Casey Leger Talks Exclusively with WAFB about Her Father, Gerald Bordelon

Casey Leger spent most of her life growing up without her biological father, Gerald Bordelon. He was in a Mississippi jail, serving time for molesting children. Now, he's on death row at Angola for murdering his stepdaughter, Courtney Leblanc. WAFB's Cheryl Mercedes and Casey sat down for an exclusive interview.

The 16-year-old says she remembers hearing stories about him and visiting him in jail. For nine long years, Leger dreamed of the day she would get to spend time with him outside those confines. She says she'll never forget the day he was released. "I was waiting to go pick him up and I was falling asleep on my mom and I kept asking, 'Mom, is it time to go get daddy yet?'"

For the first time in her life, her dad would be able to tuck her in, read her bedtime stories and kiss her goodnight. "He gave me a big hug and he always promised me when he got out he would go scuba diving. "So, the first thing I asked him was, 'Daddy, can we go scuba diving now?'"

Bordelon and his daughter didn't quite make it out to the open water. For Casey, however, having a father was good enough. Bordelon was living in Gonzales, and she was living in Denham Springs with her mother, but she felt as though they were living under the same roof. "It would be midnight and I would call and say, 'Daddy, I want some Taco Bell," and he would go get it and drop it off."

Casey had grown close to the man who had been missing most of her life. A couple of years later, she says things began to change. She says, "My dad met Jennifer because she was selling a go-cart online." A few months later, Bordelon married Jennifer Kocke. Jennifer had three daughters. Her 12-year-old, Courtney was the same age as Casey.

Casey says she and Courtney became so close that they even talked about running away from home once. Casey says she remembers the night back in 2002, when she thought Courtney had. "First, my daddy called and asked if I heard from Courtney. I said, 'No. Why, is she missing?' And the police banged on my door asking where's Courtney."

Nearly two weeks later, Bordelon led police to the little girl's body, and confessed to raping and killing her. "I couldn't believe my dad. The person I thought was so sweet, in a split second, could turn into a monster." While trying to escape the pain, Casey faced a different kind of monster. "I was doing cocaine, ecstasy, popping pills, drinking. My sister was gone, and my dad, too."

Cheryl Mercedes asks her, "Did he, at any time, hurt you?" Casey says, "No ma'am, never. The only time he hurt me was when he led police to the body and admitted to doing that." Leger blamed herself, and today, at 16, she still does. "If it was because I wasn't there enough or show him that I love him that much, I really do and I wish things could be different and I wish he could come home."

When all that happened, Casey says she was mad at him and with herself for loving him. However, the pain wasn't all on the inside. Her peers gave her such a hard time that she dropped out of school. She has grown up the last three years.

Reporter:  Cheryl Mercedes, WAFB 9NEWS