{"id":943480,"date":"2026-07-18T14:22:52","date_gmt":"2026-07-18T14:22:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/943480\/"},"modified":"2026-07-18T14:22:52","modified_gmt":"2026-07-18T14:22:52","slug":"what-did-it-daughter-of-1987-cold-case-victim-questions-why-suspect-came-forward-104-5-wokv","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/943480\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018What did it?\u2019: Daughter of 1987 cold case victim questions why suspect came forward \u2013 104.5 WOKV"},"content":{"rendered":"

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2014 The daughter of Melissa Ellison, the\u00a020-year-old woman killed in her Westside home back in 1987<\/a>, spoke with Action News Jax after the Jacksonville Sheriff\u2019s Office announced the suspect\u2019s arrest in this decades-old cold case.<\/p>\n

JSO says they arrested 70-year-old Gary Edward Glowacz after he called the Clay County Sheriff\u2019s Office, saying he had information about the murder.<\/p>\n

Casie Ellison, who was just 13 months old at the time, was found crying on the living room couch after the incident took place.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was in the bed when it happened, and I was moved,\u201d Casie said. \u201cAnd so for that to be something that happened in me, to understand that my mom\u2019s not here anymore, that\u2019s taken a great toll on my mental health and my ability to choose life paths.\u201d<\/p>\n

Casie says she and the rest of the family have been advocating for justice ever since \u2014 and after 38 years, the first steps have finally unfolded.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause of Project Cold Case and their constant avenue of advocacy for us, it\u2019s just continued to get her story out there and the family\u2019s voice to be heard,\u201d Casie said. \u201cIt\u2019s like taking off a backpack full of 50 pounds of books and putting it down, like taking a deep breath \u2014 I didn\u2019t realize that this was going to be a possibility for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Following Glowacz\u2019s arrest, Sheriff T.K. Waters said he was not able to share how Glowacz was linked to the case and ultimately identified as a suspect since the State Attorney\u2019s Office is now investigating.<\/p>\n

\u201cI personally want to ask: What did it? Has this been on your mind forever since it\u2019s happened, or did you see something that rekindled the feeling, or was it the press conference?\u201d Casie said. \u201cWhat was it that led you to come forward?\u201d<\/p>\n

Casie says that, growing up, she felt she had to lie about who she was because her story \u201cinconvenienced other people.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are always questions that come when somebody tells you that someone they know was murdered, let alone it be your own mom,\u201d Casie said.<\/p>\n

So, she channeled that energy into writing several books and founding a mental health resource called \u201cChange the Face of Depression<\/a>\u201a” a nonprofit dedicated to reminding those who live with depression that they\u2019re not alone.<\/p>\n

When asked if her mother\u2019s death ever caused her to live her life in fear, she says yes.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m set to maintain that safety because, yep, that has been imprinted on me,\u201d Casie said.<\/p>\n

However, the arrest has now allowed her to close out some of those fears.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m able to now look at the other directions that we were focused on and close down those paths because they are no longer a question for me, and that induces self-reflection,\u201d Casie said. \u201cWhich is wild because I\u2019m realizing the triggers that happen when I feel like any type of pattern makes me unsafe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even though Glowacz called the CCSO with information on her mother\u2019s murder, Casie wants to make it clear: It was the hard work of local law enforcement agencies, Crimestoppers and Project Cold Case that allowed his arrest to take place.<\/p>\n

Casie dedicates the following message to those agencies:<\/p>\n

I absolutely I want to thank Project Cold Case, and I really want to do a plea to the community to make sure that they stay funded and that they stay in the spotlight as well. For almost the last 10 years, every year, they\u2019re worried about having to close, and I want to make sure that if anybody is out there listening, anybody out there looking to help, maybe just looking for a fantastic nonprofit to donate to, please do it for Project Cold Case. Do it in my mom\u2019s name and my family\u2019s name, please. Make sure that these families, who also deserve the full justice and everything that\u2019s coming to their healing, get that opportunity because they have an advocate like Project Cold Case. I want to thank Crime Stoppers for giving my family the opportunity to have the press conference and making sure that there was no time limit. I understand how long ours was, and it was needed, and it was profound. I believe all of the resources that we have in the community to hold accountable and advocate for these families are what led to the arrest. This wouldn\u2019t have happened without them. I just simply don\u2019t believe that it would have, and I want to thank them so much. I do want to thank JSO for making sure that the community knew that they are taking every step they need to in order to ensure that this is exactly the way that it should go, and it\u2019s handled with white-glove service. I love that they\u2019ve made the announcement and the respect that they have for us as the family. Thanks so much to everybody who\u2019s given us the kind words and all the comments. We are slowly digging out of this incredible whirlwind of a week. We\u2019re still really quiet. There\u2019s a lot to process, and that includes rebuilding every relationship that I\u2019ve ever had, including the one with myself. And so, thanks for the love and support, and we really love you guys.<\/p>\n

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