Dancing on Her Grave (17 page)

Debbie Lives On . . .

“Help needed in search for missing Las Vegas woman.”

This was the first post ever published on the Facebook page created for Debora Flores-Narvaez by her family and friends who, at the time, did not know that she was already dead. It was created in the hope that she would be found and returned to her family. That was when Celeste first went to Las Vegas looking for her sister.

By the time this page went public, Jason Griffith and Louis Colombo had already dismembered Debbie’s body. Her grave was a closet, her casket was a plastic container, and her flowers were cement. She was no longer here.

But at that time, nobody except for three people—Louis Colombo, Jason Griffith, and Kalae Casorso, Jason’s ex-girlfriend whom he asked to store the container
of her body parts—knew she was dead. So her family was on a mission to find her.

A search for Debbie Flores-Narvaez on Facebook still yields results. She died on December 12, 2010, but she was born, as it reads on Facebook, on December 21, 2010, nine days after her death.

The page description reads:

“Debora Flores-Narvaez, a 31-year-old former burlesque dancer for the Luxor’s
FANTASY
revue, failed to turn up for a rehearsal on Dec. 13. Speculation over her whereabouts has become a hot topic on the Strip and beyond.”

It indeed became a hot topic, and all the news television stations and print media reflected it with their headlines.

And now, the pages reek of sadness and regret. Surely Celeste, the person who posts most often on her sister’s page, finds some kind of relief in writing on her wall. As if Debbie, somewhere, somehow, could be reading those posts.

The timeline itself chronicles the entire story. One can gradually see how the posts begin to change in tone up to the point when her body is finally found. Then, everything changes, and the messages are no longer directed to friends and the public at large. They are written exclusively for Debbie.

Every Christmas, Thanksgiving, New Year’s Eve, Valentine’s Day, and birthday, Debbie gets many messages
as a way to keep her alive and current of everything that is happening in her world. When her birthday came around in 2014, as they awaited news of the sentencing, her page was full of comments just as it happens with someone who is alive and has many friends, telling her she would always be in their hearts.

Celeste posted a collage of beautiful pictures with a message that read:

“Happy birthday to the prettiest, most beautiful, compassionate, fun loving Lil Sister in my whole wide world, Debbie Flores-Narvaez. I love you soooo much!!!”

Debbie was a dancer, a model, a performer, and a career woman, and she always loved to write. She loved quotes that had a message. She loved sunflowers, and her page is full of pictures of them.

In December 2013, Celeste posted a picture of Debbie’s pink Christmas tree. As psychic Gale St. John had said and Celeste had confirmed, pink was Debbie’s favorite color.

“The holidays were Debbie’s favorite season. When she left I got all her Christmas stuff including her pink tree. Only Debbie would have a pink tree,” Celeste wrote. “So I decided to put it in my office for display. This tree screams Debbie and things she loved to a tee. She has ballerinas, purses, shoes, dresses, stars, snowmen, candy, lollipops, Hello Kitty, sparkles, sequins, Victoria’s Secret “Pink” dogs, even a pink Cadillac, all ornaments are pink.
I so love it. As I was putting up each one, so many memories and reminders came to me. I so miss her; it still does hurt knowing she’s not here. Love her. . . .”

For their part, Debbie’s family and friends were making certain that the slain dancer was not forgotten. They began a blog on Word Press, one that had started off as the bringdebbiehome.com website. The new blog linked to the latter, and showed a photo of Debbie, resting on a tree trunk wearing a yellow sundress. And on it are photos of her favorite flowers, sunflowers.

There was a quote from Debbie’s MySpace page, giving readers a very good idea about the nature of the young woman:

I
life. The Arts is my passion in life— Dancing, Modeling and of course Music (in which makes dancing the art that it truly is :) However, it’s dancing that has given me many opportunities. I am a Ballroom/Latin Dancer as well as a Hip-Hop dancer. I
modeling and acting just as much. I enjoy good friendships, good company, family, music & playing my guitar :) I earned 3 degrees in college: Bachelor of Science degree in international Business, a Master’s degree in Finance and went to Law School and earned my Juris Doctorate degree in Criminal Law. I was born and raised in the beautiful islands of Puerto Rico and lived in Baltimore, Maryland and Washington D.C. for 12 years.

I am well-cultured, quick witted, intelligent, considerate and humorous. I’m blessed with a substantial amount of common sense & most say ‘too smart’ for my own good :) I am confident, tolerant, loving, realistic, big-hearted and completely uninterested in shallow pretentious people. I am naturally curious and analytical, which makes me pretty adventurous and willing to try almost anything once. I am also very driven, ambitious, determined and dedicated—qualities that permeate every aspect of my life. I have broad tastes and interests. My partner in life is someone willing to jump out of a plane with me (spontaneous), then relax, watch the sunset and just cuddle (romantic and a lover). If there is a way to be outgoing and tranquil at the same time, I’m it! It’s important to live life to the fullest as you don’t know what tomorrow will bring . . . or if it will be here, but still have a good outlook and presence for the future. And as ALWAYS: Remember to . . . ROCK ON. . . . well Puerto ROCK as they know it :)

Debbie’s mother, Elsie Narvaez, posted in English on the blog before her daughter was found murdered. In her post, she calls her “Debbie, my lovely daughter,” and tells her how much she loves her and misses her and always prayed that God would guide her. Of course, Elsie Narvaez did not yet know her daughter had come to a very bad end, and she tells her that she prays she will be found
safe and sound so that the family can spend Thanksgiving and Christmas together as always.

Most touching of all, the mother says she prays her daughter will dance again with that “beautiful smile of yours,” and cites a favorite quote of Debbie’s: “Life isn’t about how to survive the storm, but how to dance in the rain.” Elsie Narvaez then finds the courage, again, to promise her daughter that they will both be dancing in the rain, and see each other soon.

Her father, Carlos Flores, posted, also in English, that he always loved his daughter and was happy for all the times they talked and laughed together. He tells her he always knew she had “a great talent with the music and the dance,” and how proud he was that she took it all to the next level. He, too, tells her he just wants her to come home, so he can see her again, share her smile, and share her dreams. And he also prays for her, he says, and prays that she may continue her dreams. She triumphed where others failed, and despite of her own failures, and in addition to her successes, he says to her, “You’ll always be my little Debbie with the beautiful smile.”

But the blog turns somber at the following announcement:

“Tragically, the outcome of Debbie Flores-Narvaez is heart-wrenching and difficult to comprehend. Thanks to a brave soul who contacted one of the tip hotlines listed, Debbie’s remains have been discovered, recovered, and
identified. As you can imagine, the family is devastated. Here is the latest horrific news.” The aforementioned was a link to all of the news reports about the outcome, or the murder of Debbie Flores-Narvaez.

Then, another announcement: “Due to the overwhelming response of people around the world, the intense web traffic, and the need for improved functionality, the free Word Press site had to be upgraded and the improved site is now LIVE. Even so, this page will remain online forever because of the many beautiful comments and outpouring of love which have been shared.”

On the “live” stream are the endless expressions of sorrow and remembrances by those who knew Debbie well, and even strangers who knew of the death of the dancer who only had one dream: to
dance.

Sentencing

As usual, Celeste shared her thoughts on Facebook the day before the sentencing, on July 22, 2014.

“Heading to Las Vegas tomorrow for final sentencing on the monster who took Debbie’s life. I can’t believe it’s been two months since his conviction of murder and now his final Judgment day of sentencing. I finally finished writing my Victim’s Statement on how it has impacted me and my life as a whole since this whole nightmare began. So many things I want to say and express and yet somehow I have to put it in writing and express it with words. How do I do that? How can anyone express that type or ordeal and horror they have been faced with in their life? There are not enough words or time, and yet somehow I managed to put in on paper. I’m feeling
nervous, anxious and anguished to have to face him again. But this time I get to tell him what he did to me, what he caused me, what he has put me through, what I’ve lost! I get to express myself and tell him how I feel, but yet I have to hold back and do it with composure. Oh my God this is going to be the hardest thing in my life I will ever face! JESUS, LORD, GOD, ALMIGHTY SAVIOR please help me get through this with my mental and physical sanity intact!”

A lot of friends and supporters offered words of comfort and encouragement, and Celeste replied to one in particular who told her to ditch the notes and speak from her heart: “I would love to do that, but what is going to guide me is my rage and my feet making their way towards him and wanting to take revenge. So with that being said I’ll stick to a personal script to keep me in line.”

It would be exactly sixty-two long and sleepless nights for two families between the verdict and the sentencing. It had been two months since Debbie’s sister and parents got to see, face-to-face, eye-to-eye, the man who’d killed their dear Debbie, the man who’d cut her life short, the man who’d showed no remorse even when photos of her dismembered corpse were displayed at trial.

They, Debora’s family, had been impatiently waiting for this day.

They are a law-abiding, decent family, but they were expecting the worst from the justice system.

The harsher the sentencing, the better they would feel afterward, they hoped.

Once in Las Vegas, Celeste ran into a piece written by Ana Ley for the
Las Vegas Sun
. Its headline read: “Two mothers brace for sentencing in killing of Luxor dancer.”

The article appeared in the publication on Tuesday, July 22, 2014, and it set the stage for the first encounter between Charlene Davis and Elsie Narvaez, Jason’s and Debbie’s mothers, respectively, in the Clark County courtroom on the day of the sentencing.

The two mothers were, of course, at opposite ends of the spectrum as far as the guilt and innocence of the defendant, Jason Omar Griffith. Elsie Narvaez, tearful and angry over the slaying of her youngest daughter, maintained that Debbie’s ex-boyfriend had premeditatedly slain the young woman, and she was asking for the harshest possible punishment. Charlene Davis, as one would expect, sided with her son, alleging that it was Debora who had provoked him and he was simply defending himself from a physical onslaught from a strong, trained dancer.

For her part, Narvaez planned on addressing Judge Kathleen Delaney during her victim impact statement. She wanted to make certain that her daughter’s killer was sent to jail for the rest of his life.

After sitting through days of testimony, and gruesome accounts, vivid with photographs, of her daughter’s
dismemberment, Elsie Narvaez still had faith in the justice system, she said.

The paper quoted Narvaez: “Karma will do us justice. We just want this case to end so that we can have some peace of mind. This is not right.”

Ms. Ley, court reporter for the
Las Vegas Sun
, also spoke to the defense attorneys, who stated they planned to appeal their client’s conviction. Abel Yáñez, Jason Griffith’s attorney, told the reporter about the video in his possession, which recorded the fight between Debbie and Jason. The judge had prevented the defense from showing it to the jury, Yáñez said.

Charlene Davis was quoted as saying she was hoping her son would be acquitted completely but was afraid there had been too much press coverage; that the media had been biased and the public and the jurors influenced.

Celeste was irate that Jason Griffith’s mother was what she called “delusional,” and Debbie’s sister had not believed there actually would be appeals. But a mother is, after all, a mother, and as a mother, Charlene Davis was now grieving for her son just as Celeste and her mother grieved for Debbie.

Several of Jason Griffith’s coworkers and friends had written letters of support to Judge Kathleen Delaney on his behalf. They are reproduced here, also as part of the public records, and Abel Yáñez, Griffith’s attorney, also gave me a copy of the letters, now part of the public
record, sent to the judge. There are always two sides to every story. This story seems a bit like
Rashomon
, the Japanese movie about a rape and a murder told from three different vantage points: the wife, the husband, and the robber.

One of the letters was written by Susannah Denney, a child artist coordinator for the Beatles’
LOVE
show at the time when Jason used to perform. She says they met in 2008, when he joined the cast.

“Mr. Griffith and I worked together during rehearsals, performances and Cirque sponsored events. He always carried himself as a true professional, timely and prepared for all that was required of him. It was a pleasure to work with Mr. Griffith. He was an outstanding role model for the young performers in my charge,” Susannah wrote.

The child performers play an important role in the development of the storyline for this spectacular and exclusive Las Vegas show. Susannah Denney worked with Jason and around the children, and she appeared to be very pleased with the way he interacted with the minors in that professional environment. I can only imagine how difficult it must be, because, after all, it is work and people pay hundreds of dollars to watch such a prestigious performance. Every act, every performance, must be flawless.

“Oftentimes you could find him cracking jokes and making the boys feel valued as contributing members of the cast,” she said.

All of the letters Judge Kathleen Delaney received were presented by the defense on behalf of Jason’s friends and colleagues. All of them agreed in one way or another that Jason Griffith was a “very dependable, focused and responsible employee.”

Those were the exact words written by Tina Cannon, Jason’s partner at
LOVE
. They had met two and a half years before Griffith’s arrest, through their employment at the show. She referred to him as a “friend as well as a coworker.” Just like in any other discipline, a working partner should always be someone you trust. Tina said she trusted Jason Griffith.

“I felt safe, and I could always trust him. He treated me with respect, gentleness, took corrections well. It was easy to talk to him and communicate any necessary adjustments that needed to be made,” she stated.

Tina Cannon also had a personal friendship with the dancer. She describes him as a good communicator, a listener, and a peacemaker, saying, “Jason was a good and caring friend.

“He often would listen to both sides of the story, help us [Tina and her boyfriend] understand the other person, and then offer advice. He was patient and always available if I called him on the phone upset or needed to ask his advice on things.”

Another letter came from one of Griffith’s very close friends, Laura Jane Kirkham.

In her letter, she begs the magistrate to show leniency on Jason Griffith’s behalf for numerous reasons. “Mainly because I miss my friend. He has been changed by prison prior to this trial and has become increasingly remorseful and deeply distraught by his time served already. He is such a laid back individual and prior to this horribly tragic situation had nothing but love for everyone,” she said. Even after everything he admitted to having done, his friend sees him as a victim, not as a murderer.

“It is a terrible situation that the laws which were supposed to protect innocent individuals, I believe let them down. I sat present every day during trial and was astonished that Jason was put through so much in his personal life, I was only made aware of the situation back in September 2010 when I approached Jason to help me choreograph a dance and the music for my wedding as well as participate and join me in my special day.

“Jason’s words that day will forever haunt me. Jason looked at me in the eye when I started to beg for him to come with me and stated ‘I can’t help you or come because Debbie will follow me there and I would feel awful for ruining your special day.’”

In contrast to those hoping for leniency, both Celeste and her mother, Elsie Narvaez, stated they would be highly upset if Judge Kathleen Delaney gave Griffith the minimum sentence of ten years instead of the maximum sentence of twenty-five years without parole. Still,
the sister who had been through it all—the search for Debbie, the trial’s postponements, the trial itself, and now another wait for the sentence—now had to listen to the final words from both sides, and once more, relive her little sister’s murder.

Just as it had been on the day Jason Griffith was found guilty of second-degree murder, court started at 9
A.M.
sharp on July 23, 2014, in the Las Vegas Regional Justice Center, the same room that witnessed an intense almost two weeks of arguments, lies, pain, tears, and thirst for revenge during the murder trial.

During the trial Jason Griffith had looked like a young executive or a grad student. Now he was walking with his hands behind his body as he entered the courtroom dressed in a black V-neck old jumpsuit that revealed his neck tattoo.

His hands were shackled.

He faced several charges: murder, domestic violence, and destruction of evidence in the death of Debora Flores-Narvaez.

Celeste’s anxiety was palpable even through the words she posted to Facebook. “Here we go. . . . Glad to see that he’s already dressed in his prison uniform! God be with me and my family,” she wrote.

Jason Griffith, for his part, appealed before the judge on his own behalf. He pleaded with Judge Kathleen Delaney: “In tomorrow’s paper, the novelists who claim to
be journalists won’t report the things that you really know. I asked twelve jurors to help me and give me back my freedom but they didn’t know the things that you know. I asked the police fourteen times to help me and they didn’t know the things that you know. So today, Judge, I’m asking for a fifteenth time, will you help me?” he begged, trying to look at the magistrate eye-to-eye, hoping at least for a modicum of compassion.

Griffith’s defense attorney, Abel Yáñez, again tried to convince the judge that his client had killed Debbie in self-defense.

“In their relationship, it was Flores-Narvaez who was violent. I’ve yet to hear any evidence that Jason has been violent to Debbie or that Jason has been violent in any of his prior relationships. She was a deeply troubled person who probably needed mental health treatment. She did not deserve to die, but Jason had the right to defend himself,” Yáñez still argued.

Judge Delaney reminded Griffith’s team that the trial was over and the self-defense argument was no longer relevant. But she had expressed this at the very beginning, that the murder did not fit the category of self-defense.

Jason Griffith went on: “I’m saddened by these events and everyone these events have affected.” That was the closest he came to offering an apology to the family for strangling and dismembering Debbie.

“You knew she had convictions for stalking and second
degree assault. We all know that if I were a woman and I were accosted by a man like this, I would not be standing here today,” Griffith said to the judge.

Griffith’s comments did not sit well with Judge Delaney, who placed the blame solely on the defendant. The judge did not hold back her opinion of who she thought Jason was as a person, as a man. “The responsibility for this toxic and ultimately tragic relationship continuing as long as it did is entirely yours,” said Judge Delaney. “You knew who Debbie was and you knew who she hoped you would be. But you also knew you were never going to be that person. The only reason I can see is to satisfy your own narcissistic predisposition.”

Griffith looked down, much like a child who has been punished without recess. He realized he was losing the battle for his life.

Celeste Flores-Narvaez trained her eyes on Jason like lasers.

After the sentence was read, then came what everyone was waiting for, her victim’s statement.

She prefaced it by saying: “This statement was written all towards Jason ‘Blu’ Griffith. For me to look him face to face and tell him everything I wanted him to know. For me to face him after all these tears and tell him how I felt about what he did to me and my family. But I found out that the Nevada Clark County Court would not allow
me to directly talk to him or look at him. I had to direct my Victim’s Statement towards the court and the judge. I was not happy about that at all. So I had to change all the ‘yous’ to ‘he’, ‘him’, also ‘evil’ and ‘murderer.’” She later said, “I had to keep it professional. I couldn’t say what I really wanted to!”