It took nearly twenty years to finally answer the question of who killed Courtney Coco. For two decades, her mother, Stephanie Belgard, lived in a purgatory of unanswered questions, cold leads, and the crushing weight of a case that seemed destined to gather dust in a detective's filing cabinet.
Courtney was only 19. She had her whole life ahead of her in Alexandria, Louisiana, before everything vanished in the summer of 2004. Her body was found in an abandoned building in Texas, hundreds of miles from home, starting a mystery that would eventually become a staple of true crime podcasts like Real Life Real Crime. But behind the media coverage was a raw, agonizing search for the truth that proves justice is rarely swift, and almost never easy.
What Happened to Courtney Coco?
The timeline starts on a Friday. It was October 2004. Courtney was last seen alive on the 1st, and by the 4th, her body was discovered in a state of decomposition in Winnie, Texas. The scene was grim. She was partially clothed. There was no ID.
Investigators were baffled by the logistics. How did a teenager from Alexandria end up in a deserted greenhouse in Chambers County, Texas? Her car, a 2002 Pontiac Sunfire, was missing. It eventually turned up in Houston, but the trail went cold almost immediately. For years, the case was the definition of "stagnant." Local police in Alexandria faced immense criticism from the family, who felt the initial investigation was mishandled or, at the very least, lacked the urgency a murdered young woman deserved.
Honestly, the breakthrough didn't come from some high-tech DNA miracle or a sudden confession. It came from persistence. It came from Woody Overton, a retired detective who took an interest in the case and began broadcasting the details on his podcast. He shook the trees. He interviewed people who hadn't been talked to in years. He put the heat back on the person who had been a person of interest since the very beginning: David Anthony Burns.
The Arrest and Trial of David Anthony Burns
In 2021, the Alexandria Police Department finally made their move. They arrested David Anthony Burns and charged him with second-degree murder. To many following the case, this wasn't a surprise. Burns had been linked to Courtney early on, but the evidence was largely circumstantial for a long time.
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The trial, which took place in 2022, was an emotional gauntlet. Prosecutors argued that Burns strangled Courtney during a struggle. The defense tried to poke holes in the timeline and the lack of physical evidence, but the testimony from witnesses—some of whom recalled Burns making incriminating statements or acting erratically around the time of the disappearance—began to stack up.
A jury in Rapides Parish didn't take long to decide. After just a few hours of deliberation, they found Burns guilty of second-degree murder. In Louisiana, that carries a mandatory life sentence.
It's weird to think about how much time passed between the crime and the conviction. Children born the year Courtney died were adults by the time Burns was handcuffed. This is the reality of the American justice system sometimes; it’s a marathon where the finish line keeps moving.
Why the Case Stayed Cold for So Long
You've probably wondered why it took 17 years to arrest the guy who was "always a suspect."
Multiple factors played into the delay. First, the jurisdictional nightmare of a body found in Texas and a crime committed in Louisiana created immediate friction. Communication between departments wasn't what it is today. Second, the initial scene at Courtney’s home wasn't processed as a homicide immediately because she was missing, not confirmed dead. By the time they realized she had been murdered, the "golden hour" for evidence collection had evaporated.
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Then there’s the human element. Witnesses move. They get scared. They change their stories. In small towns like Alexandria, people talk, but they don't always talk to the cops. It took the cultural pressure of a popular podcast and a fresh set of eyes at the DA's office to force the hand of the authorities.
Key Evidence That Led to Conviction:
- Witness Testimony: People from Burns' past came forward with details about his behavior and comments he made regarding Courtney's death.
- The Car: The movement of Courtney's Pontiac Sunfire and its eventual discovery in Houston tied back to the suspect's known whereabouts.
- Inconsistent Alibis: Over the years, the stories provided by Burns didn't hold up under the scrutiny of new investigators.
The Impact of "Real Life Real Crime"
We have to talk about the "podcast effect." Without Woody Overton’s Real Life Real Crime, it is highly likely that David Anthony Burns would still be a free man.
Overton didn't just report on the case; he investigated it. He used his background as a polygraph examiner and detective to treat the podcast like an open file. He gave Courtney’s mother, Stephanie, a platform to humanize her daughter, moving her from a "cold case file" to a living, breathing person in the minds of the public. This created a PR nightmare for the local police, who were forced to address the mounting evidence Overton was presenting to thousands of listeners every week.
It’s a fascinating, if somewhat controversial, example of how modern media can act as a check on law enforcement. While some argue that "civilian" involvement can taint a jury pool, in the case of who killed Courtney Coco, it was the catalyst for the truth.
Misconceptions About the Case
A lot of people think there was some "smoking gun" DNA found years later. That’s not really how it went down.
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The conviction relied heavily on the totality of the circumstances. There wasn't a drop of blood or a fingerprint that suddenly appeared. Instead, it was about a prosecutor finally being willing to take a "circumstantial" case to a jury. Many DAs are afraid of losing cold cases, so they wait for "perfect" evidence that may never come. In this instance, the pressure from the community and the strength of the witness statements were enough to risk the trial.
Another misconception is that the police "did nothing" for 15 years. While the family certainly felt that way, there were internal pushes to move the case forward, but they often stalled due to leadership changes and a lack of resources.
What We Can Learn From Courtney's Story
Justice for Courtney Coco isn't just about a guilty verdict. It's a case study in advocacy. If you have a loved one in a similar situation, the "actionable" takeaway here is that you cannot be silent.
- Document everything. Stephanie Belgard kept records of every call and every meeting with police for nearly two decades.
- Engage the media carefully. Not every journalist or podcaster is helpful, but finding one with investigative experience can change the trajectory of a case.
- Pressure local officials. District Attorneys are elected. They respond to the concerns of their constituents.
- Keep the victim’s name alive. The moment a case is forgotten by the public, it is forgotten by the system.
David Anthony Burns is currently serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole at the Louisiana State Penitentiary. He attempted to appeal the conviction, citing various issues with how the trial was conducted, but the verdict has stood.
For the people of Alexandria and the family of Courtney Coco, the "who" has been answered. The "why" is harder to swallow—a senseless act of violence that stole a young woman's future. But the "how" of the conviction serves as a roadmap for other families trapped in the silence of a cold case.
If you are following a cold case or seeking justice for a victim, the most important step is to connect with advocacy groups like the National Center for Victims of Crime. They provide resources for navigating the legal system and finding investigative support. Additionally, checking the status of cases through the FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) requests can sometimes reveal where a bottleneck is occurring in an investigation. Don't let the file stay closed.