Becky McCuddin sees her daughter, Lisa McCuddin, every day. But not in the way she would like.
Lisa McCuddin was shot and killed on Oct. 2, 2004. She was riding with a friend to attend a party at the Holiday Inn, in Fort Dodge, when she and her driver were shot. Her friend, Fred Murray, of Omaha, Neb., survived the attack. For four years, there have been no arrests in connection to her murder.
But Becky McCuddin wakes every morning and sees Lisa in her grandchildren, who she raises.
''I put Trez's picture next to pictures of her when she was his age and I see her in the facial features, the eyes and the big smile,'' she said. Davontrez, 4, was only 10 months old when his mother died.
Her granddaughter Markasia, 8, has Lisa's personality, she said. ''She is such a girly girl.''
The two help keep her going during the hard times, she said.
''October is a tough time,'' Becky McCuddin said. ''The kids handle it a lot better than I do.''
Even though her daughter's case has gone unsolved for four years, Becky McCuddin said she has never lost hope that justice will be served.
''Her sisters and brother have lost their hope,'' she said.
''I set goals. I keep thinking 'well, the anniversary is coming up, maybe they will make an arrest. Thanksgiving is coming up, maybe by then. Christmas is next. Maybe by then.'''
She said she was frustrated during the first year of her daughter's death because very little was being done in the investigation.
''It got to the point where I wasn't sleeping at night,'' Becky McCuddin said. ''I would call up the investigator who was assigned to the case and he would tell me he was just too busy to work on it.''
So she started writing letters to everyone she could think of, she said.
''From the mayor to the president of the United States,'' she said. ''I actually got a letter back from the vice president, but of course he couldn't do anything.''
And then Special Agent Larry Hedlund, of the Division of Criminal Investigation, was assigned to the Fort Dodge area and to McCuddin's case.
''This isn't over,'' Hedlund said. ''We're not giving up. This is not even close to being over.''
Hedlund said since the two years he has been assigned to Lisa McCuddin's death important information has surfaced regarding the individuals involved.
''We know who they are and they know they have been identified,'' he said.
Extremely important physical evidence has also been recovered, Hedlund said.
''This is still an active investigation,'' Hedlund said. ''Arrests will be made and the individuals responsible will be prosecuted.''
Becky McCuddin said she doesn't want to know too much about the investigation but wants to know her daughter isn't going to end up in a drawer somewhere, forgotten.
''They only have one shot to make a good case and make a conviction,'' she said. ''And I'd rather have them take as long as they need than to have an iffy case and a chance for them to walk.''
''Larry helps,'' she said. ''It helps to know that it is still there being worked on.''
Markasia McCuddin said it best - ''I wish they would catch them people.''
And according to Hedlund, it is just a matter of time.
''She should be here,'' Becky McCuddin said. ''She's suppose to be there sitting in that seat, watching her children grow up. Someone denied her that, and the children that, for nothing.''
