In the summer of 1993, Scott Rogers, charismatic principal of the Academy of Dance and Performing Arts, smiled as he walked out of a London courtroom, a free man. A hung jury had failed to convict Rogers on charges of sexual assault of a young student, allowing him to slip quietly out of the country and disappear. Ethan, a classmate of Rogers’ young victim, knew the jury got it all wrong. And he knew one day, he would expose the secrets buried behind the Academy walls in the English town of Bury St. Edmunds. Ethan knew Rogers was a danger to children, a certainty that haunted him when he closed his eyes to sleep. Over time, Ethan built a successful career. As his business and family grew, he searched for Rogers for 13 years. Then Ethan discovered a letter published in a Louisiana newspaper mentioning Rogers, who had escaped to the U.S., reinvented himself as a popular television personality and infiltrated the foster children network, creating the image of a model citizen. Ethan decided to risk everything and reach out to the woman who wrote the letter, Rannah Gray, an advertising consultant in Baton Rouge, a city built on the bluffs of the Mississippi River, a college town wedged into one of the largest petrochemical corridors in the U.S. Rogers lived in the small, nearby community of St. Gabriel, with its history of harboring secrets. For over 100 years, St. Gabriel housed a hospital for lepers and is still home to the state’s death row prison for women. Here Rogers found the perfect place to keep both his true identity and intentions well hidden. When Ethan reached out to Rannah, he had no idea he was contacting one of the state’s most respected media consultants. Politics Magazine named her one of Louisiana’s top influencers as she produced winning ads for some of the state’s hardest fought political battles – campaigns that left the politicians she helped defeat still licking their wounds. She was working on a local project when her path intersected with Rogers, who provided video services for her client. After he made false statements about her to the local newspaper, Rannah wrote a letter to set the record straight – a letter that ultimately exposed Rogers’ lies and sealed his fate. Ethan’s message to Rannah identified Rogers as a dangerous and violent child predator, a chameleon skilled at drawing law enforcement and community leaders into his web of deceit. From her belief in Ethan, the two formed an unlikely, but powerful bond. She would help him find someone who could stop Rogers from abusing children. Rannah first turned to her friend Nathan, a colorful criminal defense attorney with an eye for justice. But they had no luck finding someone who would take on Ethan’s case against Rogers. Nathan finally told Rannah fellow lawyers advised him to convince her to drop her interest in Scott Rogers. The typically calm Rannah felt her face flush as she asked Nathan whether he believed the little boy Rogers had adopted was in danger. When Nathan answered yes, Rannah replied, “Then we have to do something.” Convinced she would not give up, Nathan brought in Mary Jane, a plucky paralegal and experienced researcher, and the two women presented the facts to an Assistant U.S. Attorney. Soon, Ethan and Rannah were brought in as confidential informants in an international criminal investigation, working with authorities in the U.S. and the U.K. to help build a case against Rogers by exposing the extent of the evil he had committed. After exactly 365 days, a U.S. federal grand jury was convened to hear evidence in the case against Rogers. At the very moment the testimony was scheduled to begin, Rogers pulled off his most deadly act. As British news outlets broadcast the shocking details, revealing the twisted path his crimes had taken from London to Louisiana, Ethan knew his victims would no longer live in fear. They would finally be free.
Rannah Gray is a Louisiana public relations consultant whose career highlights include her state's two favorite pastimes-politics and sports. Her work as a media producer has been honored with numerous national awards. Politics Magazine named her one of the Top 100 Influencers in Louisiana; and in Baton Rouge, she was named Marketer of the Year, and one of Baton Rouge's Influential Women in Business. She previously served as Undersecretary to the Louisiana Secretary of State, and for 13 years, she was Associate Athletic Director at LSU, managing marketing, promotions, radio, television, and ticket sales for 20 sports. She is a graduate of LSU with a B.A. and a Master's degree in Journalism. Rannah currently provides expertise in advertising and public relations to a broad base of clients. Her first book, Familiar Evil, a story straight out of the headlines from Louisiana to London, was released in November 2015. It has won 12 national and international book awards, including eight Gold Medals for Best True Crime and Best New Nonfiction.
Mary Jane Marcantel was not only the first paralegal in Louisiana, but the first criminal paralegal when she went to work for Camille Gravel, Jr. almost 40 years ago. Mr. Gravel, Jr. had been Executive Counsel to three Louisiana Governors and had political ties throughout the United States. She learned from Mr. Gravel that when you have a special ability to help others, you do so without fanfare and credit. She has done that in both her professional career and in her private life. She is well known among judges, prosecutors and criminal defense lawyers in Louisiana. Besides Mr. Gravel, she has worked for many of the well-known defense lawyers in Louisiana helping defend people charged in high profile white collar federal cases involving Governors, Senators, Congressmen, Sheriff's, Police Chief's and other political figures. She has also helped defend people charged with murder, sexual crimes, drug offenses and other street type crimes, and has worked with law enforcement agencies in helping them in various matters involving issues for their agencies. Mary Jane is a mother of two children and grandmother to five granddaughters. She loves to spend time with both her real family and her chosen family who are also very special to her. She loves to cook and many times have a number of people sitting around her table with lively conversation enjoying Louisiana foods. She enjoys salt water fishing and often those fish are on her table.
Ethan is the name we use for the brave young survivor who stepped forward to seek justice for the British victims of Scott Rogers' abuse. He initiated contact with the author and the two of them served as confidential informants to the international criminal investigation on which Familiar Evil is based. We chose to protect his identity out of respect for him and his family.
