A Disturbing Case of Vera Murder

 

The murder of 24-year-old Vera Jo Reigle in 2011 is one that is barely publicized but stays one of the most gruesome and painful murders in US history. Vera was a mentally impaired mother of a two-year-old who was whacked and abused regularly by her boyfriend and his family for years leading up to her demise. Her corpse was discovered nude and mutilated beyond recognition on a set of train tracks near to her home in Findlay, OH.

Vera’s story is a complicated story of a woman who had been taken advantage of by everyone she knew her whole life. Starting when she was just 11 years old, she was sexually abused by her father. Willard Reigle was convicted to 20 years in prison for the offence. Shortly after, Vera grew estranged from her mother and her mother’s family. Vera was widely known to be mentally challenged–experts have said that her intellectual capacity was that of an eight-year-old. But with support from teachers and special classes, Vera was able to graduate high school. Soon after, Vera went on disability and started receiving checks from the government.

When Vera was 19, she began dating a boy named Zachary Brooks, who was only 13 years old at the time. Vera quickly moved into a ragged two-story house with Zachary and his family. From then on, Vera’s life started ending one minute at a time.

 

The head of the Brooks family is one Cheri Brooks–a powerful matriarch and crime boss who is almost as fearsome as Carlo Gambino of the Italian mafia. Cheri is the mother of nine children total, however her first “set” of children was taken away by the state and put into foster care for allegations of sexual abuse against Cheri. Family members of Cheri have said chilling stories of walking in on Cheri alone conducting the most shocking acts on her infant children. Cheri does not refute these allegations publicly.

 

Cheri had another round of children with her husband Kevin after the previous children were taken away. These children were all sons (including one legally named Garth) and were known fugitives in and around Findlay. The entire Brooks family, including Cheri, were proud members of the Crips street gang and engaged in assault, burglary and drug trafficking regularly. Zachary Brooks is one of Cheri’s younger sons and is the father of Vera’s daughter Willadean. Baby Willadean was just two years old at the time of Vera’s demise.

 

The Brooks boys had a 21-year-old cousin named Danny Bixler, who had recently gotten out of jail and began dating 17-year-old Nicole Peters upon his release. In nearby Tiffin, OH, Bixler and Peters were caught assaulting a teenager at a public park. They both ran away to Findlay to hide out at the Brooks home to avert trial for the assault charges. Bixler and Peters were the ones who eventually carried out the dreadful task of killing Vera, but the motives were not their own. Vera’s murder was entirely conspired and plotted by Cheri Brooks and her sons.

Since she was a kid, Cheri Brooks had an enthusiasm with baby girls. It’s been substantiated that Cheri was also sexually abused by her father as a child. After Cheri’s oldest daughter Maria was taken into foster care, Cheri attempted, again and again, to have another daughter to raise, to no avail. Nonetheless, when Vera moved into the Brooks house with Zachary, Cheri urged the couple to become pregnant. Cheri herself told that if Vera were to become pregnant with a baby girl, the baby would “belong” to Cheri, and Vera would have no connection with her daughter.

 

When Vera was 22 and Zachary was 16, Vera did come to be pregnant with a baby girl. During most of her time living in the Brooks home and throughout her pregnancy, Vera was beaten, assaulted and raped by several Brooks boys. Police were called to the Brooks home nearly ten times in two years for domestic turmoil allegations. Vera had been repeatedly interviewed by police and social workers, who saw apparent signs of physical abuse. Nonetheless, Vera continued to assert that she was happy living with the Brooks’ and wanted to continue staying there. Vera was of legal age and determined fit to make her own decisions, despite her diminished mental capacity and obvious signs of abuse.

After a difficult pregnancy, Vera gave birth to Willadean over a month early, the day after Cheri’s birthday. Vera was given castor oil to provoke early labour; an old midwives trick. The typical dose required is a couple of tablespoons. Vera was impelled to drink three full bottles. Cheri was exhausted from waiting for “her” baby girl. From the day Willadean was released from the NICU, Vera was not authorized to interact with her daughter unless she was allowed by Cheri. Cheri dealt with Willadean as her daughter and told everyone that Willadean was hers.

Police and social workers who came to the Brooks home saw the filth in which Willadean was being raised. A “pet” pig was allowed to live inside the house along with at least one dog. The animals used the bathroom freely about the house. It seemed that the house was hardly ever cleaned, and at least ten people were residing there at any one time, who were consuming drugs and alcohol frequently. Nonetheless, Willadean wasn’t taken away instantly because Cheri was Vera’s legal guardian, and Zachary had legal rights to his daughter.

 

Things came to a head in March of 2011. After conspiring with her sons, Cheri decided that Vera needed to be “eliminated,” so that Willadean could completely become hers. Because Bixler and Peters regularly took part in, and sexually enjoyed, the beatings of Vera, it was eventually decided that the two of them would carry out the act with Zachary’s blessing.

Cheri’s reasoning for why Vera “had” to be murdered was complicated, but Cheri had somehow convinced herself and her children that Vera was credible for the demise of Cheri’s oldest son Punky. She alleged that Vera and Punky were walking down a road in town at night and that Vera pushed Punky in front of a wayward taxi. The real story was that Punky was walking with his girlfriend and that the cab swerved out of control and hit Punky accidentally. But this is an instance of the layers of lies that Cheri spread among her family.

 

Another instance is Cheri’s story about how Vera allegedly dropped a brick onto Cheri’s foot while cleaning out the rabbit cage in the backyard. Ironically, the animals who created the least quantity of waste were the ones kept outside. There were no witnesses to substantiate Cheri’s story, but even the family members think that the brick(s) fell onto her foot, rather than Vera deliberately dropping them. Cheri now has “permanent injuries” because of the accident. Vera was hospitalized from the heavy beatings she obtained from this incident, but, like always, she declined to press charges.

 

Cheri had done her due diligence though–she had already concocted a cover story for Vera’s murder well in advance. She and the other family members were going to tell police that Vera had set off a canister of mace all over the home. This mace had allegedly caused the wife of Cheri’s son Michael, Shannon Brooks, to have a miscarriage. Shannan was not even pregnant at the time, but this was the tale that Danny Bixler and Nicole Peters told police, along with the rest of the family. To cover up Bixler and Peters’ involvement, they were going to tell police that Vera left the home on the night of her demise with a boyfriend. Nonetheless, Bixler later confessed to killing Vera.

 

Around 9 pm on March 26th, Bixler, Peters and Zachary left the house with Vera to “take a walk.” Vera suppressed at first but was finally threatened to go. Vera and Shannon Brooks had become what could be interpreted as friends, and Vera looked to Shannon for help as the group left the home. Shannon is sure that Vera knew that she was being led to her death.

 

Scattered about the crime scene were Vera’s clothing, shoes, and personal effects. Not much has been documented about Vera’s final moments, but Findlay residents describe, through hearsay, a horrific act. Even though the story is technically hearsay, it matches up with the indication discovered at the crime scene. Prosecutors think that Bixler and Peters tried to stab Vera to murder her, but the knife was too dull to penetrate Vera’s clothing. So the group somehow convinced Vera to remove her shoes and clothing so that the knife could penetrate her skin, all while begging for her life. In admission to his sister Desta, Danny Bixler said that he and Peters stabbed Vera multiple times. Finally, he moved behind Vera and slit her throat completely from ear to ear.

 

Vera’s corpse was then placed perpendicular over the train tracks in the wishes that her corpse would be eradicated beyond identification by trains. Nonetheless, Vera’s corpse was discovered crumpled up lying parallel in between the tracks. The oncoming train, whose conductor found her corpse, barely avoided hitting her body by a clearance of one inch. This told police that in her final moments, Vera managed to pull herself off the tracks and lie in between them to avoid being hit.

Later that night after murdering Vera, Bixler, Peters and Zachary went to a friend’s home to quite literally celebrate Vera’s demise. During the party, Danny’s sister Desta glimpsed that Zachary was scowling and looking depressed. She asked him what was wrong, and Zachary then admitted to what they had done. Desta confronted her brother about what happened to Vera, and then Danny also confessed. Desta went to police with the information, and Bixler and Peters were promptly arrested and charged with aggravated murder. The day after Vera’s corpse was discovered, and before her burial, Cheri and Zachary called the state to obtain full parental rights of Willadean.

After being caught, Bixler and Peters told police the storey formulated by Sheri about having to murder Vera because she had caused Shannon Brooks to have a miscarriage, along with allegedly shoving Punky in front of a cab and causing Cheri’s grievous injuries to her foot. The other family members of course corroborated this story. However, it was well known throughout Findlay that Cheri had Vera killed so that she could get custody of Willadean.

 

Throughout the inquiry, it became obvious to police that the mace story was a fraud. Cheri had Vera murdered because she wanted Vera’s baby, end of the story. Cheri and other family members were accused of hindering a police investigation and put on probation. Daniel Bixler was convicted to life in prison and is capable for parole after 40 years. Although Nicole Peters was small at the time of the crime, she was tried as an adult and convicted to 23 years for her involvement in the murder. Zachary Brooks was not charged for the murder but was he was charged with lying to police.

 

The correct people are in jail for Vera’s killing, but not all the people accountable are in jail. Cheri was given probation for her obstacle of justice charge. In 2015, Cheri was convicted to 40 months in jail for drug trafficking charges while on probation. One of Cheri’s sons and her husband were also accused of selling prescription drugs. Cheri pleaded guilty to her charges in court. Cheri also spent ten days in jail in 2014 for improper “contact with an unrelated minor,” another violation of her probation.

 

Some people find some relief in Cheri’s imprisonment, but others still think Cheri should be in jail for much longer because she is accountable for planning the killing. Bixler and Peters were nothing more than foot soldiers ordered by a gang leader to carry out a hit. Some believe that everyone living in the Brooks home at the time should have been arrested and charged. Everyone in the house knew that Vera would finally be murdered so that Cheri could take possession of Willadean.

 

If you look at the truths, Cheri is a sex offender who engages and has engaged in improper connections with young children. Multiple witnesses confirmed that they have seen Cheri engaged in sexual acts with children, but none of those assertions could be substantiated by the police. Thus, Cheri wasn’t accused until 2014 for this offence.

All of Cheri’s children and their spouses witnessed years of physical and emotional abuse towards Vera, and nothing was reported to the police. I think that nothing was done because Cheri’s children are deathly scared of their mother. Whether they were scared of being kicked out of the house, physically damaged themselves, or just simply too high, something could’ve been done. Neighbours and Vera’s family members went to police and Social Services several times over the years, but Vera was an adult able of making her rulings, and she always said she was “happy” staying in the Brooks house.

Quickly after Vera’s death, baby Willadean was taken out of the Brooks home and put up for adoption, despite Cheri’s claims of guardianship. Vera’s family members now take solace in knowing that Willadean has an opportunity at a normal life. At the prosecution of Bixler and Peters, the prosecutor read aloud the following note found in Vera’s purse shortly after her death:

 

“I love you Willadean. You are a decent baby girl to us. I’m pleased to be your mommy and I’m happy that I had you on Nov. 4 at 4:16 a.m. Six pounds, two ounces, 19 inches long. Mommy loves you.”