The Murder of Sierra Bouzigard
For this case, I watched an episode of Forensic Files 2. It’s season 1 episode 12, titled ‘Killer Snapshot.’
The body of a young woman is found off an isolated road.
Background
Sierra Bouzigard was born on August 10, 1990. She grew up in Lake Charles, Louisiana, but didn’t have the best home life. In this episode, Sierra’s mom, Dana said she wasn’t the best mother.
Sierra was only 19 at the time of her murder. She had spent time in jail on a minor drug offense, and was also doing sex work to support her drug habit. Despite her rough life, Sierra liked to have fun, and was described as a beautiful person.
Sierra Bouzigard
The Crime Scene
On November 23, 2009, the body of a young woman was found just outside of Lake Charles, Louisiana, off a secluded road. The road was so secluded that there were no street lights around the area.
The murder was overkill and very brutal. She had been beaten beyond recognition.
The victim had been wearing a jean skirt, which had been twisted to the side. Her bra was open, and her shirt had been pulled down. Her flip flops were found in two different places. She had defensive cuts on her hands from fighting back.
A candy wrapper and blood stained rocks were left behind at the scene. The evidence was collected and sent to the crime lab.
The medical examiner ruled that the victim’s cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head. It’s believed that the motive was sexual, but that she had fought off the attacker before a sexual assault had occurred. A rape kit was done, but there was no DNA found. However, DNA was collected from under the victim’s fingernails. There was also a full profile collected from the candy wrapper at the scene.
The Suspect
The victim was eventually identified by the distinctive tattoo on her body. She was identified as Sierra Bouzigard.
The Calacasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office believed that the killer had either killed or committed a violent crime before. They hoped the DNA would be in CODIS, but, there was no match found.
Before Sierra’s murder, she had attended a party with several Hispanic males. These males had taken construction jobs near the murder site, and were undocumented workers from Mexico. They all gave samples of their DNA, but none of them were a match.
One of the males that had attended the party had left to go back to Mexico before the police could speak to him. The police worked with the FBI and U.S. Marshals to try and find him. Sadly, Sierra’s case stalled for about 6 years.
A New Technology
Sierra’s case never left the minds of the Calcasieu Parish police. They hoped that a new technology called Snapshot DNA Phenotyping created by Parabon Nanolabs could help them.
The police had believed for 6 years that the suspect they were looking for was a Hispanic male. However, the Snapshot photo created was of a white male with blue eyes.
The photo was released to the media. One woman called the police, and claimed that she had received a call from her ex-husband after the Snapshot photo was released. He told her to remember that he had been with her on the night of Sierra’s murder. She said that her ex had left that night to pick up cigarettes. She believed it would have only taken him a few minutes, but he returned several hours later.
His name was Blake Russell. He was 31 at the time, and had a history of petty crimes. He also looked very similar to the Snapshot photo.
The Arrest
The police couldn't obtain a search warrant based on the Snapshot technology alone. It was very new, and had only been tested a few times.
One investigator went to a local bar where Blake had been drinking, and sat with him. He created a story about wanting to create a beer bottle Christmas tree, and asked if he could have Blake’s beer bottle. Blake handed it over to him.
Blake’s DNA was a match to the DNA found under Sierra’s fingernails.
Blake had lived down the street from the house where the Hispanic males had been living. It’s believed that he had left to pick up cigarettes, and saw Sierra leaving the party. He then asked if he could give her a ride. He attempted to have sex with her, but Sierra refused. He then became angry and was able to overpower her. The police believe that Blake had used a tire iron from his car to kill her. Sierra scratched Blake as she fought back, and his DNA was left under her fingernails.
In July 2017, Blake was charged with 2nd degree murder. While awaiting trial, he hanged himself in his jail cell.
The Snapshot photo and Blake Russell’s mugshot
FINAL THOUGHTS
It’s believed that Blake probably would have spent the rest of his life in prison had he been convicted. He probably knew that, and took the cowardly way out. While Sierra had a difficult life, she still didn’t deserve to be brutally murdered. Sierra simply rejected Blake, and was killed for it.
Sources
https://thecinemaholic.com/sierra-bouzigard-murder-where-is-blake-russell-now/
https://www.kplctv.com/story/38477853/suspect-in-sierra-bouzigard-murder-found-hanging-in-jail/
