murder Archives - The Baytown Project

Back when 15 cents meant a lot to his family

David Berkowitz — Mon, 03 Dec 2018 13:28:19 +0000

“After the murder of my father’s dad, John A. Sivek, in 1934, times were very hard. My father, John S. Sivek, was younger than 5 years old at the time. At the age of 10 or 11 in 1940-41, he built a shoeshine box and, near his home on Pine Street, started cruising the bars along Harbor Street for customers.

“Once, in one of the bars, a drunk snatched his money. The gentlemen in the bar caught wind of this and were no longer gentle. Having seen a child’s hard-earned money stolen, they took matters into their own hands. They caught the guy outside and knocked him about. When the assemblage came back inside and returned my father’s money, most everyone in there lined up to have a shine.

“It was the most money he had ever made in a single day. He went home and proudly placed the money on the table in front of his mother. She couldn’t believe it, and the first thing she seriously wanted to know was where he had stolen all the money from.

“Our family still has that shoeshine box — 15 cents a shine.”

— Steve Sivek

The post Back when 15 cents meant a lot to his family appeared first on The Baytown Project.

Murdered student honored at graduation ceremony

David Berkowitz — Fri, 08 Jun 2018 21:19:04 +0000

“I called Kirsten’s counselor to ask if there was any way they could recognize her at graduation. She was an honor student and in the 11th grade at Robert E. Lee High School when she was murdered. I’m very honored that they did this. I feel like Kirsten was looking down from heaven, knowing I would try to do something for her.

“All her family should have been seeing Kirsten receive her diploma. She had plans to go to college. She had even talked about becoming a forensic scientist. She was very smart. She could have become anything she wanted. My heart will remain shattered until I see Kirsten, Breanna and Cynthia again one day in heaven.”

— Barbara DeRamus

Barbara’s daughter, Cynthia Morris (37), and granddaughters, Kirsten Fritch (16) and Breanna Pavlicek (13), were killed in November 2016. Jesse Dobbs was indicted for the murder of Kirsten. He also is the primary suspect in the deaths of Cynthia and Breanna.

Related:

The post Murdered student honored at graduation ceremony appeared first on The Baytown Project.

‘I have a lot of questions for God when I see him’

David Berkowitz — Tue, 20 Feb 2018 03:06:28 +0000

Cynthia Morris and her daughters, Kirsten Fritch and Breanna Pavlicek, are buried at Earthman Memory Gardens Cemetery in Baytown.

“My faith, my family and some good friends are what’s getting me through. They’ve helped me a lot. Still, there are times when I get mad at God. I’ll say, ‘God, you have all these angels. Why didn’t you send them down to save my girls?’ I have a lot of questions for God when I see him.

“After they passed, Cynthia came to visit me in a dream. Her girls were with her, and they all looked perfect. Cynthia talked to me. She told me that she was more alive now than she’s ever been. That was a confirmation to me. They’re in heaven.

“I know they’re OK. But it’s just the idea that they’re no longer here physically that hurts so much. Sometimes I laugh to keep from crying. I just wish I could wake up, and it would all be a bad dream.”

— Barbara DeRamus

Barbara’s daughter, Cynthia Morris, and granddaughters, Kirsten Fritch and Breanna Pavlicek, were murdered in 2016. Jesse Dobbs, 22, was indicted in February 2018 for the murder of Kirsten. He also is the primary suspect in the deaths of Cynthia and Breanna.

Love was strong for murdered mom, daughters

David Berkowitz — Mon, 19 Feb 2018 02:48:14 +0000

In November 2016, Barbara DeRamus’ world came crashing down on her when she learned that her daughter, Cynthia Morris, and granddaughters, Kirsten Fritch and Breanna Pavlicek, had been murdered. While she continues to struggle with that reality, Barbara will never forget her love for all three girls and their love for each other.

Related:

The post Love was strong for murdered mom, daughters appeared first on The Baytown Project.

Shocking murders were ‘just so unbelieveable’

David Berkowitz — Mon, 19 Feb 2018 02:27:52 +0000

Barbara DeRamus sits with photos of her daughter, Cynthia Morris (37), and granddaughters, Kirsten Fritch (16) and Breanna Pavlicek (13), who were murdered in November 2016. Jesse Dobbs (22) was indicted in February 2018 for Kirsten’s murder. He also is the primary suspect in the deaths of Cynthia and Breanna.

“Cynthia had been helping me and my husband with our gun holster business. She was a hard worker, dedicated and on time for the most part. So when she didn’t show up that Tuesday morning, we were wondering what was going on.

“With her being a single mom, I was thinking that maybe her girls were giving her a hard time about getting up and getting dressed for school. Since I couldn’t reach her, I decided to drive over to their rent house.

“When I got there, I noticed that Cynthia’s car was gone. Naturally, I was thinking that she probably was driving the kids to school. Still, I went around to the back and knocked on the window because I just had this strange kind of feeling. I had my brother on the phone from Florida, and I asked him to stay on the line with me.

“I called out, ‘Cynthia, Breanna,’ because Breanna was the youngest one and she slept with her mom. When I didn’t hear anything, I came back around to the front door and it was half open. I saw the TV and the lamps were on. I called out, ‘Kirsten,’ for my older granddaughter. When there was no answer, I got very worried.

“I told my brother, and he said, ‘Barbara, do not go in there. Call the police immediately.’ And I’m so glad I didn’t go inside. Otherwise, I probably would have had a heart attack. It turned out that Cynthia and Breanna were in the master bedroom shot to death.

“When the police finally told me, I was in shock. It was just so unbelievable. I was like, ‘My daughter and my granddaughter are dead? Is Kirsten dead, too?’ That’s when they told me that Kristen wasn’t there. I said, ‘Oh, my God. Where’s Kirsten? She’s only 16. You need to put out an Amber Alert for her.’

“It turned out that Kirsten had gotten killed later that day. She was stabbed almost 60 times behind a bar in Texas City. We didn’t know until two days later when Texas EquuSearch found her body. That’s when it really hit me hard. My daughter and my granddaughters were gone.”

— Barbara DeRamus