What We Know
The Pet Cemetery Murders: The Real Case Behind HBO's Series
Video · 3:32 · Watch on YouTube
What is the real case behind HBO's The Pet Cemetery Murders: A Ghost Story? Spoilers for episode 1.
Dorothy Lou Thompson, 61, owned the Azalea Original Pet Cemetery in Toca, Louisiana. She disappeared in April 1985, ten days before a trial over her land, per the sheriff's office, and was found in the Mississippi River on May 2, 1985. In 2014, Brandon Nodier pleaded guilty to manslaughter in St. Bernard Parish and was sentenced to 10 years. There was no trial. Here is what the sheriff's office release and court-reported records show, and what they don't.
What we don't know: where Nodier is today (we haven't confirmed his custody status), and how a jury would have weighed the witness's account, since the case ended in a plea.
Only what officials and court-reported records confirm. The land-fraud account is the investigators'; the plea was to manslaughter. Not affiliated with HBO; no footage or images from the series are used.
Chapters
- 0:00Pet Cemetery Murders: the real case
- 0:27Dorothy Thompson, Toca, La.: what we know
- 0:54Brandon Nodier and the land dispute
- 1:17Pet Cemetery case: the cold years
- 1:51Pet Cemetery Murders: the 2012 witness
- 2:04Nodier's 2014 manslaughter plea
- 2:41Pet Cemetery case: the ghost tales
Sources
- St. Bernard Parish Sheriff's Office release (July 11, 2014)
- FOX 8 (July 11, 2014)
- The Advocate (July 16, 2014)
The record · as of Oct. 17, 2026
How we know
Primary records are court and agency documents; reporting is news coverage we checked against them. How we report.
Verified timeline
- 1985-04-13Dorothy Lou Thompson, 61, owner of the Azalea Original Pet Cemetery in Toca, St. Bernard Parish, La., disappeared; the sheriff's office estimated April 13, 1985, about 10 days before a trial in her lawsuit over the land (the sheriff's office says this; exact day is an estimate).FOX 8 2014-07-11; The Advocate 2014-07-16; FOX 8 2012-04-25
- 1985-05-02Thompson's body was found in the Mississippi River in Plaquemines Parish (near Myrtle Grove); coroner/sheriff's office gave cause as asphyxia (suffocation).FOX 8 2014-07-11; The Advocate 2014-07-16; FOX 8 2012-04-25
- 2012-03-15A witness contacted detectives, describing being present when Thompson was killed (witness unnamed here; they were in custody on an unrelated matter). Witness testified before a St. Bernard grand jury in April 2012.The Advocate 2014-07-16; FOX 8 2012-04-25; FOX 8 2014-07-11
- 2012-04-25A St. Bernard grand jury indicted Brandon Nodier, 58, on a charge of second-degree murder; he surrendered. He was charged only, presumed innocent at that time; investigators alleged a fraudulent land sale and said he sought her 14 acres.FOX 8 2012-04-25; The Advocate 2014-07-16
- 2014-07-11In Chalmette, Brandon T. Nodier, 60, of Arabi, pleaded guilty to manslaughter (reduced from second-degree murder) under a plea agreement; no trial. State District Judge Perry Nicosia sentenced him to 10 years. (Advocate article dated July 16 is publication date; plea was Friday July 11.)FOX 8 2014-07-11; The Advocate 2014-07-16; SBSO release 2014-07-11
Also in our research file
- Plea release Primary recordSt. Bernard Parish Sheriff's Office · July 11, 2014
- SBSO release: St. Bernard man pleads guilty to manslaughter (July 11, 2014) Primary recordSt. Bernard Parish Sheriff's Office · July 11, 2014
- Guilty plea ends bizarre murder saga in St. Bernard ReportingThe Advocate · July 16, 2014
- Man, 60, sentenced in 1985 murder case ReportingFOX 8 · July 11, 2014
- Suspect charged in 27-year-old murder in St. Bernard Parish ReportingFOX 8 · April 25, 2012
- Azalea Original Pet Cemetery SecondaryAbandoned Atlas · June 12, 2020
- The Pet Cemetery Murder: Dorothy Thompson SecondaryA&E
Updates and corrections
Photos: Dorothy Thompson, 1981 (via FOX 8); Brandon Nodier booking photo (St. Bernard Parish Sheriff's Office, via FOX 8). Map data: U.S. Census TIGER.
Spot an error? Email corrections@undercurrentdaily.com. See our corrections policy. Have information about this case? Contact the investigating agency first.
