Vigil Remembers Elaine Nix - Unsolved Murder Victim

On September 29, 1999 Elaine Nix's lifeless nude body was discovered in an industrial park area. Elaine vanished eight days earlier after going to pay phone to call her boyfriend. Her car was found abandoned and it appeared that nothing had been taken. Since the disappearance and murder of Elaine, there have been few clues and no answers as to what happened that fateful night.

Her family and friends have been left with far too many questions and very little answers. They try daily to find new ways to keep Elaine's case from turning cold, and from being just another cold case.

Every year on the anniversary of the discovery of Elaine's body, family, friends, and others gather at her gravesite located at the Memorial Park Cemetary. They hold a candle lit ceremony and release balloons in Elaine's memory. So far, they leave the vigil without answers and without the closure they need in order for this horrible wound to heal. They wonder if the next year will be the year for justice to be found? As temperatures dropped way down for residents in Georgia today, many people still came out late Friday afternoon to be a part of Elaine's annual vigil. They wanted to remember her, and to let others know that this is unacceptable that a person can be murdered and that a killer can still remain at large.

Our group is always in attendance at the vigil for Elaine. With Elaine being a local case, we have become all too familiar with the police departments working with her case, as well as the family who is still searching for answers. It seems so surreal that something like this could happen this close to our own back yard. You always think that a violent crime will happen someplace other than your own immediate area, but then something changes that.

Somewhere, there is someone that has information regarding the disappearance and murder of Elaine Nix. They've possibly talked to someone about this crime, and if that person who has that vital information could just come forward, then that's all it takes. There is a $5,000 REWARD --- Whoever has committed this crime is still out there. They could be ready to strike again, or probably have done so already.

If you have ANY information regarding the disappearance and death of Elaine Nix, please do the right thing and call Gwinnett County Police Department of Criminal Investigation Division at 770-513-5300.

View All Photos From Elaine's 2006 Vigil

Websites for Elaine Nix

Justice For Elaine

Friends Remember Elaine

Related Article from Gainesville Times - Earlier This Week -----


In a little less than three months, Elaine Nix would have turned 25 years old. But six years ago, someone or something saw to it that she would never reach her 19th birthday. On Sept. 29, 1999, Nix was found dead in a wooded area at an industrial park in Buford, two miles from the Hall County line. Her body showed no signs of rape or torture. Family members and friends plan to meet at 7 p.m. Thursday at Memorial Park Funeral Home to hold a candlelight vigil in her memory, an annual gathering since the teenager's mysterious death. "Elaine was and still is one of my best friends and this year marks six long years since her murder," Jennifer Boyd, one of Nix's closest friends, said in an e-mail. "Family and friends still don't know anything surrounding her (death)." Nix disappeared after midnight Sept. 21, 1999. She was seen last at a pay phone at Zack's Food Rack on Candler Road in South Hall. Authorities say phone records indicate she spent nearly an hour on the phone with her former boyfriend, Bobby Millwood of Cleveland. Elaine's 1986 Toyota Celica was found later that night at the convenience store with the keys in the ignition and the engine still warm. After her body was found, an autopsy revealed no obvious injuries or signs of sexual assault. Nix's cause of death still is undetermined. "How can we go on?" asked Elaine's father, David Nix, three years ago. "Part of us is gone." Six years have passed and no solid information has turned up to lead investigators to a possible suspect or cause of death. Sgt. E.T. Edkin with the Gwinnett County criminal investigations division still takes calls on the case to date, but says there has been nothing significant in recent years. "No new leads," he said with a sigh. "I still take sporadic calls on it but they haven't helped us any." Edkin said the last call came in some time in July. He even got a Teletype on a possible serial killer from LaGrange, but he hasn't heard anything about that recently. "We've had plenty of suspects, but there are no new ones," he said. "It's considered a cold case now. When leads come in we will look into it, but it's not an everyday investigation." That hasn't stopped Becky and David Nix in the search for their daughter's alleged killer. A reward fund was created soon after Elaine's death, reaching $10,000 at one point. But as years passed and the investigation became almost stagnant, some foundations pulled money out of the reward fund. Boyd said $5,000 is left in the fund for anyone with information that leads to an arrest in Elaine's death. "Elaine's family and friends have had a really hard time dealing with all of this," Boyd said. "Her parents have almost lost everything they have and they don't have the money to hire a private investigator or put any more money up for the reward fund." Hal Lowder, a private investigator with Eagle Watch Investigations in Gainesville, has volunteered to assist with the case. Lowder, a former fire investigator with Hall County, was returning from Louisiana last week and could not be reached for comment. Boyd and Becky Nix also attended the "Montel Williams Show" last November looking for answers from psychic Sylvia Browne. Becky Nix said following the show that Browne gave her a description and name of the man who may have killed her daughter, but she said she didn't know the name. Edkin said last week that Browne's information did not lead to anything new, but he said another psychic e-mailed him after the show aired with his own theory of what happened. Although there have been no answers to Elaine's death, family members and friends still hold on to the fact that somebody may know something. "Awareness is vital and we want to let everyone know that Elaine is important to us," Boyd said.

Ray Pleads NOT GUILTY to Murdering his wife Sueann Ray

On Wednesday, September 20, 2006 I headed to a Pickens County courthouse to appear on behalf of Sueann Ray's family who were unable to attend the court proceedings for the formal arraignment for Quinton Ray who was finally arraigned for the charges of murdering Sueann Ray on August 26, 2005.
It was an hour drive for me to the courthouse where the media was waiting ready for any reaction for either side of what is going to one of the biggest murder cases that Jasper Georgia has probably ever seen.

As the charges were read by District Attorney, Joe Hendricks, I glanced across the court room to Quinton and something I noticed that has never happened before, he began to shake his head back and forth "NO". At that point I knew what the plea was going to be once the charges were all handed down. Of course, one of the capital defense attorneys stood up and read NOT GUILTY on all charges and we were not suprised at all by this. Then came the legal jargon by the defense.

It became more of a concern for the defense attorney that Quinton Ray was being led into the court wearing a prison jumpsuit and having to wear leg shackles and handcuffs than the issue at hand --- that being he was being arraigned for a murder charge. As this went on for about 10 or 15 minutes, it was finally decided that he would be able to wear normal clothing at the next hearings, however he would be handcuffed and shackled (if I remember correctly) due to security concerns).

After we cleared this hurdle and set the next hearing, the suspect was removed from the court room and I was glad he was gone, because I was sick of looking at him. Then came a bombshell of an event I've never seen before, especially at an arraignment. The defense requests private investigator John Seay to enter the court room. At this time, Judge Weaver has to stop these conversations because Quinton Ray has been taken out of the court room and he's headed back to the jail. They have to radio back to the police and bring him BACK to the court and START the hearing process all over again. I was like ----- oooook. Quinton is then seated back in the court room and then the defense restates their request for private investigator John Seay. John then enters the two double doors looking sharp as a tack and walks to the front of court. John has been served with a subpoena and has no other choice but to appear and he is there :)
He is then asked if has an attorney present and his answer is "no". From there, Quinton Ray's defense attorney's ask to put John Seay on the stand to discuss information he has in his file regarding his investigation that was done during the investigation he did for the family of Sueann Ray while she was missing. The judge WILL NOT allow this. She says that John Seay can appear back on October 18th with his attorney at the next scheduled hearing and no person will be put on the stand today.
I was not believing this ridiculous attempt by these attorney's. What the HELL where they thinking. This was an arraignment hearing. We are not even at trial yet!

This was a day packed full of twists, turns and suprises. As I told FOX 5 News, 11 Alive News Atlanta, Channel 2 Action News, and others, we expected this, and we are prepared for whatever is lieing ahead. This is going to be a long hall and we are just going to have to stick this out at all cost. We really do not have a choice in the matter. Read the following article from the Cherokee Tribune.

By Angela M. Jones
Cherokee Tribune Staff WriterThe estranged husband of murdered Woodstock mother Sueann Ray on Wednesday afternoon made his first appearance in court in almost six months.Quinton Ray of Jasper was formally arraigned before Judge Brenda Weaver at the Pickens County Courthouse and charged with malice and felony murder, kidnapping, concealing the death of another and tampering with evidence. His attorney, Douglas Ramseur of the Georgia Capital Defenders office, pleaded not guilty to all charges on his behalf.Judge Weaver denied a request from Ramseur to waive Ray's formal arraignment just before the indictment was read by Pickens County District Attorney Joe Hendricks.
Ray was arrested Feb. 8 shortly after GBI agents discovered the remains of his 26-year-old estranged wife buried in a shallow grave off Cherokee Gold Trail in northern Cherokee earlier that morning. He was indicted by a grand jury Feb. 20 on the same charges.If convicted, Ray could face the death penalty.Mrs. Ray's family reported her missing Aug. 29, 2005, three days after she went to Jasper to visit Ray. Her 1999 Ford Windstar was found in the parking lot of the Wal-Mart Supercenter in Canton that night.Dressed in an orange-and-white Pickens County prison uniform, shackled and handcuffed, Ray was escorted into the courtroom by two officers and sat silently through the arraignment.At both Ray's April 12 court appearance and Wednesday afternoon's proceedings, Ramseur objected to his client appearing in court dressed in prison clothes, shackles and handcuffs. He requested Ray be allowed to appear wearing civilian attire and without shackles and handcuffs."These proceedings are being covered by the media, and the images of Mr. Ray as he is attired now have a very damaging effect on my client and his case," he said.Judge Weaver granted the request for Ray to appear in civilian clothes at all future court appearances but denied Ramseur's requests the handcuffs and shackles be removed, calling them a standard security procedure. She denied his request to delay Wednesday's arraignment so Ray could change into civilian clothes.
Ray will return to court Oct. 18 for a hearing on the option of reciprocal discovery, or sharing of evidence, and whether the defense wants to participate.The judge asked both the state and the defense to file all motions related to the form of the indictment within the next 30 days and any other motions they already plan to file within the next 60 days, so a hearing to discuss the first of them can be held Feb. 1 or 2. She granted both sides the right to file additional motions later, as needed.Friends and family of Mrs. Ray attended the arraignment and sat attentively during the proceedings, some crying quietly into tissues."We're here to support Sueann on behalf of the family, who couldn't be all be here today," said family friend Jill Bennett of Gainesville. "It's going to be a long haul for us, but we'll be here as long as it takes to find justice for her.Several members of the Ray's family also attended the arraignment but declined to comment on the advice of his attorney.Quinton's father, Harold "Danny" Ray, 54, of Ball Ground also was named in the indictment Feb. 20, charged with concealing the death of another, hindering the apprehension of a criminal and tampering with evidence. He allegedly helped Ray drive Mrs. Ray's minivan from Jasper to Canton.He was released Feb. 22 on a $60,000 bond, with the conditions he waive his Fourth Amendment rights, be monitored by a GPS tracking device at all times and have no contact with the victim's family, including his 8-year-old granddaughter.

www.CherokeeTribune.Com

Link with Video of Court Appearance

Toddler Missing - Nancy Grace Not Responsible For Mom's Suicide

August 27, 2006 Melinda Duckett sits down to watch some movies with two gentleman in her apartment in Leesburg, Florida. Two hours later she supposidly goes to check for her two year old son, Trenton Duckett and he's missing from his bed. Mom then calls police and the search begins.

Authorities would later discover a sliced window screen outside the baby's bedroom window and it leaves many to wonder how somebody could leave a cut that small and possibly take a child out through the window?

Days later Trenton remains missing and Melinda Duckett and others are frantically searching for the toddler when she decides to come on famous talk show host Nancy Grace's show on Friday, September 8th. Many of you who work in the missing person arena know Ms. Grace as one who is very outspoken and is not afraid to get straight to the point when it comes to these high profile cases. Most people either like her or they don't.

I happened to be at home last Friday night and caught the interview with Melinda Duckett and Nancy Grace. As a skeptic, I thought right off, Melinda Duckett was a little cocky for a mom with a missing child, and somewhat evasive, but as Nancy began to prod closer into the events leading upto Trenton's disappearance, it became very evident that Melinda Duckett was NOT going to answer any questions that Nancy Grace had.
Right off it was looking bad that Melinda Duckett was refusing to answer whether or not she'd taken a lie detector test. It only looked worse when she would not offer Nancy Grace or anybody else on the panel that night any answers as to where she was in the hours leading up to Trenton's disappearance. In my mind, she did not want anybody to know where she'd been and then came the scroll across CNN -----------
MELINDA DUCKETT FOUND DEAD AFTER SHOW WAS TAPED TODAY.
I thought hmmmmmmmm, I smell a big rat here.

Days later it was confirmed that Melinda had committed suicuide and then came the reports that she'd done this after being interviewed on the Nancy Grace show. Some people are beginning to say that Nancy Grace is to blame for this woman going off the deep end and taking her own life. They claim that Melinda should have been handled with kid gloves and she was treated like a caged animal that went over the edge. Let's get real people!

Nancy Grace asked this woman direct questions pertaining to the whereabouts of her son and his disappearance! Nancy Grace did not cause this woman to go off the deep end. I'm sure there was pressure from the FBI and other law enforcement officials on Melinda Duckett's trail much more so than Nancy Grace.

This woman had some major issues judging from the material that is coming out from her blogs, and other writings that have been taken from her house. She was a person that I believe methodically planned to cause the disapearance of her son and at this point, I doubt he'll be found. She had a great amount of hatred for her soon to be ex-husband - Josh Duckett.

Her funeral was today and what she took to her grave was probably more than we will ever be able to learn from a blog or diary. This is a sad sad case, and Nancy Grace is not the scape goat here.

Million Dollar Lawsuit Filed For 2004 Search for Carrie's Remains

As you all will recall, a few days before Carrie Culberson's statue was to be unveiled in Blanchester, Ohio at the Police Department, some over zealous individual called in a tip to the police that her body was buried underneath a pole barn. The call that placed caused the ceremony to be put on hold. It was Victim's Right's week, a very important week to Carrie's family and many others who have lost something they'll never be able to get back.

Carrie's family were out at the excavation site for a total of 14 days where they watched with binoculars as barn was torn to shreds and the ground was dug up searching for Carrie who at the time was missing for nearly eight years. One of those days that passed during the 14 was Mother's Day, a day I'm sure Debra Culberson will never forget. She was greeted with strangers passing on the road giving her well wishes and flowers, telling her that they hoped this would finally be it and that Carrie was finally about to be found. Sadly, that is not what happened.
The search would end and several items were found buried at 15 feet beneath the dirt and rubble that were identified as belonging to Carrie Culberson. If my memory serves me correctly, the items recovered were a t-shirt, sock, panties?, and some garbage bags. The clothing was identified by Carrie's family, as being Carrie's. When the items were found that belonged to Carrie, we were all baffled to say the least. The garbage bags were not suprising because of what we'd already heard from the testimony of Lori Baker back in 1997 of seeing Tracey and Vincent leave the house on Supringer Street in the early morning hours with seven garbage bags to take care of the mess in relation to Carrie's disappearance/murder. While I wasn't so concerned with the garbage bags, I wanted to know - "where's Carrie?"
I never believed that Michael Fogot or Jarrod Messer had murdered Carrie Culberson. However, I believe there's some knowledge of how and why that material was placed under that barn. Vincent Doan or another member of his family is aquainted with Messer in some form. I Maybe not best friends, but in some form. How else did that stuff turn up underneath that barn, because we know factually Carrie Culberson did not know these people - at all - AND it was ON Messer's property!

We left this search with nothing and had to go on about everday life still wondering when and if Carrie would ever be found. Two more years would pass and then the 10 year anniversary would pass without Carrie's body being recovered.

Less than a week after the anniversary of Carrie's 10th disappearance anniversary, a lawsuit was filed against Brown County by Jeanette Spangler and her son, Jerrod Messer, owners of the property on Fayetteville-Blanchester Road where the excavation took place back in May 2004. The lawsuit states that the dig destroyed their property.

I took a look from the road while we were up back in late August and the barn appeared to be caving in from the top. It looked like it had been gone over with a fine tooth comb and destroyed while doing so. Perhaps Brown County should have put the barn back together or something after completing the search for Carrie? I really have no opinion either way on this. I am just ready for Carrie to be found. I know that somebody knows where her remains are and I find it utterly ridiculous and evil that somebody could withhold that.

This story never ends and it never dies down. If you really cut to the core of it. All we really need is for Carrie's body to be returned to her family. The searchers who have taken on this daunting task of trying to find her have been called everything in the book for taking a stand. I'm now being told I'm the female version of John Mark Karr. LOL
I'll be Little Richard if I can bring Carrie home. Just give her back to us, ok? Please see the related article below.

Million dollar mess alleged in Brown County lawsuit
By CARRIE CARLSON Staff Writer
BLANCHESTER, Ohio -- A 2004 property search for the body of Clarissa Ann "Carrie" Culberson in Brown County has prompted the property owners to file a lawsuit naming several parties, including the Brown County sheriff, in the United States Southern District Court of Ohio.Jeanette Spangler and her son, Jerrod Messer, owners of the property on Fayetteville-Blanchester Road, where officials searched for Culberson's body, are suing the Brown County and Clermont County sheriffs, in their official and individual capacities, for executing a search which "led to excessive personal and real property destruction in damages."Spangler and Messer are seeking compensatory and punitive damages in excess of $1 million.Carrie Culberson was 22 years old when she disappeared in 1996, and her body has yet to be located. However, a jury convicted her boyfriend, Vincent Doan, in 1997 of kidnapping and murdering Culberson.The lawsuit names not only the sheriffs, but names Brown County and Clermont County commissioners, as the political and corporate bodies that govern the departments. The suit also names the Ohio FAIR Plan Underwriting Association, an insurance agency.Spangler and Messer claim the search "exceeded the scope of the warrant by digging in an area much larger in geometry than the scope of the warrant allowed."
The complaint also alleges the search was executed with "recklessness and malice," that led to damages in excess of $75,000.Spangler and Messer said many damages occurred during the search including "destruction of a barn, fence and other structures, as well as significant loss of personal property including loss of tools, destruction or damage to a number of automobiles and numerous household items."In addition to the destruction, the suit claims officials destroyed the septic system, making the property uninhabitable, which caused occupants to vacate the land. The vacancy also prompted property vandalism, according to the action. Due to all the damage, the Ohio FAIR Plan Underwriting Association canceled the insurance policy, and never paid the plaintiffs for damages, covered under the terms of the policy, the suit contends.In a statement issued Thursday, Brown County Sheriff Dwayne Wenninger said he stands by his decision that had his deputies excavate the property, with a search warrant that was received by Clermont County Sheriff's Office.Wenninger went on to explain that information obtained by his investigators, the Clermont County Sheriff's investigators, FBI officials and other agencies led the parties to continue the search.Wenninger said he and others who participate in public professions, will always be subject to scrutiny, but "we must still do the job that we are entrusted to do by the public."
Wenninger said he is convinced that he, and other officials, "did that job" and believes the search warrant on the Spangler-Messer property led to more leads and information concerning the Culberson case.