Cold Case: Closure At Last

The day was October 10, 2024. It was a day that Kristy Mooney had looked forward to for over 40 years. Though it took four decades, the matter was over.

It was on that day, in a District Court room in Rufugio, Texas, that Gordon Parsons made a formal plea changing his original plea of not guilty in the matter of the death of Robert Dale Mooney, to guilty in court and was facing sentencing. Robert was the father of Kristy, she was two years old when her dad was murdered.

Parsons and Arnold Huskey had escaped the Wyoming State Penitentiary on July 29, 1984. The two men were caught in Panama City, Florida a month later. The men were traveling in a car owned by Mooney which had been reported missing since August 3, 1984, when they were last seen together.

At that time, Parsons and Huskey were extradited from Florida to Oregon. The two men were charged with murder for the death of Robert G. Macknair, a truck driver that had been found bound and gagged; he had suffocated and died.

For the murder of Macknair, Parsons and Huskey each received life sentences. Parsons was granted parole in 2020.

February 5, 1985, the body of Mooney was found with the help of Huskey; he said he witnessed Parsons kill Mooney, he maintained he did not participate in the murder or the burial. Mooney’s decomposed remains were found in a shallow-dug grave and wild animals had located it. There were no charges filed.

Once the remains were recovered and identified, they were never returned or released to the family.

In December of 2023, the Mooney murder came to surface again when the remains of Mooney were discovered in the evidence room by retired Sheriff Robert Bolcik. The remains had been sitting there since February of 1985, with no action being taken or closure on what was now a “cold case” file.

Approximately two months later, a Refugio Grand Jury indicted Parsons and Huskey of the murder based on evidence that was gathered by several Texas Rangers, who located Parsons living in Dodson, Montana.

In June of 2024, the Rangers made two trips to Malta to complete the arrest. They were assisted by the local Phillips County Sheriff’s office and other law enforcement agents. At that time, Parsons was escorted to Texas to face the charges.

One of the Texas State Troopers that came to Montana with a Texas Ranger for the arrest of Parsons was the son of Texas Ranger Doyle Holdridge, and he now works as a State Trooper. His dad had worked on the case back when it happened. When young Holdridge came to Dodson to make the arrest, he cuffed Parsons with his dad’s handcuffs.

Parsons plead guilty to the murder of Mooney on September 11, 2024.

At the Court hearing on October 10, 2024, Parsons received a life sentence. He will remain in a Texas penitentiary.

At the end of the court session, matters for the remains of Robert Moody were court ordered to be cremated and released to the family. Mooney’s daughter, Kristy, and his sister had been in attendance at the sentencing. Kristy provided a Victim Impact Statement before the court. No one from the Parsons family was in attendance.

The 24th Judicial District Attorney’s Office in Rufugio provided a press release thanking “retired Sheriff Robert Bolcik, retired Sheriff Leroy Moody, Sheriff Paul Gonzalez and the Texas Rangers for their excellent service to the community in this matter and righting this wrong after so many years. Our hearts and prayers are with the Mooney family today as their long search for justice comes to an end.” Ms. Mooney also expressed her gratitude to Assistant District Attorney Tim Poyner, who worked with the family to bring justice and closure to the 40-year case.

The Mooney family will have closure to the matter when they are able to gather next year. They have already missed Robert’s attendance at the wedding of Kristy’s son. An empty chair was left in honor and memory of the son, dad and grandpa that could not be with them at the joyous occasion.

Mooney’s mother, now 89 years old, has saved the Tonka trucks from when he was a young child. She also has his baby blanket preserved which serves as one of the few items that connect her to her son.

The quest is over, and what a journey it has been for Mooney’s daughter, his mother, Helen Marshall, his sister, Rhonda Marshall, and his grandchildren.

The grandchildren never got to feel his arms around them. They never heard him read a story to them. They were never given the opportunity to be in a picture with him, and were never able to share a birthday with him. They never were able to share a Christmas with him.

Kristy cannot remember the sound of his voice or his laugh.

They can, however, carry this moment in time in their hearts forever now.