New Orleans in the 1990s was a wild, often dangerous place to live. It was a city struggling with high crime and a police department that, quite frankly, was gaining a reputation for all the wrong reasons. But even in a climate of corruption, nobody was prepared for the name Antoinette Frank.
You’ve probably heard snippets of the story—a rookie cop who robbed a restaurant she was supposed to be protecting. But the reality is a lot darker, weirder, and more tragic than a simple "bad cop" headline. It’s a story about a massive failure in psychiatric screening, a brutal childhood that most people can't even imagine, and a night of violence that changed the city forever.
The Night Everything Collapsed
It was March 4, 1995. The Kim Anh, a small Vietnamese restaurant in New Orleans East, was closing up for the night. The owners, the Vu family, were well-known and liked in the community. They actually treated Antoinette Frank like family. She worked off-duty security there, often sharing shifts with another officer, Ronald Williams II.
Around 2:00 AM, Frank showed up. But she wasn't there to check the locks.
She was with an 18-year-old drug dealer named Rogers LaCaze. Using a key she’d stolen earlier, Frank entered the restaurant. What happened next was pure horror. Officer Ronald Williams was shot and killed immediately. Frank and LaCaze then rounded up the Vu siblings—Ha, 24, and Cuong, 17.
Despite the siblings' pleas, they were executed. Ha was found on her knees, as if in prayer. Cuong was shot multiple times, with Frank reportedly firing the final shots into his head to "finish him off" after hearing him still breathing.
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The Most Bizarre Part of the Crime
Here is where it gets truly chilling. After the shooting, Frank and LaCaze fled with the money. But then, Frank actually returned to the scene.
She showed up in a patrol car, pretending to respond to the 911 call. She even asked the survivors—Chau and Quoc Vu, who had hidden in a walk-in freezer—what had happened. Can you imagine the terror of seeing the person who just murdered your siblings walk back in wearing a badge and offering "help"?
Chau didn't hesitate. She pointed right at Frank and told the other arriving officers, "She did it."
How Did Antoinette Frank Even Get a Badge?
Looking back, the NOPD had plenty of warnings. When Antoinette Frank applied to the department in 1993, she actually failed two psychiatric evaluations. Dr. Philip Scurria, a psychiatrist who interviewed her, explicitly warned that she was "shallow and superficial" and not suitable for police work.
So, why was she hired?
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Basically, the department was desperate. They were facing a massive personnel shortage and were under pressure to fill classes. They ignored the red flags. Even during her short time on the force, her peers noticed she was "odd" and "indecisive." Yet, she somehow managed to win an "Officer of the Month" award not long before the murders. It’s a classic case of a system prioritizing numbers over safety.
A Darker History: The Bone Under the House
The Kim Anh murders weren't the only mystery surrounding Frank. About a month after she was sentenced to death, police dogs were brought to her former home. They found something gruesome: a human skull with a bullet hole, buried in the yard.
Most investigators believe that skull belonged to her father, Adam Frank.
Antoinette had reported him missing in 1993, shortly after he came to stay with her. While she was never charged with his murder (mostly because she was already on death row), the discovery added a whole new layer of macabre to her story. It suggested that the violence at the Kim Anh wasn't her first time pulling a trigger.
The Defense's Argument for Mercy
In recent years, the conversation around Antoinette Frank has shifted slightly toward her upbringing. According to reports from the Guardian and legal filings by her current team, her childhood was a nightmare.
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- Extreme Abuse: Experts say she endured years of physical and sexual abuse at the hands of her father.
- Forced Abortions: Records indicate she had three abortions resulting from her father's rapes.
- Psychological Damage: Doctors have since diagnosed her with PTSD and Dependent Personality Disorder.
Her lawyers argue that the jury never heard this side of the story. They claim she was "brainwashed" or coerced by Rogers LaCaze because of her history of being controlled by men.
Where is Antoinette Frank Now?
As of 2026, Antoinette Frank remains on death row at the Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women in St. Gabriel. She is the only woman on death row in the state.
For years, there was a de facto moratorium on executions in Louisiana, but that has recently changed. The state’s attorney general has been pushing to move forward with executions after a long hiatus. While her legal team continues to fight for clemency or a new sentencing hearing based on her trauma history, she remains in a high-security lockdown.
Actionable Insights: Lessons from the Frank Case
If we’re going to learn anything from this tragedy, it’s about the vital importance of vetting and mental health awareness.
- Vetting Matters: If you are in a position of hiring—whether for a security firm or any high-stakes job—never ignore psychological red flags. Systems that prioritize "filling seats" over quality control eventually break.
- Recognizing Trauma: The Frank case is a extreme example of how untreated, generational trauma can manifest in violent ways. Supporting local programs that intervene in domestic abuse situations can prevent cycles of violence before they start.
- Support for Survivors: The Vu family eventually moved their restaurant to Harahan and tried to rebuild. Supporting immigrant-owned businesses and community safety initiatives helps maintain the fabric of neighborhoods hit by crime.
Antoinette Frank’s story isn't just a "true crime" tale; it's a reminder of what happens when the people we trust to protect us are the ones we should fear the most.
Next Steps:
If you want to understand the full context of the NOPD during this era, I recommend reading Killer with a Badge by Chuck Hustmyre. It provides an in-depth look at the investigation from someone who was actually there. You might also look into the current status of Louisiana's death penalty laws to see how the state is handling these long-standing cases.