On the first day of the new year, a sense of unease settled over a family in New Orleans. Edward 'Eddie' Richardson Jr., an 84-year-old retired employee of the City of New Orleans Public Works, was not answering his door. A concerned family member, unable to reach him, sought help from a security guard at The Terraces on Tulane Avenue, the senior housing development where he lived.
What was discovered inside the apartment on January 1, 2013, was a scene of violence that marked a tragic start to the year.
Edward Richardson, a male resident of the community, was found deceased, having been brutally killed. An investigation later revealed that he had been bludgeoned and stabbed more than 20 times. The nature of the attack suggested a violent struggle and immense suffering in his final hours. Despite the horrific nature of the crime, there were no initial signs of a security breach or forced entry into his apartment, leaving investigators with a perplexing case from the outset.
In the wake of his death, Richardson's daughter, Daphne Richardson Valteau, filed a lawsuit in December of that year. The suit was brought against the owners and managers of the apartment complex, alleging that inadequate security contributed to her father's death. The legal action claimed that the front gate was often unlocked and that the building's lock and buzzer system were not consistently used. It also alleged a lack of properly trained staff at the front desk and non-functioning security cameras. At the time the lawsuit was filed, the person or persons responsible for the violent death of Edward Richardson had not been identified, and no arrests had been made in the case. The murder of the elderly man, a father, grandfather, and great-grandfather, remained an unsolved and sorrowful mystery.
