Louisiana
“Who Killed Roxanne Sharp?” podcast leads to 4 arrests in decades-old murder of girl in Louisiana
Louisiana police say a podcast helped them solve the decades-old killing of a 16-year-old girl and announced Friday that four men now face criminal charges in connection with her rape and murder.
In 1982, teenager Roxanne Sharp was killed in the woods of St. Tammany Parish, about 30 miles north of New Orleans. Police struggled to solve the case due to a lack of evidence and witnesses willing to come forward. But then, investigators approached a local media company, which agreed to produce a podcast, “Who Killed Roxanne Sharp?” renewing public interest in the case after its six-part series aired last year.
Louisiana State Police spokesperson Marc Gremillion credited the podcast with generating crucial tips from the public and prompting new witnesses to approach investigators.
“It helped our investigators piece together where Roxanne was days before to the time she died, to where we’re at now,” Gremillion told The Associated Press. “It was a very large help with getting that message out to the public, and then, therefore, those witnesses getting back to us.”
Over the past few days, police charged four men with aggravated rape and second-degree murder: Perry Wayne Taylor, 64; Darrell Dean Spell, 64; Carlos Cooper, 64; and Billy Williams, Jr., 62.
Cooper and Taylor were already in prison on unrelated charges, and Williams and Spell were arrested earlier this week. Sharp was an acquaintance of the four arrested suspects and was known to frequent the neighborhood where they lived, Gremillion added.
“We appreciate the hard work and love that has been shown to Roxanne Sharp’s case,” Sharp’s niece, Michele Lappin, said in a statement on behalf of her family. “We hope that with justice will come healing and closure for our family, her loved ones, and the community.”
Billy Williams Jr.’s son, Billy Williams III, said his father is innocent of the crime.
“He thinks they’re putting him in for something he didn’t do,” the younger Williams said. “He says he would never in his life hurt anyone.”
The St. Tammany Parish clerk of court did not have attorneys listed for any of the suspects. Family members of Spell, Cooper and Taylor did not respond to requests for comment via phone numbers associated with them.
“When we started the podcast, we kind of thought nobody cared – we were quickly corrected,” said Charles Dowdy, vice president of Northshore Media, which produced the podcast. “A lot of people stepped up and said they knew Roxanne, they remembered her, they were friends with her.”
Dowdy recorded audio as investigators recreated the crime scene using measuring tapes to mark the exact locations where Sharp’s body was found and where other pieces of evidence were uncovered.
“It clearly showed that she’d been grabbed on the street and dragged into the woods,” Dowdy said.
Police had once thought the case solved after serial killer Henry Lucas claimed responsibility for Sharp’s murder. But Lucas, known for making false confessions, later retracted his claim, and other evidence disproved his connection to the murder.
St. Tammany Parish resident Justin Joiner, 39, told the AP that his father, a Covington police officer, had been one of the first law enforcement to arrive at the scene of Sharp’s death and remained frustrated about the lack of closure for the rest of his life. He kept a briefcase full of his notes on the case until he passed away last year.
“It’s been a big black cloud on the community,” Joiner said. “Nobody would talk about it — it was hush, hush, you talk about it in your house, not in public.”
Joiner added that the podcast opened up discussion about the case across generations and throughout the community.
“Cold cases don’t close themselves,” Covington Police Department Chief Michael Ferrell said in a statement. “They close because people show up, year after year, and refuse to quit. That is exactly what our agencies did, and today, Roxanne and her family finally have the justice they have waited so long for.”
District Attorney Collin Sims echoed that sentiment.
“This case is a powerful example of what persistence, collaboration, and advancements in investigative technology can accomplish. For more than four decades, this victim and her family have waited for answers,” Sims said in a statement. “Today’s arrests reflect our unwavering commitment to pursue justice—no matter how much time has passed—and to hold those responsible fully accountable.”
Podcasts have helped law enforcement solve other cold cases recently. Last year, detectives in Illinois solved a missing person’s cold case and credited the podcast “Somebody Knows Something,” which the Elgin Police Department itself launched. In 2024, a sheriff in South Carolina credited a podcast with helping to identify a 1975 cold case victim, formerly known as “Mr. X.”
Louisiana
Gov. Jeff Landry describes evacuation from White House Correspondents Association
Gov. Jeff Landry said he and first lady Sharon Landry were able to safely evacuate the White House Correspondents Association dinner after shots were fired outside the ballroom, forcing them, President Donald Trump and a host of other top leaders to evacuate.
“I’m back and safe and everything’s okay,” the governor said calmly in a phone interview shortly after evacuating.
Law enforcement officials said one officer was shot in the bulletproof vest and is expected to be okay. The FBI said a suspect was in custody.
Landry said he and his wife were sitting at ABC’s table, “pretty close up to the main stage.” They were close to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other members of Trump’s cabinet.
Then he heard the muted sound of gunfire from a floor up above the ballroom.
“It was almost like somebody dropping a pot or something,” the governor said.
Landry knows the hotel well; it’s where Washington Mardi Gras, the annual gathering of Louisiana political, business and nonprofit leaders, is held.
Landry praised how law enforcement handled the incident, saying he did not feel threatened.
“The Secret Service came in, they got everybody down,” Landry said. “I mean, they did a great job of taking everybody out.”
Landry said he was able to leave the scene and make it back to his hotel without incident.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican from the Shreveport area, said in a statement on X that he and his wife, Kelly, were also there.
“We’re thankful no innocent people were harmed and everyone is now safe,” Kelly said. “We’re grateful as always for the law enforcement and first responders who acted so quickly to bring the situation under control.”
Johnson added: “Praying for our country tonight.”
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, also said he was there.
“I’m incredibly grateful for the brave members of law enforcement who acted quickly to protect all of us attending tonight’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner,” Scalise wrote on X. “This is an event meant to bring people together. Violence has NO place in our country.”
Louisiana
Pipeline blowout reported in St. Helena Parish, authorities say
ST. HELENA PARISH, La. (WAFB) – Authorities are warning people to avoid one part of St. Helena Parish following a pipeline blowout.
According to the St. Helena Parish Sheriff’s Office, the blowout happened Saturday along Nesom Road off of Highway 16.
Officials said they evacuated some residents living near where the incident took place. Many of the impacted people live on Nesom Road, Dennis Lee Road, and Burkett Lane.
According to the sheriff’s office, no one will be allowed back into the surrounding neighborhoods until the all clear is given.
No injuries have been reported.
Any potential leak following the blowout has been stopped.
Louisiana State Police and multiple fire departments have been notified of the situation.
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Louisiana
Podcast helps Louisiana police arrest 4 suspects in decades-old murder of teen girl Roxanne Sharp
Louisiana police say a podcast helped them solve the decades-old killing of a 16-year-old girl and announced Friday that four men now face criminal charges in connection with her rape and murder.
In 1982, teenager Roxanne Sharp was killed in the woods of St. Tammany Parish, about 30 miles north of New Orleans. Police struggled to solve the case due to a lack of evidence and witnesses willing to come forward.
But then, investigators approached a local media company, which agreed to produce a podcast, “Who Killed Roxanne Sharp?” renewing public interest in the case after its six-part series aired last year.
Louisiana State Police spokesperson Marc Gremillion credited the podcast with generating crucial tips from the public and prompting new witnesses to approach investigators.
“It helped our investigators piece together where Roxanne was days before to the time she died, to where we’re at now,” Gremillion told The Associated Press. “It was a very large help with getting that message out to the public, and then, therefore, those witnesses getting back to us.”
Over the past few days, police charged four men with aggravated rape and second-degree murder: Perry Wayne Taylor, 64; Darrell Dean Spell, 64; Carlos Cooper, 64; and Billy Williams, Jr., 62.
Cooper and Taylor were already in prison on unrelated charges, and Williams and Spell were arrested earlier this week.
Sharp was an acquaintance of the four arrested suspects and was known to frequent the neighborhood where they lived, Gremillion added.
“We appreciate the hard work and love that has been shown to Roxanne Sharp’s case,” Sharp’s niece, Michele Lappin, said in a statement on behalf of her family. “We hope that with justice will come healing and closure for our family, her loved ones, and the community.”
Billy Williams Jr.’s son, Billy Williams III, said his father is innocent of the crime.
“He thinks they’re putting him in for something he didn’t do,” the younger Williams said. “He says he would never in his life hurt anyone.”
The St. Tammany Parish clerk of court did not have attorneys listed for any of the suspects. Family members of Spell, Cooper and Taylor did not respond to requests for comment via phone numbers associated with them.
“When we started the podcast, we kind of thought nobody cared — we were quickly corrected,” said Charles Dowdy, vice president of Northshore Media, which produced the podcast. “A lot of people stepped up and said they knew Roxanne, they remembered her, they were friends with her.”
Dowdy recorded audio as investigators recreated the crime scene using measuring tapes to mark the exact locations where Sharp’s body was found and where other pieces of evidence were uncovered.
“It clearly showed that she’d been grabbed on the street and dragged into the woods,” Dowdy said.
Police had once thought the case solved after serial killer Henry Lucas claimed responsibility for Sharp’s murder. But Lucas, known for making false confessions, later retracted his claim, and other evidence disproved his connection to the murder.
St. Tammany Parish resident Justin Joiner, 39, told the AP that his father, a Covington police officer, had been one of the first law enforcement to arrive at the scene of Sharp’s death and remained frustrated about the lack of closure for the rest of his life.
He kept a briefcase full of his notes on the case until he passed away last year.
“It’s been a big black cloud on the community,” Joiner said. “Nobody would talk about it — it was hush, hush, you talk about it in your house, not in public.”
Joiner added that the podcast opened up discussion about the case across generations and throughout the community.
“Cold cases don’t close themselves,” Covington Police Department Chief Michael Ferrell said in a statement.
“They close because people show up, year after year, and refuse to quit. That is exactly what our agencies did, and today, Roxanne and her family finally have the justice they have waited so long for.”
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