She was my big sister and best friend
My name is Jana Guyewski-Lautigar, and I am Crystal McCrory’s baby sister.
For the last three years, I have fought to make sure Crystal’s story was not forgotten and that the public had access to the facts surrounding her case. I am incredibly thankful that this information is now finally all in one place, allowing people to review it for themselves and form their own opinions.
Crystal’s death was ruled a suicide in just one hour and forty minutes. Yet despite that ruling, her case officially remains “open without a formal disposition.”
What troubles me most is how quickly assumptions were made. Law enforcement knew — and was told — that Crystal was taking antidepressants, and that alone appeared to shape the direction of the investigation from the very beginning. No gunshot residue testing was performed. No fingerprint testing was completed. No DNA testing was conducted on the evidence.
Adding to our concerns, Crystal’s husband was a former deputy with the very agency investigating her death. In recordings now available to the public, our family can be heard expressing concern about the obvious conflict of interest and repeatedly asking for an outside agency to investigate.
In a parish of fewer than 9,500 people — Louisiana’s equivalent of a county — my sister’s death remains the only unattended death during the tenure of current Sheriff Scott Mathews that was not allowed to be investigated by the Louisiana State Police.
That is why my advocacy has grown into something much larger than just my sister’s case. I now advocate for equality throughout ALL investigations — regardless of what medications someone takes, the color of their skin, who they choose to love, how much money they have, or what side of town they live on.
Every investigation deserves the same ethics.The same effort.The same integrity.
Every family.Every day.Every time.
