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After 'six torturous long years,' family relieved by guilty verdict in Ronn Bell case
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BATON ROUGE — Sadie Roberts-Joseph's children have been waiting, hoping since they learned of the arrest of the man police said killed their mother.
Ronn Bell was convicted Saturday of second-degree murder in the 2019 killing of 75-year-old Roberts-Joseph.
“It’s been six torturous long years, and throughout that time I try my best to remain optimistic,” said Angela Machen, Roberts-Joseph's daughter.
Roberts-Joseph, who had been a civil rights activist in Baton Rouge and helped to found an African-American museum, was Bell's landlord and he was behind on his rent. She was found dead in the trunk of her car, which was parked near a vacant house on North 20th Street.
Her children said the wait for justice felt never-ending.
“It seem like an eternity for us. So we heard that word guilty, there’s no words to describe that,” her son Jason Roberts said.
In closing arguments, defense attorney Randy Dukes said that all the DNA samples from the crime scene were not tested. Prosecutors countered that the samples that were tested proved Bell's guilt. The jury deliberated for three hours.
The trial's intense focus on the details of their mother's death was painful, Roberts said.
“Those were the last moments of my mother – our mother. So it was very difficult for us going through that entire trial,” said Roberts.
Machen said her family believes it's important to continue Roberts-Joseph's work and honor her legacy.
“The loss of my mother has absolutely left a void, and I hope others would join in on that call of action to participate in whatever ways is appropriate for them to making this a better place to live,” she said.
The family has also been working for years to renovate the museum their mother helped to create and they look forward to reopening it.
Bell is set to be sentenced on Aug. 7. Second-degree murder carries a life sentence.
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