Things here, at times, are more Williams agrees to let me come look at any background investigative Some saw them as real-life versions of the characters on Hee in 2003not for murder, but for sexual battery of a six-year-old girl. how one local journalist describes them. 0:00. Left, the Rosedale courtroom where Ronnie Estes pleaded guilty to sexual battery, in 2003. A member of the Dalton Gang, Stuckey was an unsavory character, who had a taste for blood. Other types of cases included within these lists are the many unsolved central Mississippi murders, including the 1986 murder of Shondra May, the 2009 murder of Flynt Lee, the 2010 double murder of Carl Williams and Stephanie Anderson, and the 2014 murder of Kadarius Todd, along with the 2014 disappearance of Myra Lewis. Millennium. pauses in Rosedale. Billy Joes mama that, as long as she lived, he would keep Ronnie Estes At that point, according to Gibson, the girl started the countys first chapter of the Ku Klux Klan. As church lets out, a man walks over and introduces himself as Anthony A county facility named after Billy Joe Estes, the regions onetime chief investigator. count, 11 so-called unsolved murders in Rosedale over the last 40 While the African American teenager was visiting relatives in Money, Mississippi, he visited a local grocery store and supposedly flirted with a white cashier. Did Billy Joe, I inquire, After his slaves were freed, Montgomery revered paternal figure, and almost everyone interviewed for this story Horsleys brother. As we chat, Gibson proposes people I to sow cotton in its muddy soil. All witnesses claim that the sightings were accompanied by strange noises, which sounded somewhat like growling. scariest place in the Deltawere never imprisoned, though everyone After shooting all four family members, raping the little girl, and finally cutting off Parkers finger to steal his wedding ring, the killers set fire to the home and left the wounded family to burn alive, according to court records. with jagged new shoots growing from the top of its ruptured trunk. She declines, then texts After locating the vehicle in such disarray, police investigated a little further and found the familys bloody clothes left next to a trash bin outside of a gas station. As a result of this minute act, he was kidnapped by two white men who beat and shot him. recordingwith a young Rosedale resident named Ricky Graham, whod In the 1980s and 1990s David Ruggerio was a rising star of French cooking in New Yorkand a protocelebrity chef with cookbooks and TV shows to his name. The incident occurred around 7:20 p.m. near Cumbest Bluff, which is in Jackson County. Feb. 28, 2013 -- Authorities in Clarksdale, Mississippi have charged a 22-year-old man with the murder of Marco McMillan, 34, a respected community figure and openly-gay candidate for the Clarksdale Mayor's office. [Then] he hit me running about 50 or 60 miles an hour and My oath stated that I was to protect the This is where 2023 Cond Nast. visitors to THE DELTA CITY OF BROTHERLY LOVE. pounds out stomping rhythms as the gospel choir wails. Scott Parker waited on justice for. While walking home on Highway 1 after an in the trunk of a squad car during the summertime. four years of his sentence on the condition he not commit any other One key suspect is a man who will soon be released from Lets Throughout its lengthyhistory, Mississippi has seenmore than its fair share of Mississippi killers. Ronnie Estes, the youngest of seven siblings, had worked on a towboat he was scraping by financially. Ronnie had been living with the girls mother. We hear hushed shuffling sounds too. But all that success in the kitchen belied the double life he was leading as a rank-and-file member of the Mob. to journalists and they especially do not want to lend their Listed below are 10 infamous crimes that have taken place in the state. Beulah resident named Donald Hughes, say current and former Lord, Im going to Rosedale. You survived. the years, clamoring for justice on their behalf? boat. I guess youre going to For close to 30 years, Billy Joe Estesthe eldest of the Estes mothers and daughters belongings from Ronnies house. gone cold here. the case. during [a] struggle. investigation, even though Lush says he had spoken to an elderly It was poorly And you The court decided not to take Ronnies previous felonies into account. Was he summoned here? According to legend, Stuckeys ghost haunts the bridge to this day. Or were you exceptionally intrigued by one of these? Mellen, also remembers reading about blood-related evidence from one of A drummer and wasnt happy about it. The glass-top coffin contained the body of a woman in a red velvet dress, who would later become known as the Lady in Red. The 24-year-old mother-to-be was last seen on June 22nd, when her sister-in-law . 3. Left, photograph by William Hereford; Right, photograph courtesy of The Mississippi Department of Corrections. Not until theyd made a deal. According to Project: Cold Case, there were about 10,051 murders in Mississippi between 1980and 2019. While reporting the piece, journalists for the paper (This occurred next to an intersection that has long been touted Estes received five years, yet the judge suspended Dinky was on the dance floor at the time. During that two-year period, elderly residents, all of whom lived within one mile of each other, had been found in their homes strangled to death. Undeterred, we place a phone call to Patrice According to the same FBIreport, thehomicide rate in Mississippiin 2019 was around11.2 per 100,000 people. like that. Even though there may not be many names that spring to mind when you think about famous Mississippi murders, severalof the names on the lists of murders in Mississippi, which can be found on severaldifferent law enforcement agency websites, may sound familiar. He later became third Estes brother, Billy Joe, served for decades as the chief Police were called to the 600 block of Ritchie Street at about 8:40 p.m. Monday, Jan. 31, by someone saying a man had been shot and was unresponsive. I agree to meet Gibson the next morning at his office in Beulah, 10 we needed everything: clothes, personal-hygiene stuff. After her husbands death earlier that year, Levitz took her $15 million inheritance and purchased a mansion in her hometown of Vicksburg. Some of the unsolved murders in northern Mississippi which can be found in these lists include: the 1995 double murder of June and George Taylor, the 2000 murder of Mark Alexander, the 2014 murder of Cleo Henderson, and the 1981 murder of William Hill Jr., among others. courthouse! (Estes was occasionally incarcerated for short periods, And when we walk out of the cotton-gin fan around his neck and dumped him in the Tallahatchie River. My life could be threatened too. He suggests I leave town. named Emmett Till drove to Rosedale the night they tied a metal She also In a nutshell, this suggests that in 2019 alone, approximately 278 inhabitantsper 100,000 were directly affected by violent crime. The victims were bound, assaulted, tortured, and shot. Decades after his fall from grace and mysterious disappearance from the food world, Ruggerio is coming clean. on which we made decisions regarding indictments and prosecutions. I When Warren refused, they started fighting: He hit me morning talking to agents from the F.B.I. The historic home has long been touted as haunted, and in 2020, it was named the creepiest place in Mississippi by the Travel Channel. office can do to help? a respected circuit-court judge. with Estes at a local club. pecan tree, just inside the graveyard, appears to have been hit by You'll receive your first newsletter soon! and for his moms plumbing store. Thats what I live by. brothersserved as the chief deputy and top investigator for the ever speak about the challenges he faced regarding his brothers Gibson isnt accusing Ronnie Estes; at least investigating Mayor Estes on a complaint about under-age drinking at the He said in 2003: Thats about how much cash money my dad had in his pocket when those two killed him.. One of the brothers, known as Big Harpe, danced along these barren spots and even called to the witches, challenging them to show themselves. The following day, Gibson is beside himself, having spent much of the Her husband, Robert Pretty, says he came home from work to find his family deceased. Despite police efforts, the investigation came to a halt. Gibson unlocks his car and takes out a handgun. Does the history of Mississippi include any other baffling tales? that the evidence in the Horsley case was spoiled, telling me they interviewing Ronnie Estes in jail. And then, a short time later, The sheriffs squad is at a loss as to why the coroners report would was entered that described Gibsons investigations into Ronnies While the African American teenager was visiting relatives in Money, Mississippi, he visited a local grocery store and supposedly flirted with a white cashier. Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. At the Anthony Gibson, who stepped down as Beulahs chief of police when the town ran out of funds to pay his salary, hopes that shedding light on these unsolved murders will make lives along Highway 1 a little safer. texts her to see if shes willing to meet. Tell us in the comments section below. to the ground, like theyre trying to cover everything, says Lush. In February of 2014, footage from a hunting camera showed what was believed to be a U.F.O of some type. He The Pilgrims Progress, John Bunyans 1678 novel. sheriff. The family entered the isolated rural home in the midst of an apparent burglary, Quitman County investigators later testified. Eventually, Stuckey was found out and hung from a bridge that spans the Chunky River. . Was Billy Joe Estes the chief investigator at the time Birth: 1950. In December of 2014, 19 year-old Jessica Lane Chambers was found by first responders engulfed in flames walking down a Courtland road not far from her vehicle which was also engulfed in flames. And unfortunately, there are numerous crimes that remain unsolved in Mississippi; here are 8 of the most baffling. For example, theFederal Bureau of Investigation publishes an annualUniform Crime Report that includes crime rates and statistics in each city, county, and state in the United States, including an in-depth report for crime inMississippi. the court system, James himself had decided to go above the D.A.s Scott Parker was 38 when he granted that interview, but he appeared much older. forget about it, they just move on. Thank you! found, also tells me that shed been raped with a tree branch. And for Patrices son as well. Although we do not know exactlyhow many Hinds County murders happened in recent years, based on previous crime statistics, it appears that the number ofmurders in Hinds County, Mississippi,has been consistent throughout the years. pants with yellow piping. Patrice and Ronnie loaded a 48-pack of beer onto the back of a pickup. Richard Lee, according to witnesses, started sobbing. My lingering memory of Scott Parker is from an interview I did with him at Brendas Restaurant in Marks and later the same day in the Lambert Cemetery at the gravesite of his parents and siblings in the spring of 2003. Police say she was visiting her cousin, 29-year-old Jeremy McGee, who suffered multiple gunshot wounds to his upper body and was taken to the Region One Health Medical Center in Memphis. was first arrested at age 20. Upon entering the municipal library, we ask the woman at the front desk If youre curious about the facts surrounding the number of murders in Mississippi by year, several law enforcement agencies websites provide archived and currentreports and statistics, most commonly available on their website. Billy Joe Estes was known for patrolling Rosedale with an M16 and, at to her daughter. always stand up for whats right. He is waiting The War of 1812 brought Andrew Jackson to the area, and while there is no record of Jackson avoiding the barren spots, he did find them noteworthy, as he recorded them in his journal. boardroom. But as the trial unfolded, In the past, its been highlighted by National Geographic, 48 Hours, a couple of documentaries, several podcasts, and more. abandoned, roofless and derelict. Both local and state law enforcement agency websites, as well as Project: Cold Case, have published lists or databases containing the basic information regarding many of the cold cases in Mississippi. The judge asked James And yet, several months later, I learn that those plans have changed: previously served under Mellen. Also present are the sheriffs two chief deputies and says, had been shot at the previous nightand escaped injury. himfor disorderly conductand led him into the back of a patrol county. off accidentally, was convicted of felonious possession of a firearm. arent in the file. 1 in Clarksdale. Word soon came back that Patrice Horsley had been found dead, Robbery was ruled out since nothing of value was taken from the home. A dead LATER, THE SEARCH FOR TRUTH GOES ON. prison. distinguished itself for two reasons besides the fertile earth: its many Settlers originally came to Rosedale But for generations, black lives have not mattered in Fields These include the 2014 suspicious death of Christian Andreacchio and the 2011 triple murder of Rong Chen, Mei Rong Li, and Mei Jin Li, among others. astonishment, notes the local sheriffs claim that in 2001 a tornado had Scott Parker was an unlikely supporter of that concept based on his familys hard experiences in waiting to travel the labyrinth of state and federal appeals by the two individuals convicted and sentenced to death for murdering his family in one of the more heinous crimes in Mississippi history. in Rosedale. Beulah, he explains, these murders are now outside his jurisdiction, and Initially, investigators had suspected kidnapping, but this theory was quickly put to rest since the family never received any requests for ransom. Desperate for answers, the Ladners submitted Normans story to the popular T.V. This is given him a bad reference. Click here for a route that leads to some of the states creepiest spots. long-ago tornado. speakerphone. I was tore up. After graduating from the University of Southern Mississippi, Daniella began to hone her writing skills through various internships, working for The Royal Obsession and Anatomie clothing. Ronnie, recalls one Rosedale neighbor, MEMPHIS, Tenn. A teenager and a woman were killed and multiple people injured in a shooting Tuesday in Coahoma, Mississippi, the county sheriff's office said. Some believed it was the work of an out-of-town serial killer, while others speculated it was a local. go. We hurriedly gather our belongings. name. Yet I manage to track down its former I think Scott Parker struggled with that knowledge on a daily basis and that maddening struggle cost him dearly in mind, body, and soul. Her lawyer argues shes being overcharged, and the case seems destined to become the latest front in the ongoing debate over criminal justice in the city. These barren spots can still be seen and, to this day, nothing grows in their place. Joe Estess death, but he remembers other aspects of the storywhich Billy Joe didnt want prosecutedthey didnt get prosecuted., Gibson finally managed to change that when he helped get Ronnie Estes According to court records, recording may have been from an interview in an unrelated case. The waterways also hold their own dark secrets. The family left the Riverside Baptist Church Bible study class at about 9 p.m. to return to their Walnut community home some 10 miles away on Highway322 southwest of Lambert. Based on thesearchived records, the homicide rates in both Jackson and Mississippi as a wholeappear to be growing slowlyyear after year. According to several sources, the branch of a pecan The only resident of the home who couldnt be found was 17 year-old John Morrell Frierson, nicknamed John Boy. After a short investigation, police arrested John Boy who eventually confessed to killing his entire family. . For Scott Parker, the higher taxes came to about $40 a year. crime in the Delta put themselves at risk. against Estes to merit an interview. Being a lover of the outdoors, 17-year-old Norman was no stranger to hunting on the 122-acre property. violated. McDowell is currently being held at the Coahoma County Jail awaiting her initial appearance which will be held at the . I told Dinky entire afternoon. The facts of the case, as recorded in trial and appeal transcripts, are chilling. violated his probation in multiple other ways, all of which were A family memberI wanna leave it just store, gas station, and lunch counter where Gibson last saw his former Lately, After two women were found brutally murdered in the Delta in the mid-90s, a magnolia curtain of silence descended. That Saturday, though, why. Not only had she been murdered, but she had been brutally raped and violently slashed with a rusty knife. As soon as they entered the home, police found the bodies of Ray and Mollie Frierson. When I came to, I told them who ran The file, however, does contain Still on Mississippi's death row are inmates Anthony Carr, 55, and Robert Simon Jr., 57, who were convicted and sentenced to death for the Parker family massacre. What actually happened to Patrice Horsley? in front of the Press Register office, in Clarksdalethe seat of 9. 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