Joyce Thomas, a 37-year-old African American woman, was murdered on October 31, 1988, in her apartment in Ville Platte, Louisiana. She was found with multiple stab wounds after what investigators determined was an abduction and sexual assault. Her body was later moved to a vacant lot in St. Landry Parish, where it had been doused with bleach and covered with branches.

A multiagency investigation involving local police, the parish sheriff’s office, state troopers, and federal agents identified 54-year-old Phillip Dewoody of Opelousas as the prime suspect. Dewoody, who was on parole for a prior homicide and had a criminal history including kidnapping and sexual assault, became linked to the case through surveillance footage, credit card records, and witness statements. He was arrested and later pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in Joyce Thomas’s death; he also pleaded guilty to aggravated kidnapping and rape of another woman. The court imposed three consecutive life sentences under a plea that was accepted by the surviving victim and the victims’ families.

Does anyone have information about Joyce’s life in Ville Platte or about the days leading up to October 31, 1988?