Before Dorothy Lou Thompson disappeared in April 1985, two of her husbands had died in separate incidents at the Azalea Original Pet Cemetery in Louisiana. Those deaths became part of the rumor-filled story surrounding the property—but the surviving public accounts do not justify treating rumor as proof that Dorothy killed either man.
This article examines what published historical accounts say about Logan Banks, who died in 1970, and Donald Robinson, who died in 1978. It distinguishes reported facts from competing descriptions and explains why the deaths remain part of the context—not a substitute for evidence—in the later investigation into Dorothy’s murder.
Logan Banks: the 1970 shooting
Historical reporting says Dorothy fatally shot her first husband, Logan Banks, on the cemetery property on November 26, 1970. According to the account published by Autopsy of Architecture, Dorothy said Banks was intoxicated and threatening her and others with a large knife. The site’s historical summary says sheriff’s officials determined the shooting was self-defense and no charges were filed.
That reported outcome matters. The fact that a person died violently does not, by itself, establish murder, and the publicly available account says authorities did not charge Dorothy over Banks’s death. We have not located a digitized primary police report or court file that would let us independently reproduce the complete investigation, so this article does not claim to offer a full forensic reconstruction.
Donald Robinson: the 1978 death
Dorothy married Donald Robinson, a caretaker associated with the cemetery, in 1976. Less than two years later, Robinson was found fatally shot on the property. Published accounts agree that Dorothy reported finding him dead and that she was not charged in connection with his death.
Descriptions of the circumstances are not entirely consistent across secondary sources. Some retellings describe Robinson’s death as a suicide; the historical account from Autopsy of Architecture describes him as having been shot and says no charges were filed. Without an accessible primary report or medical-examiner record to resolve that difference, the responsible approach is to flag the discrepancy rather than present one version as settled fact.
How the deaths became part of local rumor
The deaths of both husbands, along with the cemetery’s isolated setting and reputation for ghost stories, helped create a dark local mythology around Dorothy. Podcast retellings of the case have discussed those rumors, including the idea that she was regarded by some people as a “husband killer.” That phrase describes a rumor, not a legal finding.
It is also important to remember that the deaths occurred years apart and had different reported circumstances. Logan Banks’s shooting was described in the historical account as self-defense; Robinson’s death remains less clearly documented in the publicly accessible material reviewed for this article. Combining them into one supposed pattern risks turning uncertainty into accusation.
Why investigators later focused on Dorothy’s own disappearance
Dorothy vanished in April 1985 while involved in a legal dispute over control of the cemetery property. Her body was found in the Mississippi River on May 2, 1985. Investigators eventually focused on groundskeeper Brandon Nodier, who was indicted in 2012 and pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 2014, receiving a 10-year sentence.
The older deaths form part of the background, but the later case against Nodier turned on evidence and witness information related to Dorothy’s disappearance and killing. The public reporting reviewed here does not establish that either husband’s death was proven to be a murder committed by Dorothy, nor does it establish that either earlier death directly caused her 1985 killing.
Listen to the case history
The Gone South podcast has covered the pet cemetery case and discusses how old newspaper reports and court records informed the investigation of the rumors around Dorothy’s earlier life. Use it as a secondary narrative source, and keep in mind that a podcast summary is not a substitute for the original police or court records.
Read the transcript of “The Pet Cemetery Murders — Part 1”.
Official trailer and law-enforcement post
The HBO documentary revisits Dorothy’s case and the stories that grew around the cemetery. The trailer is included below for context. The sheriff’s office post is linked separately so readers can consult the agency’s public update directly.
Official social post: St. Bernard Parish Sheriff’s Office Facebook post.
What can responsibly be concluded?
- Logan Banks died in a 1970 shooting; one historical account says authorities ruled it self-defense and filed no charges against Dorothy.
- Donald Robinson died from a gunshot wound on the property in 1978; public secondary accounts differ on how his death was classified.
- No charges were filed against Dorothy in connection with either death, according to the historical account used here.
- The deaths became part of local rumor, but rumor is not proof of criminal responsibility.
- Dorothy’s 1985 murder was a separate case, for which Brandon Nodier later pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
Sources and further reading
- Autopsy of Architecture: Azalea Original Pet Cemetery — detailed historical account and archival photographs.
- Gone South transcript: The Pet Cemetery Murders — Part 1 — discussion of rumors and research into older records.
- Biography.com: Dorothy Lou Thompson’s Pet Cemetery Murder — overview of the later cold case.
- FOX 8: Man sentenced in 1985 murder case — Nodier’s 2014 plea and sentence.
- St. Bernard Parish Sheriff’s Office on Facebook — official agency post.
Editorial note: This article is based on publicly accessible secondary sources and reporting. It does not allege that Dorothy Thompson murdered either husband. The underlying primary records were not available for independent review here, and disputed details are identified as such.
