Keiosha Felix
Keiosha Felix is just fifteen years old when she disappears from Duson, Louisiana. Out on a weekend pass from a facility for pregnant and parenting teens, she’s set to visit her paternal aunt on the weekend of April 28-29th, 2012. On April 30th, she’s reported missing. Her paternal aunt and cousin said she left the night before with someone they didn’t see. Later, her cousin will say that she heard from Keiosha after April 30th which is used as evidence that she is a runaway, having left her aunt’s home with the intention of not coming back.
Very little information is available about the last time Keiosha was seen, but her young child is moved to state care and she stays labeled a runaway for nearly two months. Her maternal aunts, though, know she wouldn’t have left on her own without her child whom she loved dearly. One aunt maintains that Keiosha didn’t like going to her paternal aunt’s because of her paternal aunt’s boyfriend.
By summer, Keiosha is relabeled as a missing person and swiftly following this four individuals including her paternal aunt, her aunt’s boyfriend, her cousin, and the boyfriend’s brother are arrested. Despite this, upheaval in the Duson police department leaves the lead investigator on suspension with pay, the police chief lodging accusation after accusation after his own employee while rumors swirl about his own connection to Keiosha’s paternal relatives, and the case floundering as one by one those arrested are let go.
Keiosha’s case becomes less about a young kid missing from home and more about the ensuing drama. Still, her story is a stark reminder of how we treat stories of young Black girls and teen moms. Keiosha deserves to have her story told, and her family deserves answers.
People and Cases Mentioned in this Episode:
Keiosha Felix (unsolved missing persons case)
Michaela “Mickey” Shunick (solved missing persons case and solved murder case)
Lisa Pate (solved missing persons case and solved murder case)
Danielle Thibodeaux (unsolved case)
Guest reader
McKenna Roberts
Born McKenna Rae Roberts, an American actress and model. At a very young age she landed her first modeling job chosen from a snapshot. Then soon after at age 4 she signed with Ford Models. Where she went on to work for several big name companies like Nordstorm, Forever 21, H&M, and more.
McKenna's first television appearance was on Nickelodeon's TV series Sam & Cat alongside Ariana Grande. From there McKenna went on to play the role of Matilda Ashby on the Emmy award winning daytime drama The Young and the Restless (2013-2017). She has starred in several other television series with guest starring and recurring roles on projects like Steven Spielberg's Extant alongside Halle Berry, CSI Cyber alongside Patricia Arquette and CBS's TV series Timeless. Most recently McKenna can be seen playing a younger version of Zendaya starring in the HBO hit series Euphoria.
McKenna made her big screen debut in what she describes as her most exciting role thus far, cast as Georgia Sawyer a lead in the feature film Skyscraper. Alongside A-list actors Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Neve Campbell. Traveling to Hong Kong, Beijing, and New York City for the movies Global Press Tour and Premieres. She was featured prominently in the trailers and on the movies posters as well as the DVD cover of the film.
Off camera McKenna allows plenty of time for training, education and spending quality time with her friends and family.ecutive Producer). Najimy has performed on Broadway and at Madison Square Garden to benefit V Day in “The Vagina Monologues.” Najimy wrote her solo show for the New York City stage, “Lift Up Your Skirt.”
Kathy Najimy directed the east and west coast premieres of the acclaimed off-Broadway hit “Back to Bacharach and David,” as well as several other stage projects.
She starred in Pixar’s animated feature WALL-E and has voiced characters for the animated features Tinkerbell, Brother Bear 2, Cats Don’t Dance, and The Jungle Book. For TV: The Sissy Duckling, Oswald, Hey Arnold!, Pepper Ann, Smart Animals, Hercules, American Dad, Little Bill, and many more.
For her over 40 years of AIDS activism, Najimy has been honored with the L.A. Shanti’s Founder award as well as the LA Gay and Lesbian Center's Distinguished Achievement award. She is an enthusiastic supporter of women’s and girls’ rights, AIDS awareness, animal rights, and a woman’s right to choose, and frequently travels around the country to keynote speak on these issues. She is currently helping helm the movement to abolish the New York City carriage horses. Najimy has lent her support to a variety of worthy organizations that include: NYClass, Project Angel Food, APLA, GLAAD, Human Rights Campaign Fund, Broadway Cares Equity Fights AIDS, The Ms. Foundation, AMFAR, Planned Parenthood, Voters for Choice, and NARAL. As a proud Lebanese American, she has received awards from the ACC and The ADC and been honored with the Arabic Comedy Lifetime Achievement Award. She has posed twice for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animal (PETA)’s popular campaign “I’d Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur,” and, in 2000, she received PETA’s Humanitarian of the Year Award from Sir Paul McCartney.
Najimy has been published in The New York Times, as well as several national magazines. She contributed a chapter to the book The Choices We Made, which was released on the anniversary of Roe vs. Wade. She contributed a monologue to “Standing on Ceremony – The Gay Marriage Plays.” On tape, she voiced Wally Lamb's best-selling novel She’s Come Undone.
She is tournament champion of Bravo Celebrity Poker Showdown, winning $100,000 for V-DAY (dedicating to stopping violence against women) and also won another $100,000 for at-risk teen girls as the first champion of the CBS Game Show Marathon.
Kathy lives in NYC with her husband of 28 years Dan Finnerty and their 26-year-old daughter singer/songwriter Samia.