Note: This transcript was generated using AI and may contain inaccuracies or discrepancies when compared to the actual audio. Please refer to the audio for the most accurate representation.

Narrator: The claims, views and opinions expressed are those of the speaker and do not represent those of But Why Media or its Partners. All subjects are innocent until proven guilty. This is a podcast about difficult topics and it may not be suitable for all audiences. Listener discretion is advised.

Mr Collins (Scott’s neighbor): Get off the property. Get the fuck out of my face.

Tucker Simmons: The State Police are investigating.

Mr Collins (Scott’s neighbor): I don’t give a fuck about state police or you.

Demmie Rice: The only picture I saw of Scott was he was taken at the Sheriff’s office of his hands and forearms with his sleeves rolled up. I want to see this through Tucker and you know it. I need that for myself.

Ellie Arceneaux: I wanted to have a say in all of this. Been able to get my side out because they weren’t there. They didn’t experience it. But I was there. Two weeks out of the month.

‘Something Strange’ by Tabitha Meeks: I’m feeling heavy, there’s a pounding in my chest, the shadows hiding but I see the silhouettes, Fear lives in the quiet, Whispers in the silence.

Tucker Simmons: I’m Tucker Simmons and this is Freeze Frame, an investigation into the unsolved murder of Donna Arceneaux.

News Anchor: Also in Washington Parish, Randy Seal was hoping to keep the title he’s held since 2012. But his challenger Jason Smith, believed his military background gave him the upper edge for Sheriff, and he was correct. Longtime Sheriff Seal is unseated with a 60 to 40% final vote.

Tucker Simmons: On November 18, 2023, Sheriff Randy Seal was unseated by retired Marine commander and local rancher Jason Smith. His win with 60% of the vote shocked many in the community, especially after the majority of local political groups and statewide organizations endorsed Seal. The decisive win brought hope for many families, among them Donna Arceneaux. But Donna’s isn’t the only high profile case casting a shadow on the Washington Parish Sheriff’s office.

Tucker Simmons: In 2012, 14 year old Brett Wittner was shot in the back of the head with a .22 caliber rifle. The forensic pathologist who conducted Brett’s autopsy concluded it was an accidental self inflicted gunshot wound. Brett’s mom, Donna Wittner spent 12 years investigating for herself in a constant loop between the Sheriff’s office, the coroner’s office and the DA’s office. In early 2024, David Hammer, chief investigative reporter for WWL TV New Orleans, took an interest in Brett’s case. His extensive reporting led to immediate action by Sheriff Smith during his first week in office.

David Hammer: I actually started by investigating the new St Tammany Parish Coroner, Christopher Tape, for old sexual assault allegations that he faced in New Mexico. He was elected without opposition. And after that I learned about the charges that he faced. And I then heard from Donna Wittner the mother of Brett Wittner Brett had been killed in 2012 when he was 14 years old. He was at a sleepover with other kids ranging in age from 11 to 15. And she found out that her son had been shot in the head. And ever since then she’s been concerned about the case. And it turns out that the autopsy in that case on behalf of Washington Parish was handled by Dr. Christopher Tape, who was a private forensic pathologist in the Lafayette area at the time. It seemed like a case that needed to be investigated because, while there was coverage at the time in 2012 about how unlikely it was that a 14 year old boy would shoot himself in the back of the head with a long rifle, it kind of died. Didn’t get the attention anymore in the media. And then Donna Wittner would protest over the years out in front of the coroner’s office in Washington Parish and in front of the Sheriff’s office and just wasn’t getting anywhere. And she had collected the evidence from Washington Parish of the investigation. And there were just so many holes in the investigation. They had found two shell casings at the scene. There were conflicting statements from the witnesses, and it was unclear how he could have physically shot himself at that angle. But that was the determination that it was an accidental self inflicted gunshot wound with a long rifle behind the right ear. I was able to get all of the documentation from Donna Wittner and I found experts in gunshot wounds and in ballistics in Europe and they reviewed the evidence and they felt that there was a strong indication that there could have been a second gunshot. Nobody had really reviewed those pieces of evidence until Donna Wittner shared all of that stuff with me and I was able to pass it on to these experts. So all of this uncertainty led, the new Sheriff, Jason Smith, to reopen the case and to support a exhumation of Brett Wittner’s remains. Longtime Washington Parish coroner Roger Kasama did make the call to do the exhumation. but I think that the Sheriff’s interest in reopening the case and his pressure probably led to that decision.

Tucker Simmons: Following the exhumation, Washington Parish’s Chief Deputy coroner drove Brett’s remains to Texas for a secondary autopsy. As of October 2024, Brett’s remains are at LSU’s Faces Lab for anthropological review. Brett’s case is relevant in this investigation for several reasons. Most interestingly, Tom Anderson was a Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office lieutenant at the time of Brett’s death. He was the first dispatched to the scene. A couple of years after Brett’s death, Tom joined investigations and eventually became lead Investigator. When I met with Tom about Donna’s case, he brought up several other cases where his name comes up in criticism. Brett’s being one of them. Just like in episode 6, the following narration is a summarization of Tom’s thoughts on the case during our meeting on his front porch. These are not direct quotes.

Narrator: Brett went to a sleepover with some kids he didn’t know very well. The parents in the house went to bed early and Brett grabbed a rifle off the wall. He pointed it around and the other kids told him to put it down and leave it alone. The next morning, Brett and two others were up early in the kitchen and he grabbed the rifle again. The other kids told him to put it down again and he joked that it wasn’t even loaded. He threw it over his shoulder, turned his head and accidentally pulled the trigger. At first I was saying there’s no way you can shoot yourself in the back of the head with a rifle. But on the scene there was a Daisy BB gun as well. I compared the little BB gun to the .22 caliber rifle Brett was playing with and they are almost identical in size. It was a short barrel 22. That convinced me that it was actually possible for him to shoot himself back there. Brett’s mom didn’t want to believe us. She protested in front of the Sheriff’s office and all. But it went to a grand jury and they agreed it was an accidental death, no foul play.

Tucker Simmons: Tom’s recollection of the scene doesn’t match that of the pathologist or WWL’s experts. Most glaringly is the story about a Daisy BB gun on scene, which to my understanding is nowhere in WPSO’s reports. Tom remembers the BB gun and the .22 caliber rifle being the same size, suggesting the .22 was a short barrel. This convinced him it was a self inflicted gunshot wound to the back of the head. But all reports included in David Hammer’s reporting clearly State long barrel rifle. The Wittner and Arceneaux cases aren’t the only Ones in Washington Parish worked by Tom and his team of investigators, where a suicide or self inflicted death has come under scrutiny. It makes me wonder what was really going on at the Washington Parish Sheriff’s office in 2012, 2017 and beyond. I’m not sure we’ll ever know. But what does seem clear based on Sheriff Smith’s actions in the Wittner case, is his desire to solve the Parish’s forgotten cold cases. And he’s taking action. What does that mean for Donna’s case? Time will tell, but it’s promising.

Tucker Simmons: It had been a few months since I approached Scott, and I wanted to try again. Before the podcast launched. Sources had shared his work schedule, so I had a feeling he’d be home. Sure enough, his vehicle was in the driveway and I pulled in. I’m pretty certain I saw a shadow through the glass door, but no one ever answered. I went back to town for some caffeine. The iced americano at What’s Up is admittedly an addiction when I’m in Franklinton. I returned to the Barndominium, I guess you’d call it, the residence Scott built behind Donna’s. I had been told a man named Mr. Collins lived there. Apparently he and Scott spent a lot of time together, so I thought maybe he could help arrange a conversation.

Mr Collins (Scott’s neighbor): Hello?

Tucker Simmons: Hi there. I’m trying to find Scott. Do you know if he’s home?

Mr Collins (Scott’s neighbor): Who are you?

Tucker Simmons: Tucker Summer.

Mr Collins (Scott’s neighbor): And why are you want to see Scott?

Tucker Simmons: I’m working on the Donna Arceneaux case.

Mr Collins (Scott’s neighbor): I thought that was over with. Didn’t they decide that she killed herself?

Tucker Simmons: No, it’s ruled a homicide.

Mr Collins (Scott’s neighbor): No, it’s not. It’s in the newspaper, on the headlines.

Tucker Simmons: No it’s a hom…

Mr Collins (Scott’s neighbor): It’s in the newspaper. Read the newspaper headlines. It was determined she killed herself.

Tucker Simmons: But…

Mr Collins (Scott’s neighbor): There is no investigation. She’s dead.

Tucker Simmons: No, the State Police

Mr Collins (Scott’s neighbor): She’s dead. Leave her alone. Let everybody else, get over it. They’re trying to recover from the grief. You know what? If you have somebody die, Take a new carton of eggs. You pull one out, there’s an empty space. People are trying to get over her. Missing. Okay. Get off the property. Get the fuck out of my face.

Tucker Simmons: The State Police are investigating…

Mr Collins (Scott’s neighbor): I don’t give a fuck about State Police or you. I don’t want to talk to you people. Never come to [inaudible] You got that? Get the fuck out. I’m getting pissed. Get…

Tucker Simmons: Okay.

Mr Collins (Scott’s neighbor): Get my gun.

Tucker Simmons: He’s going to get his gun. Boy, was I wrong. No conversation being arranged after that. In later conversations with sources, I learned that during my brief encounter with Mr. Collins, apparently Scott was right inside the cracked door, observing our interaction. I’m told Scott has an attorney who’s advised him not to talk to anyone. I can understand that, but knowing he was right inside the door and presumably had coached Mr. Collins what to say, it’s just strange that they continue to push the suicide theory and rehash the debunked newspaper headline instead of a desire to catch the person who killed the love of your life. I’ll reiterate, it’s clear the State Police feel they need more evidence before arresting anyone, but it seems like there’s a complete lack of interest in solving the homicide from certain individuals. Not even an acknowledgement Donna could have been murdered from her boyfriend who claims he loved her more than anything. It’s eye opening, to say the least.

Tucker Simmons: Throughout this process, I’ve been contacted by many sources who will remain off the record for a variety of reasons. The trust I’ve built with insiders on all levels is the only reason I have what I do. However, when sources publicly out themselves, it puts me in a precarious situation. Do I break that bond and trust just because they did? Many of my sources have provided information that I didn’t need to make public corroboration of evidence, details that solidified timelines, names of those I needed to contact, things I didn’t feel I needed to reveal explicitly in this podcast. But two sources in particular, both whom reached out to me first, have now made themselves known publicly. In order to protect their anonymity and safety, I won’t be using their names. I’ve chosen to combine my conversations with them into one read by our narrator.

Narrator: Scott and Donna were cheating on each other, and he told me there were certain things he was into, but never asked Donna to do it because he didn’t want to open up that can of worms with her. When I heard about certain situations on the coast, I felt very uncomfortable. One in particular made me question everything I thought I knew about this guy. He’s controlling over his Partners. How could he have gone the whole day without contacting her or going over there? He can’t go more than a couple of hours without checking in. I’ve seen it myself. I’ve seen how he won’t let an argument fizzle out. He never told me the whole story about Donna. It was always bits and pieces. He said he texted her after hearing a gunshot and asked why she would shoot near his house with his kids there. She sent back a picture of herself in bed to prove it wasn’t her. I heard there was more than one shell casing. But he has always told me he only heard one gunshot that night when he texted her. I’ve heard about pork chops for dinner. I’ve heard he ordered food from the Japanese place in town. But I’m telling you, I’m nearly certain his kids ate ramen noodles Sunday night. His kids have said that when they came out to the living room that night, he wasn’t there. I don’t know, but it sounds like he was gone Sunday night. He wasn’t home for a period of time. That’s my understanding. Then he took the kids to school on Monday and went shopping. He told me he tried reaching Donna several times and noticed she wasn’t on Facebook all day, which was weird. I feel like he would have gone over there if he was worried. It was normal for him to just show up. I can’t remember if it was his son or daughter, but on Monday, before they found Donna, he took one of his kids shopping in Covington and dropped them off at Alicia, his ex wife and mother of their kids. From what I remember, Alicia picked up the other kid from school. So I know he was gone from the house for a long time on Monday. I always wondered why he didn’t have Donna go with him to Covington. He loves running the roads and always needs a companion. So even if they were fighting the night before, I know him, he would have tried to reconcile Monday morning. I asked him about what the scene looked like. He said she shot herself on the bed and must have run to the bathroom to get a towel and died there. He said he found her in the bathroom or the doorway of the bathroom and there was a trail of blood to where the towels were. But then a friend said he found her next to the bed, which I now know is the truth. I’ve never seen him be violent personally. Maybe Donna did have a gun, threatening to hurt herself and they got into a fight while he was trying to take it from her. I guess it could have gone off accidentally, but why not come forward and put this to rest, if it was accidental? When the billboard went up, he was furious. His main concern was people talking about him. If it was a murder like the experts say and he truly loved her, you’d think he’d be happy about the renewed interest instead of continuing to tell people she committed suicide. It’s a weird situation. Most people around him talk about the case with everyone but him. No one really knows what happened, but we all have our suspicions. If it weren’t for hurting his kids and his mom, a lot more people would share what they know. A lot of it isn’t directly relevant to Donna’s case, but there are so many rumors about the relationship, his trips to the coast, the motive. Maybe it’s all connected? I know Tom Anderson claims he took Scott to his house and watched him change clothes before going in for questioning. Tom says he took pictures of Scott’s body and there were no defensive marks. But I don’t know what to believe. I understand Michelle was stripped at the Sheriff’s office and questioned all night. Why was Scott taken to his house and not directly into the Sheriff’s office? It just sounds like he got some special treatment.

Tucker Simmons: Did y’all pick up on all the inconsistencies like I did? For one dinner Sunday night, we know the pork chops weren’t cooked. They were in the sink at Donna’s. According to Scott’s ex wife, Alicia, her kids said dad went to town to get Akita sushi for dinner. But these sources who are close to the family, say the kids remember eating ramen noodles that night because dad wasn’t home. I’m not sure what to make of it or if it’s relevant, but it would be very helpful to know where Scott was Sunday night if he wasn’t home with his kids. The second point that stands out is where he found Donna. We know for a fact he found her on the floor next to the bed and in front of the right nightstand. So why has he told others he found her in the bathroom? And where was the trail of blood to the towels he claimed to see? There was a smudge of blood on the bathroom floor next to a towel with blood on it, but not enough to be a towel Donna pressed against her breast to cover a gunshot wound. We do know the State Police crime lab found evidence of blood cleanup in the bathroom. Could that be the trail of blood to the towels that Scott referenced? If so, who cleaned it up? Perhaps the same person or persons who took the object off the bed that created the bloody 90 degree angle. As usual, I checked in with Demmie about the discrepancies and a whole lot more. Much of what we discussed is pure speculation. As we talk through the case and possibilities, keep in mind all suspects are innocent until proven guilty.

Tucker Simmons: So I had a call with one of the two sources that we’ve discussed before that’s close to Scott. It seems like a lot of the things that he shared over time are not adding up to what he told investigators. The first thing is this person says that Scott was not home that night and they ended up eating ramen noodles. He told you guys that he went to Akita sushi?

Demmie Rice: No, he… No, he did not say that. He never told us anything like that. When I interviewed his ex wife, that’s where it came in. That she had called her children several times throughout the day. And the last time, I think at 7:00 that evening, she called and her son told her that he was eating Akita sushi.

Tucker Simmons: I guess for me it seems important because how long was he gone on Sunday evening?

Demmie Rice: He was not there at 2:00, 4:00 and I think another time, I don’t remember the exact time when his ex wife called, so he could have been gone that whole time. Now, I don’t know if he came back and checked on what, but according to her statement, it was at those certain particular times. He was never there.

Tucker Simmons: Well, whether it was Akita sushi or ramen noodles, I guess doesn’t really matter. But the main point is he wasn’t there. So I wonder what he was doing.

Demmie Rice: That’s a good question.

Tucker Simmons: One of the other statements, I’m just looking at my notes here. I guess on Monday morning he took the kids to school and then this person couldn’t remember if it was his son or daughter, he took one of them shopping in Covington and then dropped them off at Alicia’s house. And then I believe Alicia picked up the other kid from school.

Demmie Rice: Correct. It was the daughter he brought because he, he was in a hurry to go, the daughter told the mother that, he was in a hurry to go buy a shirt at Belk.

Tucker Simmons: It was a shirt for himself or for her?

Demmie Rice: For him. That’s why he couldn’t wait for the son to get off of football practice.

Tucker Simmons: Oh, so he took the daughter to Belk to buy himself a shirt.

Demmie Rice: Correct.

Tucker Simmons: I wonder if that was the shirt he was wearing when Michelle pulled up to the house that night, on Monday night.

Demmie Rice: Maybe so, because he did look like he was going to church.

Tucker Simmons: They were saying that he never really would tell the story in full, but over time they’ve overheard conversations or had direct conversations. And when asked, like how he found her, what the scene looked like, he told this person that she had shot herself on the bed and must have run to the bathroom to get a towel and then died there because there was a trail of blood through the bathroom to where the towels were. Obviously she was not found in the bathroom. He told this person she was found on the… or he found her on the floor of the bathroom or in the doorway of the bathroom? I couldn’t remember exactly, but.

Demmie Rice: Well, obviously not. But I think he’s trying to. To justify that she cleaned up the… the but… and it’s like… I believe this was, one of our past conversations where I dropped the, f bomb on you, that she, she did not – and no, I’m not saying it again – that it’s physically impossible for her to have shot herself on that bed, walk from the bed into the bathroom, bled out like she did, clean it all up, then go and lay down on the floor. No way. She might have lived, the pathologist says a minute to a minute and a half. That was impossible to get all that done.

Tucker Simmons: So if he’s telling this person he found her in the bathroom or in the doorway and there was a trail of blood to where the towels were, I mean for me, it makes me think it’s possible he just slipped up and he took her to the bathroom after shooting and then cleaned up the trail that he talked about to where the towels were. Again, speculation. But he knows where he found her, so why would he change that?

Demmie Rice: He’s covering up his past lives at this point. He’s changing the details up.

Tucker Simmons: Maybe her dying in the bathroom is actually what happened. And then when State Police sprayed luminol or whatever it was and found blood cleanup, it’s probably the trail of blood he’s talking about that was in the bathroom when he went to get towels to try to clean up.

Demmie Rice: Correct that. That is a possibility.

Tucker Simmons: And then the last thing. We talked about this before, but we’ll go over it again. This person is also under the assumption that Scott was taken to his house by Tom Anderson, changed clothes, pictures were taken, and then he was taken to the station, which, when you compare that to how Michelle was treated and she was photographed at the Sheriff’s office. I mean, I guess the argument could be, well, he lived right there, 100 yards away, so we let him go get a change of clothes, but it just goes…

Demmie Rice: It was improper procedure, he should have never been allowed to go back to that house. He should have been brought straight to the Sheriff’s Office and questioned.

Tucker Simmons: Tom claims he did take pictures of Scott’s body, to confirm there were no defensive wounds. Defensive woulds…

Demmie Rice: There was no picture. The only picture I saw of Scott was taken at the Sheriff’s office of his hands and forearms with his sleeves rolled up.

Tucker Simmons: And what about Michelle? Were there photos of Michelle’s body?

Demmie Rice: I’ve seen some of Michelle, but none of her fully naked.

Tucker Simmons: So even if visually you can confirm there’s no defensive wounds. You still take the photos just to have it recorded, right?

Demmie Rice: Correct. As proper procedure.

Tucker Simmons: I think the moral of the story is Scott has changed his story based on what he told investigators, so that doesn’t necessarily make him guilty, but it definitely raises my eyebrows.

Demmie Rice: Well, you gotta remember, there’s seven years that that has passed since then. He probably told 100 different stories over those seven years.

Tucker Simmons: You and everyone else I talked to who’s actually seen the case file is pretty convinced of who’s responsible for her death. So it just, I don’t understand what has taken so long. Unless it’s just the DA’s office wanting an overwhelming amount of evidence.

Demmie Rice: At, particular times, I’ve seen where cases were not accepted, but nothing of this magnitude was ever refuted.

Tucker Simmons: Washington and St. Tammany parishes share a judicial district, Louisiana’s 22nd, which means they share a DA For 30 years, a man named Walter Reed served as the elected DA Under scrutiny in 2014, he announced he would not seek reelection. In 2016, Reid was convicted on 18 counts of fraud and corruption, then sentenced to four years in prison. He was released early on house arrest during the COVID 19 pandemic, and he’s now a free man. For the sake of transparency, I’ll share with you that Reid was in the jewelry and gold buying business with members of my family until his legal woes and other racketeering allegations sunk the company. I’ve included this because the lack of trust in the Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office isn’t exclusive. The DA’s office has had a long history of impropriety. During my investigation, Reed’s successor, Warren Montgomery, passed while in office. A special election was held in March of 2024 between Collin Sims, first assistant DA turned acting DA following Montgomery’s passing, and Vincent Wynne, who ran several divisions of the DA’s office under Walter Reed before going into private practice. Wynne has also represented Donna’s ex husband, Clay, on at least one occasion. Collin Sims defeated Wynne with 69% of the vote. At the time, social media lit up with suggestions. This commanding victory was yet another referendum on Walter Reed and his team’s 30 year reign at the DA’s office. I’ve run into DA Sims several times since the election. He’s been tight lipped about Donna’s case, and we haven’t been able to coordinate a formal meeting or interview. But from what I’m told, he is prepared to review and prosecute Donna’s case if and when the State Police present it to his Office. Now back to my call with Demmie.

Tucker Simmons: I hear there’s a new Investigator with State Police on it now, and hopefully they are making progress. I understand they’re listening to the podcast, and I guess that’s all we can hope for, is that they listen. And in some way…

Demmie Rice: I hope they are too, because they’ll, they’ll realize, you know, the discrepancies and what people said back then and, you know, now on this podcast, they’re going to compare notes. I hope they are and I, I pray every day Tucker, that they are. You know, in the Bible, often, Jesus responded “soon” and when people hear the word soon, they think immediate. This is seven years coming, that this person need, needs to be arrested. And I think in the course of, revealing of the guilty party, a lot of people are going to go down for, you know, their misdeeds in it, whether it’s an accessory after the fact, accessory to murder, malfeasance in office, obstruction of justice. It could be any number of charges that can result from this investigation, on additional people. I believe Sheriff Smith is an honorable man with integrity, and he’s going to do the job like it needs to be done.

Tucker Simmons: Well, his, his work in the Wittner case within a couple weeks of taking office, if that’s any indication of how they’ll advocate in Donna’s case. I’m, feeling pretty good about it.

Demmie Rice: The last few days, I’ve been reading every. Every single comment.

Tucker Simmons: It’s. I mean, a lot of the stuff in there, people are complaining about it being not relevant. I don’t know, for me, it, it is!

Demmie Rice: It is very relevant. It’s very relevant when his current girlfriend, who is living in Donna’s house, is posting comments like that. She is divulging information that is very credible to the case.

Tucker Simmons: Well, thank you for keeping up with it all, too, because…

Demmie Rice: I’m trying my best, cause I want to see this through Tucker, you know, it. I need that for myself. After all these years, you know, what I went through at the Sheriff’s office working with a… and I’m gonna say it, a bunch of dumbasses. Don’t get me wrong, not everybody was like that. I was treated with respect by some people. When it came to hot cases, I was treated like I didn’t know shit.

Tucker Simmons: And they would just give you the, the grunt work, from what I understand. Right,

Demmie Rice: Correct. Just the grunt. Right the… the… Oh, its, its beneath them to work those cases. Doesn’t matter if it is gone take a animal abuse neglect complaint to go and work a homicide. Your job is to protect and serve the citizens of Washington Parish, no matter what the call is. You know, and that’s why I’m. I’m following, watching, not watching, listening to the podcast. Well, you can say watching and listening because I’m looking at the phone, at the time stamp of what is being said, you know, particularly Tom Anderson, you know, his disgruntledness against me. I don’t know why. The only thing is, he knows my personality is, no matter what, speak the truth.

Tucker Simmons: Well, he definitely has a lot of feelings about you, and…

Demmie Rice: I’m sure he does.

Tucker Simmons: The more public Demmie’s assistance in my investigation becomes, the more disparaging comments I hear about her. Early on, I was told many things. Of course, we did our due diligence, and I confronted her with the claims now that they were ramping up behind the scenes, I wanted to get her on the record discussing a few of the allegations.

Tucker Simmons: One of them in particular, which we’ve spoken about before, said she botched the case against, you know, a sexual deviant because there was no evidence, and she arrested him too soon. Well, he just pled guilty, so there must have been something.

Demmie Rice: Whoa, are you referencing the [bleep] case?

Tucker Simmons: Yes.

Demmie Rice: That is a good old boy system where that family was, very popular. His father was the farmer school board superintendent, and I had balls from people within my extended family speaking on that person’s behalf. Whereas I explained to him I am looking at the evidence. I had the evidence. So why would they say I botched a case and made an arrest when as I already had the evidence, I was looking at it in my hand. Now, this person took a plea deal because he didn’t want to go to court and get the max sentence. So what does that tell you? I did not botch the case because I had the evidence enough to arrest that person, of which I did. And frankly, you know, and pardon the French, I don’t give a shit what people think about me. But whatever you say about me, it better be the truth, because nobody has room to talk about me when they have dirty skeletons in their closet. That goes to show you the good old boy system and the corruption in this Parish.

Tucker Simmons: I mean, I’m sure there were cases that you wish had gone differently, but, I mean, I wish I had done a lot differently in Donna’s investigation, too, so.

Demmie Rice: Oh, yes, I will tell you. I lost. it was a misdemeanor case, but it tortured me. Where I see some dogs on property where I found them, and I had been receiving complaints about them. And the dogs were severely neglected because I couldn’t physically see all the dogs on a property. And I walked the property after finding the first dogs. I should have gotten a search warrant. That’s why I lost that case, because I did not get a search warrant to go further onto the property. That was my mistake in that case. Have I made mistakes in other cases? Yes, I have, and I can own up to them. But one thing I knew about Donna’s case, I was not messing up there, and they knew it. Next complaint you had on me

Tucker Simmons: Well, one of the other things, Tom said was I watched Demmie closely on Donna’s case because I didn’t want her to get us all in trouble by doing something illegal or something to that point.

Demmie Rice: I would have never done something illegal. And second of all, he didn’t watch me closely at all because they’d only walk to my door and say, “Hey, what’s going on with the case? What have you found?” That’s it. I wouldn’t do something illegal. That may have been something he might have done in his career, not in mine. When this case comes to an end with an arrest, you know, I can finally feel some vindication to where I can really feel retired now. you know, whether I am working at the Sheriff’s Office or helping out with this podcast, it’s about integrity, being able to do the right thing.

Tucker Simmons: Well, we will talk soon, because there are many updates that have happened over the course of the podcast, and we’ll be working on those episodes soon.

Demmie Rice: Most definitely, you know I’m willing to provide a time you need.

Tucker Simmons: All right, Mama D.

Demmie Rice: Go ahead, edit you phone call, dear. And I tell my husband I was talking about him to ya

Tucker Simmons: Ah, right. [chuckle]

Demmie Rice: All right.

Tucker Simmons: I’ll talk to you later. All right.

Demmie Rice: Bye

Tucker Simmons: Other than alluding to it in episode 1, I haven’t discussed how I knew of Demmie prior to this investigation. It’s very personal, and as open as I’ve been with you guys, I don’t feel the need to expose that. But I will say, in my experience in the past and since working this case, Demmie is the woman you hear in every episode of this podcast. What you see, what you hear, that’s what you get. We’ve interviewed many people about Demmie’s integrity, and if I questioned her motives or work on this case, you would not be hearing from her. As the launch date of this podcast was nearing, we prepared billboards, social media ads, newspaper ads, and attempted to secure an exhibit at the Washington Parish Free Fair. Nothing provocative, just a place to educate visitors about Donna’s case and hand out merchandise to continue the justice for Donna conversation. The fair is the last place Donna was seen before her death, so it felt like an appropriate venue. Sadly, we were denied. I’ve heard several stories as to why, but the official reason was we’re fully booked. Those of you who attended The Fair in October 2024 likely saw the exhibit space. Multiple empty booths and no sign of enthusiasm. It all became much more clear when I learned a couple of the Washington Parish Fair association members may have ties to Donna’s case. Then it really came together when a source overheard a conversation. We were told the space was “sold out,” but in reality, they just didn’t want the most high profile murder in the Parish to have visibility at the most attended event in said Parish. I get that it’s a family event, which is why we made clear there would be nothing provocative. But this type of sheepish backroom decision making is why Washington Parish is the butt of every good old boy corruption joke. Compared to the mishandling of Donna’s case, this is nothing. But when certain people receive even a shred of perceived power in this town, they can’t help but flex it. That mindset has infected every aspect of this community. Don’t get me wrong, I love this place. I love The Fair. I have friends who are members of the Fair Association. They’re incredible people. But let’s be real. Donna deserved a presence at this event, and the denial lit a fire under many of us. This wouldn’t be the last time the board of the Washington Parish Free Fair would issue us a denial. More on that in a later episode.

Tucker Simmons: Boy, oh boy, it’s a lot of voiceover in this episode. Thanks for bearing with me. I’ve got a few more things to share. I intended to lay out my theory of what happened the night Donna was killed. Based on all my interviews, the evidence we’ve obtained, Demmie’s notes, I was ready to present my theory. However, as this podcast has released, a few things have changed. People have come forward, suspects have openly disparaged Donna and others on Facebook, and some close to the investigation have even been arrested for other offenses. I am not law enforcement. All I can do is get the information out there. So until I feel I have the full scope of this case, I won’t be sharing my theory. This is a very fluid situation happening in real time. But if you’ve been listening closely, you likely already know where I stand. Many of you have asked, and yes, I have been in touch with the Louisiana State Police throughout this process. All I can say is those of you with information about this case, those of you covering for your friends and family, those of you lurking on this podcast and social media choosing not to come forward, you will be implicated just as much as the killer. Come forward. Tell us what you know. Save yourself before it’s too late. Before we wrap up episode eight and get to work on future update episodes, I have one more thing to share. As much as I wanted to make contact with Donna’s daughter at the beginning of this investigation, I never did. She was a minor, and I was hopeful she would reach out when the time was right for her. Shortly after the launch of this podcast, just days after turning 18, I received this text.

Tucker Simmons: Hi Tucker, this is Ellie Arceneaux, Donna’s daughter. I’ve been waiting to contact you till I was 18. I have had a feeling, I wanted to say something since I was in the middle of everything. Contact me at any time because I need to finally feel my part has been spoken.

Ellie Arceneaux: I’ve wanted to have a say in all of this and, like, been able to get my side out because I feel as if, like, I love my dad, I love my brother, but they weren’t there. They didn’t experience it. Half of the people that, like, say they were there kind of were, like, friends that only came over every now and then and whatever, but I was there two weeks out of the month.

Tucker Simmons: Do you remember what you and your mom did on Saturday?

Ellie Arceneaux: I think they had extended the fair that week. So I think we went that night and we were with Scott and then they got an argument, so me and my mom left and he was still there with, Tommy.

Tucker Simmons: Hmm, well that doesn’t add up to Scott story that he gave investigators, so that’s actually a really important piece of information.

Ellie Arceneaux: He did not show up to that house that night, like, at all. He’s a lying piece of shit.

Tucker Simmons: As I’ve always said, solving this case would be incredibly difficult without access to the case file. Even without it though, we’ve uncovered a massive amount of information, details about the scene and interviews with me that contradict interviews with investigators. Sources with valuable information that make me question how many people were involved have come forward since the release of this podcast. I’ve promised update episodes and they’re coming. I’ll need a few weeks to follow up on leads, but rest assured, this is far from over.

Tucker Simmons: Make sure you follow rate and review on Apple podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you’re listening. It’s a huge help in spreading the word about Donna’s case. Then head over to freezeframepodcast.com for behind the scenes details on the investigation, and follow us on socials @freezeframepod for exclusive content. Freeze Frame is a But Why Media production. It’s written and produced by me, Tucker Simmons, editing and post production by Evan Desaulnier, narration by Greg Gehringer and Carrie Loren, and our original music is Something Strange by Tabitha Meeks.

‘Something Strange’ by Tabitha Meeks: Something Strange, Something Strange. In the air tonight. You can’t hide forever.