# HBO docuseries on Louisiana pet cemetery murder

> Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/hbo-docuseries-on-louisiana-pet-cemetery-murder
> Updated: 2026-10-18T12:00:00.000Z. Sources: 6. Developments: 3.

HBO announced and subsequently released a three-part true crime docuseries titled ‘The Pet Cemetery Murders: A Ghost Story’. Directed by Philip Cairney, the series investigates the 1985 unsolved murder of Dorothy Thompson, the 61-year-old proprietor of the Azalea Original Pet Cemetery in Toca, Louisiana. Thompson’s body was discovered in the Mississippi River nearly a month after she was reported missing, wrapped in chains; an autopsy identified asphyxiation as the cause of death.

The documentary details how the investigation was hindered by the loss of evidence and the destruction of many case files during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. It explores the intersection of the crime with local folklore and the perceived haunting nature of the cemetery land, which had been in the Thompson family since 1979. 

The series provides context on the resolution of the case, noting that groundskeeper Brandon Nodier pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 2014 after the case was reopened. Investigators had previously focused on cemetery groundskeepers and Patricia Newman, Thompson’s friend and executor of her estate, though Newman has dismissed suspicions, maintaining her role was based on Thompson’s trust. Additionally, the series examines the historical significance of the land, which was the site of the 1868 St. Bernard Parish Massacre.

## Timeline

### 2026-10-18: Dorothy Thompson murder case revisited in HBO docuseries

An HBO docuseries examines the unsolved 1985 murder of Dorothy Thompson, owner of a Louisiana pet cemetery, whose body was found in the Mississippi River wrapped in chains.

2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/dorothy-thompson-murder-case-revisited-in-hbo-docuseries

### 2026-10-11: HBO docuseries explores 1985 Louisiana pet cemetery murder

HBO’s new docuseries, ‘The Pet Cemetery Murders: A Ghost Story’, examines the 1985 murder of Louisiana pet cemetery owner Dorothy Lou Thompson and the historical trauma of the land.

2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/hbo-docuseries-explores-1985-louisiana-pet-cemetery-murder

### 2026-09-29: HBO to premiere true crime docuseries ‘The Pet Cemetery Murders’

HBO will premiere ‘The Pet Cemetery Murders: A Ghost Story’, a three-part docuseries investigating the 1985 unsolved murder of a Louisiana pet cemetery owner.

2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/hbo-to-premiere-true-crime-docuseries-the-pet-cemetery-murders

---
Cite as: HBO docuseries on Louisiana pet cemetery murder. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/hbo-docuseries-on-louisiana-pet-cemetery-murder