ask you if. Whatever you can tell us, if you

[Interviewer]

would, what's going on?

[Elizabeth Othman]

Sure. So I can't really talk factually about case because it is, you know, a pending case. But what I would say is we did secure an indictment on Wednesday for four individuals, and we have two prosecutors who are going to be handling that case, hopefully bring it to trial quickly. Doug Fries, who's the chief of the Criminal division, and Gary Tremblay, who's an extremely experienced retired federal prosecutor who we had brought on. So those two will be handling that prosecution, and hopefully we'll see some results soon.

[Interviewer]

Okay.

[Charles Dowdy]

And you.

[Brian Brown]

You used the word quickly.

[Charles Dowdy]

I know there's no guarantees at all.

[Thomas Mitchell]

Sure.

[Charles Dowdy]

But would you say that it's in. In the mind of the DA or in the. The idea is we're gonna.

[Interviewer]

We're gonna rush this one and try to get it done.

[Elizabeth Othman]

Yeah, absolutely. It's definitely a priority, especially given the age of the case. Obviously, that's always something that we keep in mind. How old a case is, as far as how quickly it's going to move and take priority over other cases that are pending.

[Podcast Producer/Announcer]

Any individuals mentioned in this podcast are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. This case remains an active, ongoing investigation, and all discussions are based on publicly available information, investigative updates, and legal proceedings where applicable. The goal is to seek justice, provide awareness, and encourage the public to come forward with any relevant information. This podcast does not make any allegations of guilt against the individuals discussed and is intended for informational purposes only.

[Charles Dowdy]

I'm Charles Dowdy with North Shore Media Group. That's all we'll hear from Elizabeth offamet and the DA's office in this episode, and I was surprised to get that. It was from their monthly interview that the DA's office does on my radio show. That was the first time anyone from that office has mentioned Roxanne's case on my show. It was the first time I've asked. This has always been Roxanne's story, but I want to dedicate this episode to to my mother in law who passed away recently. Beth volunteered to edit my writing before I was even dating her daughter. Bebe, as her grandchildren called her, was a talented writer and editor and I wish she could have been a part of this podcast. Roxanne's story would have been that much better expressed with her help in the telling of it. As Roxanne's case unfolded, her story seemed to grow in purpose and in meaning. Investigator Stephan Montgomery has not provided with a lot of specifics, but he made clear that this podcast has brought other victims forward. Children from that very neighborhood who were assaulted over 40 years ago, likely by some of the same people. A burden they've had to carry all their lives until now. For the past year or so, when I had a question, I just picked up the phone and called Stefan. Since he's off limits right now, I had to turn to his Boss, State Police Lt. Heath Miller. When I needed help, I would go with Stephan Montgomery. Well, Lieutenant Miller is the person he goes to.

[Lieutenant John Heath Miller]

My name is John Heath Miller. I'm a lieutenant with the Louisiana State Police. I currently oversee the Criminal investigation division for the four parishes on the North Shore.

[Charles Dowdy]

Lt. Miller, I know you can't share specifics, but it just seems unfathomable to me that this murder is an extreme case of what seems to be a pattern of assaults that were going on in the ozone in 1982, and all of it went unreported. How could that happen?

[Lieutenant John Heath Miller]

Going into this, we knew we would have to break down the wall of silence that surrounded the neighborhood. We suspected there were probably more sexual assault victims who didn't suffer Roxanne's fate. We just didn't know how deep it would be. The common thread between all of them is that in 1982, these children had no voice if they told their parents. Most of the time it was handled between families. Sometimes they were not believed or it was just ignored because the family didn't want to deal with the stigma. Associated with sexual abuse cases. Sometimes a family member was the abuser. Back then, there were no hotlines, no websites, nowhere to go beyond that. If the police were called, the fear of retaliation often caused a complaint to be dropped. The entire outlook on sexual abuse and law enforcement's response to these cases really needed to change. And I've seen it make great strides over my 30 plus year career. Everything today is digital. It's on the Internet. It's a changing landscape, but you're also seeing people from 30, 40, even 50 years ago finally coming forward as victims of sexual abuse. They know they finally have a voice.

[Charles Dowdy]

Thomas Mitchell is the executive director of Hope House. Brian Brown is a board member for that organization and an advocate for what they do. I wanted to hear what Thomas thought of about Brian.

[Thomas Mitchell]

I would argue that he's the leading authority on crimes against children investigations throughout our state. He's just a leading authority. He's a really brilliant investigator and probably the most knowledgeable person in this region related to how victimizations occur and how offenders target children, groom children and attempt to sexualize the relationships with those kids. He's a survivor himself. I think that that's what motivates him and he outlines that in this book. And he's done some work for us in speaking about his resilience and courage that he's found in his own experience. But I think that it certainly drives his passion towards serving kids and teens who have, who have been attacked or assaulted or sexually abused.

[Interviewer]

All right, so just real quick, tell me your name and just a quick

[Charles Dowdy]

bio who you are.

[Interviewer]

Just top the line stuff.

[Brian Brown]

Brian Brown. I was a supervisory special agent over the Attorney General's cyber crime unit. I was there for a little over a decade. I retired from the state and I came to back home to Saint Tammany to continue to work crimes against children and sex abuse. I'm hired and work for the Covington Police department as a detective and the District Attorney's Office, 22nd Judicial District Attorney's office as a special victims unit investigator.

[Interviewer]

This investigation, these things you're doing, you've had some success?

[Brian Brown]

Oh, yes sir.

[Interviewer]

Tell me a little bit about that.

[Brian Brown]

In our investigations we've been able to rescue countless children that have been sexually abused and their images are being shared online, being re victimized every time those files are reshared and we've had a bunch of hands on abuse where we've been able to rescue the children and get them counseling and help to where they can have a safe and comfortable childhood. Past that.

[Charles Dowdy]

How does that work?

[Interviewer]

What's that process like? I mean, you're doing most of your work online?

[Brian Brown]

Yes, sir. Yes, sir. We get a lot of stuff. We do proactive operations where we pretend to be children and try to have the bad guys meet us instead of a real child. We get cyber tips from the national center for Missing Exploited Children where companies like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, they're required to report those terrorism, child pornography, different type of things. That's monitored. They'll report it and it generates a cyber tip to the Attorney General's office. In turn, they look at the information in it to determine what parish that crime occurred in and then they forward it to an agency to assist.

[Interviewer]

Real quick, you have some involvement with the Hope House too. And I want to definitely talk about that real quick. Tell me about that.

[Brian Brown]

Yes, sir. I am on the board of directors for the children's advocacy center, Hope House. It is a where we can take children that have been physically or sexually abused and the families and get them counseling and help to get them back from having the PTSD and being functioning to where they can have a normal life.

[Charles Dowdy]

Don't let the fact that he kept talking about children throw you. We spent a lot of time talking about how tough she was and that she was a survivor. But remember Roxanne Sharp was 16 years old at the time of her death and she had a two year old child.

[Interviewer]

Hope House, though, has a role in the prosecution, right, of some of these individuals?

[Brian Brown]

Yes, sir. When we bring the children in there, the interviews are recorded. They talk to a. So they talk to an interviewer that is trained in forensic interviewing of children. They don't ask leading questions. They ask questions that are open ended. That way the child can tell their story. We sit in another room and we observe these interviews so there's no pressure on the child. And it's all recorded so they can play that in court.

[Interviewer]

And the relief for the child is that the child doesn't have to go in front of the person that may have done this to them.

[Brian Brown]

Again, they still have to go in front of them, but their story, it's played. They don't have to get up there and tell about the abuse. It's recorded when they were a child. The court system may take a few years to get them in there. The jury gets to see that person when they were that child sitting in the stand and see the and hear their tale of what happened.

[Interviewer]

Okay, so let's turn toward kind of the business at hand, which is the case with Roxanne Sharp, are you familiar with this case and her story?

[Brian Brown]

Just what I listened to on your podcast.

[Interviewer]

Okay, so that's good enough. 1980s and, you know, raped and murdered. Talk a little bit, if you don't mind. In your experience, have you encountered individuals who would have been capable of that type of behavior?

[Brian Brown]

Oh, absolutely. It covers all demographics. There's no one class that's going to be targeted. It can be anyone, just anyone. So everybody basically could be a potential threat for your child if a parent is lending them online unmonitored.

[Interviewer]

Here's what I'm stuck on. And we talked about this in the last episode. If these. And, you know, innocent until proven guilty, right. These four men have been charged with this crime, and now it's the DA's job to get a jury to convict them. But let's just say, if they committed this event, if they did what they're accused of doing, what is the likelihood that they only did it once?

[Brian Brown]

Very unlikely. I've been in this field for 35 years, and I've been working sex crimes since 2009 exclusively. Usually when we recover a child, there are multiple victims. If they admit to one, there's going to be seven more. They play the numbers game. And so even with contacting us, they don't focus just on one child. They've got to test and try to see how many, because that one child may say no, but they'll try another child or another victim. And so they play the numbers so it's never just one person.

[Interviewer]

What would you think would be the likelihood, if there are other victims out there, that there are victims who have not come forward?

[Brian Brown]

Oh, I think absolutely, in my opinion. Absolutely.

[Interviewer]

And what. What would you say to those individuals? Or would you.

[Brian Brown]

I mean, yeah, I would ask them to come forward because stepping up and coming forward can save the life of another victim. You can help the process. You may help the process in the courtroom to where you have these victims now coming in in numbers, to where they're. They're accusing the suspects of doing this. And it. It adds more factual basis that this is occurring. These victims, when they come forward, you don't know how many other lives you're touching by coming forward and standing up to these people.

[Interviewer]

What do you think would be the impact on their life coming forward, positive or negative?

[Brian Brown]

It would be positive. Unfortunately, in my world, I see a lot of victims turn into substance abuse and depression and different things. And when they come forward and they ask for help, we're able to get them counseling. They're able to get some life goal lessons, to be able to set standards and find attainable goals that help them better their self where they stand. It just. There's so many resources out there now for victims of this that were not available back in the days.

[Interviewer]

Is there any, in your experience, is there any psychology or thought pattern involving multiple assailants on a single victim?

[Thomas Mitchell]

Right.

[Interviewer]

I mean, this would have been a situation where they gang raped her, essentially, if in fact these are the ones who did it. So any thoughts there?

[Brian Brown]

That's not uncommon. A lot of times if someone's being victimized and it's in an area where there's a group of people that are like minded, you can see that happening. So that doesn't surprise me that there would be multiple assailants accused.

[Interviewer]

And then what about the silence after the fact? I feel like in today's society we're more attuned to it. This would have been in the 1980s, may be a little bit different.

[Brian Brown]

It was a lot different in the 80s. In the 80s there was no one you could really turn to. There was no Children Advocacy Centers, there was no any kind of counseling that was really promoted everything. In the 80s when it was sexual abuse, you had to go talk to a police officer. So most people had to go sit and talk to a male and they've just been assaulted by a male. No one wants to sit and talk to someone in that situation when they've just been assaulted. So a lot of the victims did not disclose. I think the average age of disclosure is in the 50s for a victim to come forward.

[Charles Dowdy]

All right.

[Interviewer]

Before I let you go though, I do want to talk a little bit about a couple of different things. First things first. You got a book?

[Brian Brown]

Yes, sir.

[Interviewer]

Tell me about this book.

[Brian Brown]

It's called A Handful of Truth. Me and Jason Garbo wrote it and it's basically a biography on my career, how I started it, and some of the Internet crimes against children cases that I investigated through my career.

[Interviewer]

And how can they get the book?

[Charles Dowdy]

Is it available?

[Interviewer]

Where?

[Brian Brown]

It's available on Amazon and we're doing several book signings throughout the parish.

[Interviewer]

And then I want to talk to parents. If a parent is listening right now, you probably know enough to be terrified on their behalf. So what advice would you give to parents?

[Brian Brown]

Main thing when I do my Internet safety presentation, I try to explain to parents is you have to talk to your child. Your child has to have a trusted adult. Everything they do in society now is revolved around a computer. Schools, they got Chromebooks, our Banking is on our phones. Everything. These kids have cash, apps, Venmos. If parents are not talking to their children, these predators spend all day finding ways to talk to your child.

[Charles Dowdy]

So we got some basic Internet safety in there, which did not even exist in Roxanne's world. But Brian Brown also offered his opinions on the abusers and their behavior patterns. I just needed a quick quote from Thomas Mitchell, but I got a lot more than that. And when he said this, as we wrapped up our conversation, there was no way I could not add it.

[Interviewer]

The fact that because he talks about

[Thomas Mitchell]

this a little bit, that, you know, what we're looking for through this, this episode are people that may have been assaulted in the 1980s. And so that, you know, never. Never came forward, never admitted it, you know, that it happened to them. I mean, is that common? It's beyond common. It. These things do not happen in a vacuum. And offenders and sexual deviant predators don't emerge out of, you know, nothing. It's. So we know that offenders, based on the last research that I saw and a pedophi throughout the lifespan, if unchecked and not arrested and stopped, will have 87 victims on average, throughout a lifespan. And the average age of disclosure of a victim still today is 53 years old. So that's why we're working so hard to bring light out into the subject and take away the shame and the guilt that survivors often experience. But I would definitely, definitely predict that these offenders have other victims out there.

[Charles Dowdy]

Every state has victim advocacy groups, free counseling, rehab resources. I believe you, and I'm here to help. That's what they'll say to you if you reach out. The local DA's office has a victim advocate on staff. That person stays with victims throughout the process. Contact information for Louisiana State Police can be found at the end of this recording. And that's about it. The case is in the hands of the lawyers now. I looked up the two prosecutors, and I think Roxanne is in very capable hands. So we wait to see if this ends up in a courtroom. I'm a back row guy, whether it be in church or a court of law. And that's where I'll be when this trial starts out of the way, just observing and telling the remainder of Roxanne's story that if it happens, will be season two. Meanwhile, I had a long conversation with Roxanne's niece, Michelle, and I asked her how the family was holding up.

[Michelle (Roxanne's niece)]

I think some of us, you know, are just trying to figure out how to. How to deal with it, like, not so necessarily being involved in every step of the process, but kind of trying to process it away from. It's wild that, like, if you Google her name, like, a million things pop up. And that's overwhelming from, you know, from a case that was, of course, important to the people that it happened to and that knew about it, but it's now everywhere. And so it feels weird. So, I mean, we're definitely. I know everybody's grateful and we're glad to be moving forward, but we also know that there's a lot of people watching what's. What's going to happen. And so that's kind of, you know, my family's pretty. Everybody's kind of private, and so that's been a little overwhelming for some people.

[Interviewer]

I was going to ask about that,

[Thomas Mitchell]

and that's exactly what I.

[Charles Dowdy]

This idea that you've got all these

[Thomas Mitchell]

people now invested in Roxanne's story, invested in your story, you know, your family's story story. That's gotta. It does have to feel weird.

[Michelle (Roxanne's niece)]

Oh, yes. I mean, because it's. It's always been something. I mean, we live through. You know, we, as the kids, we kind of watched this devastation and this aftermath, but it's always been very private and personal and it was not talked about a lot. Like, you know, we talked about it as a family and different things that we spoke about and I'm sure, you know, talk to maybe some close friends and relatives. But the amount of people that, you know, know about it now is definitely, you know, it's a lot. And it's. It has been good, though, to see the people that remember her and remember our family members and that have held on to some kind of hope that this was going to get solved. And. But it's also been. It's. It's been hard to. Listening to the stories of people that have carried this with them for, like, most of their lives and how it affected them. I know how it affected us. But then hearing other people that were close to her and knowing that they carried that with them and. And how. How difficult and devastating that was. So that's. It's had its. You know, it's. I think it's brought people together, but it also shows how. I guess you call it like. Like. Like a tornado or something. It just tore through everybody and everything, and everybody was left to deal with the aftermath of it and trying to put your. Put things back together, knowing that they're never going to be the same again.

[Thomas Mitchell]

The. Is it possible for this story to have some kind of happy ending.

[Interviewer]

I mean, could you say that?

[Charles Dowdy]

Is that not right?

[Michelle (Roxanne's niece)]

Well, my mom, like, growing up, it was almost like my mom felt like it was like a curse. Like, it was like a. I don't know if it was like a poison or like a cloud. It just. It followed everybody. It was always there. And it wasn't just mentally people suffering. I felt like it was physically people were suffering. You know, my mom had. She had gotten sick. She was sick a lot, and she always felt like she suffered so that we wouldn't suffer. And so she, I think, was trying to make sense of these bad things that happened to so many people in our family, because it started there, but it was always like there was. You know, a lot of our family members have died younger than they. They should have. And she felt like it was, like, carried on, and that she felt if she was suffering, that we wouldn't. And so she just really believed that. And so I feel like she was trying to find meaning in it, that it wasn't just pointless hurt and pain and something, like, really terrible. And so I have to believe, you know, I want to believe that if we can see closure, that maybe that'll heal our family, that it's not going to just carry down this really terrible, horrible thing in our legacy, and that there's going to be some kind of good come out of that that we can carry down, you know, to. Through our family. Because we watched it. When I came down there to be there when they did the press conference, I was remembering things that I had not thought about in a long time. And I remembered that when I was 16. You know, I think a lot of people can relate to going to New Orleans. Suburban street was like a rite of passage. And I snuck over there, and I was with my friends. And when my mom found out, she was like, y' all have an hour to get back to this house. And so we. We flew across the causeway like our lives depended on it. And my mom was the cool mom. A lot of people have a lot of great memories of my mom, but she was very. She was very, like, particular about certain rules. And she had to know where we were going, who we were with, when we got there, when we were getting back. And I just thought that was her being a mom. Like, mom's just being overprotective. When we got home, I was like, I'm so, so much trouble. And I came in and she was crying, and I was 16. By this time, I knew about what had happened to my aunt and she said, you know what happened to your Aunt Roxanne, and you know how she died. And she said, we didn't know where she was for days. And when they found her, she was dead. And she knew. My mom strongly believed that. She knew that the people that killed her knew her. And she said, you don't know people the way you think you do, and anything could have happened to you. And when I couldn't find you, I was about to call the police because she said, I don't think. I don't think I could survive after everything I've been through, losing one of y' all and. And I promise you, I never. I never did it again. I never did it again. I always made sure she knew where I was. And it hit me that she carried that fear for us. She carried that in her. And that's why she wanted to know where we were and who we were with. Because it wasn't just this. You know, it's different when you. You're scared. You know, the way world in general is not safe. She knew the world wasn't safe. She had experienced that the world wasn't safe. And it's so hard that she carried all that, all those years and all the things that she carried and the things that my other relatives must have carried their entire lives. And so I have to feel like there has to be something good. There has to be justice and peace, and there has to be healing, because I don't know how you go on if you don't think that that's possible. You know, that's. That's my hope that, you know, we, you know, and not only us, but the other people that it's affected is that, you know, people. People can finally heal from that. That's all I can hope for, you know, and I know it's not going to be. Nothing's going to bring her back. Nothing's going to change. The family that we would have had, the family we should have had is not going to come back.

[Charles Dowdy]

This has been such a tough story. I had hoped to find some way to end it on a positive note, something that had nothing to do with the trial or the men accused of Roxanne's rape and murder. And I did. Covington Monument Company, along with E.J. fielding Funeral Home, reached out after seeing pictures of Roxanne's burial site. They offered to add a headstone to the base that was already there. They agreed to design and install Roxanne's new headstone. The family agreed. And then Michelle told me Something that took my breath away. Michelle's mother was cremated, and she told Michelle exactly what to do with her ashes. And apparently, she was not the only family member who wanted to be buried with Roxanne.

[Michelle (Roxanne's niece)]

You know, when this happened, when the podcast came out, and then when. When I came down, when they. When they had the press conference, you know, it's been something that the family has been, you know, wanting for her for a long time is, you know, to have her a nice headstone. And so when all this started happening, I was like, you know, it kind of, you know, got me thinking about it again and how we wanted that for her and how they wanted to be with her. And that was always a big thing for them, is they wanted to be buried with her. And so that was something they made sure that I knew that they wanted was to be with her and to, you know, give her the rest. Place. Resting place that she deserved. And I feel like it's time. It was like, when I was sitting there listening to everything, it just kind of, like, washed over me that it's time now. Like. Like, I don't know what we were waiting for, but I feel like it was like that moment, like, this is what we were waiting for. It's time. And so I feel like that is something that we've needed for a long time is to be able to come together for her again and hopefully to be able to not only put her to rest, but to put other family members to rest and give everybody the opportunity to, you know, come share in that and to give her somewhere where people can go to, you know, feel good when they go see her and see them and so that they can, you know, feel that she's at peace. Because it was always like. It just never felt like she was at peace between everything that happened and not knowing what happened to her. But then also, you know, the family wanted to be with her. They wanted to surround her because they weren't able to be with her in life. And so to be able to be with her in death, they wanted to make sure that everybody knew that that's what they wanted. Even though they aren't here, there's people here that are still carrying on, carrying on the love for her and the passion that she deserves justice.

[Charles Dowdy]

They will literally put to rest spirits who have wandered and wandered about for years and years not knowing what happened to their loved one. No one quite at rest. Rest. On an undisclosed day in the near future, Roxanne's family will hopefully hold a private ceremony at her burial site as they add that headstone and rededicate her grave. Other family members who have passed away will join Roxanne buried with her, including her sister Michelle's mother. Louisiana State Police Investigator Stephan Montgomery will be there that day, invited by the family. I will be there too.

[Podcast Producer/Announcer]

Who Killed Roxanne? Is a North Shore Media Group production. Original music by Cressley Calura Connect with the podcast online at who killed Roxanne.com if you have a tip or information for Louisiana State Police, call 985-635-3167 or email northshore coldcasela.gov.

[Musical Artist]

Every good thing I do. Gives me something to lose Every year that goes by I lose what catches your eye what if I'm not who I say I am? What if it doesn't work out? What if I started the drought? What if I'm out of the things that make you want me? What if I'm not who I say I am? And I'm scared to admit that maybe this is as good as it gets what if this is as good as it gets and I'm feeling like you don't see me maybe you don't need me Am I talking just to talk? What if I'm not who I say I am? Cause I'm scared to admit Then maybe this is as good as it gets maybe this is as good as it gets.