BOSSIER PARISH — A jury in north-west Louisiana awarded $1.1 billion in damages to Pamela Lockridge in a civil lawsuit for childhood sexual abuse. Jurors found that Leroy Edwards subjected Lockridge to criminal sexual molestation for 14 years, beginning in 1962 when she was four years old.

Edwards was the second husband of Lockridge's mother. He threatened to kill Lockridge if she reported the abuse. In 2011, Edwards obtained a restraining order against Lockridge after she requested he pay for mental health counseling. Edwards admitted to the Bossier Parish Sheriff's Department that he molested his ex-wife's daughter during her minority.

Lockridge, an intensive care unit nurse, filed a civil lawsuit against Edwards in 2012. A court dismissed the case because the filing deadline had expired under previous law. Louisiana enacted legislation in 2021 that temporarily removed filing deadlines for civil lawsuits concerning historical child molestation, and a state court upheld this statute as constitutional in 2024.

Lockridge filed a new lawsuit under the 2021 legislation, focusing on psychological trauma. The civil trial, led by attorney Ryan Gatti, presented witness testimony over a two-day period. The jury heard testimony from a sheriff's detective, two mental health professionals, and Lockridge's husband, Mark. Jurors deliberated for approximately two hours before reaching a verdict.

The jury awarded Lockridge $500 million for pain and suffering, $600 million in punitive damages, and $585,000 for medical and psychological treatment expenses. Edwards died in 2023. Gatti stated he did not anticipate collecting the full jury award. "This case was never about money. It was about truth. It was about accountability." Lockridge said. "I felt for the first time in a very long time that justice has finally spoken."

Gatti said, "Survivors who have lived in silence and shame deserve to be heard and honored, and the passage of time does not erase accountability for those who sexually abuse children." Lockridge said, "I also hope this verdict sends a message that children are precious, families deserve protection, and that time does not erase responsibility for those who abuse the vulnerable."