JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The daughter of Melissa Ellison, the 20-year-old woman killed in her Westside home back in 1987, spoke with Action News Jax after the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office announced the suspect’s arrest in this decades-old cold case.
JSO says they arrested 70-year-old Gary Edward Glowacz after he called the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, saying he had information about the murder.
Casie Casem, who was just 13 months old at the time, was found crying on the living room couch after the incident took place.
“I was in the bed when it happened, and I was moved,” Casem said. “And so for that to be something that happened in me, to understand that my mom’s not here anymore, that’s taken a great toll on my mental health and my ability to choose life paths.”
Casem says she and the rest of the family have been advocating for justice ever since — and after 38 years, the first steps have finally unfolded.
“Because of Project Cold Case and their constant avenue of advocacy for us, it’s just continued to get her story out there and the family’s voice to be heard,” Casem said. “It’s like taking off a backpack full of 50 pounds of books and putting it down, like taking a deep breath — I didn’t realize that this was going to be a possibility for me.”
Following Glowacz’s arrest, Sheriff T.K. Waters said he was not able to share how Glowacz was linked to the case and ultimately identified as a suspect since the State Attorney’s Office is now investigating.
“I personally want to ask: What did it? Has this been on your mind forever since it’s happened, or did you see something that rekindled the feeling, or was it the press conference?” Casem said. “What was it that led you to come forward?”
Casem says that, growing up, she felt she had to lie about who she was because her story “inconvenienced other people.”
“There are always questions that come when somebody tells you that someone they know was murdered, let alone it be your own mom,” Casem said.
So, she channeled that energy into writing several books and founding a mental health resource called “Change the Face of Depression‚" a nonprofit dedicated to reminding those who live with depression that they’re not alone.
When asked if her mother’s death ever caused her to live her life in fear, she says yes.
“I’m set to maintain that safety because, yep, that has been imprinted on me,” Casem said.
However, the arrest has now allowed her to close out some of those fears.
“I’m able to now look at the other directions that we were focused on and close down those paths because they are no longer a question for me, and that induces self-reflection,” Casem said. “Which is wild because I’m realizing the triggers that happen when I feel like any type of pattern makes me unsafe.”
Even though Glowacz called the CCSO with information on her mother’s murder, Casem wants to make it clear: It was the hard work of local law enforcement agencies, Crimestoppers and Project Cold Case that allowed his arrest to take place.
Casem dedicates the following message to those agencies:
“I absolutely I want to thank Project Cold Case, and I really want to do a plea to the community to make sure that they stay funded and that they stay in the spotlight as well. For almost the last 10 years, every year, they’re worried about having to close, and I want to make sure that if anybody is out there listening, anybody out there looking to help, maybe just looking for a fantastic nonprofit to donate to, please do it for Project Cold Case. Do it in my mom’s name and my family’s name, please. Make sure that these families, who also deserve the full justice and everything that’s coming to their healing, get that opportunity because they have an advocate like Project Cold Case. I want to thank Crime Stoppers for giving my family the opportunity to have the press conference and making sure that there was no time limit. I understand how long ours was, and it was needed, and it was profound. I believe all of the resources that we have in the community to hold accountable and advocate for these families are what led to the arrest. This wouldn’t have happened without them. I just simply don’t believe that it would have, and I want to thank them so much. I do want to thank JSO for making sure that the community knew that they are taking every step they need to in order to ensure that this is exactly the way that it should go, and it’s handled with white-glove service. I love that they’ve made the announcement and the respect that they have for us as the family. Thanks so much to everybody who’s given us the kind words and all the comments. We are slowly digging out of this incredible whirlwind of a week. We’re still really quiet. There’s a lot to process, and that includes rebuilding every relationship that I’ve ever had, including the one with myself. And so, thanks for the love and support, and we really love you guys.”
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