On October 22, 1986, the small town of Leesville, Louisiana, was shaken by the mysterious disappearance of 25-year-old Bambi Luann Brantley and the subsequent vanishings and murders of four other women and teenage girls. Of the five cases, only three remain unsolved, including Bambi’s.
Bambi Luann Brantley was born on November 5, 1960. At age 25, she was an exquisite woman with striking red hair and captivating green eyes, standing at 5’7″ and weighing 110 pounds. She likely had no problems getting a date.
Bambi worked at Pynes Auto Dealership, where she sold cards for a living, and had recently relocated to the area from Bartlett, Tennessee. She shared a home with her brother at the now-defunct Tower Trailer Park, 2109 Nolan Trace (Highway 8 West).
Bambi had many friends and loved to hang out with them at the local bars.
Bambi’s Disappearance
On October 22, 1986, Bambi, 25, walked to Leebo’s at 1800 Nolan Trace (now Chevron), about a 10-minute trek, to purchase a drink. Afterward, she used the outdoor payphone to call her brother at the Pit Grill, asking him to come home and bring her the car so she could visit her boyfriend.
Bambi’s brother returned home within thirty minutes, but she was not there. However, he found the drink container from Leebo’s on the trailer floor. Bambi’s brother left the car and keys for her and then caught a ride back to the Pit Grill with a friend.
Bambi’s brother arrived home in the early morning hours, only to find Bambi gone while the drink remained untouched in the same spot on the floor. He reported his sister missing shortly after.
The initial police investigation into Bambi’s disappearance was extensive. However, despite their efforts, authorities uncovered no significant clues until more women began disappearing.
Other Disappearances and Murders
After Bambi disappeared, four others vanished from Leesville between 1988 and 1990.
Karen Eads Hill
Karen Eads Hill, 21, disappeared in November 1988 from a convenience store where she worked near Fort Polk. Her husband was a soldier in the U.S. Army stationed there. Hours later, hunters found her remains about 10 miles away. Her killer had tied her to a tree, sexually assaulted her, and killed her with a single gunshot wound to the head.
Pamela Hill
Pamela Hill, 23, moved to Leesville from Colorado. On May 29, 1989, she left a comedy club around 11:30 p.m. She was seen an hour later making a telephone call at the Circle K at the junction of Highways 8 and 117, where she worked. Pamela disappeared after heading toward the home of her boyfriend, Billy Hunt. Her car was later discovered abandoned about 10 miles northeast of Leesville.
Hunt later said he was entertaining another woman at home. At 12:15 a.m. that day, he saw a car turn around at his front gate. Hunt left to take his other girlfriend home at 1 a.m., but Pamela’s car blocked the entrance. Strangely, he pushed Pamela’s car out of the way, did not look for Pamela, and never called the police.
Hunt’s statement to a Shreveport newspaper was even stranger.
“I felt like someone she knew followed her out here,” he said. I was concerned but I just assumed that she came out and something happened to the car. I had seen the car turn around and leave.
“If Pam’s alive I believe she is subdued someplace … or she suffered some type of amnesia,” Hunt said. Or she’s dead. believe Pam is dead.” (The Times, June 8, 1989)
A hunter found Pamela’s remains a few months later in the Fort Polk area. Her murder remains unsolved.
Tammy Michelle Call
Tammy Michelle Call, 15, was last seen on February 20, 1990, on Highway 171, leaving Leesville High School, 502 Berry Drive. A school administrator had caught her skipping school and ordered her back to class. Police later located her book bag near the school grounds. Seven years later, a hunter found her remains in the Fort Polk area. Her case remains unsolved.
Vernon Parish Sheriff’s Office reopened Tammy’s case in 2018, re-examining all evidence and re-interviewing all witnesses. (KATC, 2022)
Three years later, authorities excavated the area where Tammy’s remains were found, but the outcome is unclear.
Tomeika Iwanna Walker
Five days after Tammy disappeared, Fort Polk resident Tomeika Iwanna Walker, also 15, vanished from Leesville on February 25, 1990. he had left home following an argument with her family. A jogger found her decomposed body in March 1990. Px police arrested 20-year-old Reginald C. Greene for her murder.
I could not find any more information on Tomeika or Reginald. She does have an online memorial on Find A Grave, but it’s bare.
Samuel Galbraith
In 1997, police arrested Samuel Galbraith, a Fort Polk soldier, for Karen Hill’s murder. He was convicted of manslaughter in 2000 and sentenced to 71 years in prison.
In 2016, “His case was reviewed for early review due to a law allowing first-time offenders to be considered for parole if they had served 20 years in prison and were aged 45 or older; however, the decision was blocked by Gov. John Bel Edwards, as Hill’s mother, Jessie McWilliams, received a delayed notification of his hearing.” (Leesville Leader, 2023)
Galbraith filed a lawsuit against the Louisiana Parole Board, claiming the group violated his due process rights. He remained in prison while awaiting the outcome of the lawsuit.
In May 2023, he was up for parole again, but the parole board denied his request after receiving 25 letters and over 700 signatures opposing Galbraith’s early release. Ultimately, the board voted 2-1 against parole. (KPLC TV, 2023) A few months later, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ordered Galbraith’s release because of the lawsuit.
It is unclear where Galbraith is as of this writing. He is the main person of interest in Tammy Call’s disappearance and Pamela Hill’s murder. He was at Fort Polk from December 1987 to June 1990. (Marine, 2018)
Aftermath
Bambi’s case grew colder as the years passed, and the leads became scarcer. Nevertheless, Bambi’s family never gave up hope and continued to seek answers, working tirelessly to keep her memory alive and to ensure that her case remained in the public eye.
In 2018, Vernon Parish Sheriff’s Office decided to take another look at Bambi’s disappearance.
“We’ve had the tenacity the sheriff’s department has… the determination,” said her sister Vicki Jackson. We’ve heard nothing but positive things about the sheriff… that’s a real big deal to us right now.” (KPLC TV, 2018)
Technological advancements and forensic science have given new hope to cold cases like Bambi’s in recent years. DNA analysis, digital forensics, and other modern investigative techniques can uncover new evidence or re-examine old clues in ways that were not possible in 1986.
Sources
“Appeals court orders release of Fort Polk soldier convicted of rape.” Leesville Leader, October 25, 2023. https://www.theleesvilleleader.com/2023/10/25/appeals-court-orders-release-of-fort-polk-soldier-convicted-of-rape/
“Bambi Luann Brantley.” The Charley Project. https://charleyproject.org/case/bambi-luann-brantley
“Disappearance of Women Still Baffles Police.” The Times (Shreveport, Louisiana), April 1, 1990.
“Family of Woman Missing From Leesville Since 1986 Confident That Case Can Be Solved.” KPLC TV, June 14, 2018. https://www.kplctv.com/story/38422102/vpso-to-update-cold-case-investigation/
“Fort Polk Remains Identified.” The Town Talk (Alexandria, Louisiana), December 21, 1989.
“Killing, Missing Women Cases May Be Linked, Says Detective.” The Town Talk, June 7, 1989.
Marine, Drew. “New Information in Tammy Call Cold Case Could Lead Detectives to Her Killer.” KPLC TV, October 15, 2018. https://www.kplctv.com/2018/10/13/new-information-tammy-call-cold-case-could-lead-detectives-her-killer/
Moreau, Jade. “Cold Case: 7News Investigates 1989 Murder of Pamela Miller.” KPLC TV, May 30, 2023. https://www.kplctv.com/2023/05/30/cold-case-7news-investigates-1989-murder-pamela-miller/
Sullivan, Stacy. “Girl’s Disappearance a Mystery.” The Times, March 7, 1990.
Thorington, Brooke. “Vernon Parish Sheriff’s OFfice Trying to Solve 33 Year Old Case of Missing Teen Tammy Call.” Louisiana Radio Network, February 21, 2023. https://louisianaradionetwork.com/2023/02/21/29551/
“Vernon Parish Lawmen Probing Disappearance of Third Blonde.” The Times, June 8, 1989.
“Vernon Parish Still Working Cold Case, 32 Years Later.” KATC, February 18, 2022. https://www.katc.com/news/covering-louisiana/vernon-parish-still-working-cold-case-32-years-later