ST. MARTIN PARISH — A homicide investigation is underway in St. Martinville after the body of 16-year-old Iris Davis was found Monday in a field near Maraist Street, not far from where she lived with her grandmother. According to St. Martinville Police Chief Ricky Martin, it was Davis’s brother who discovered the body.
Investigators believe the teen may have been in the field for some time before she was found. Police are working with the St. Martin Parish Coroner’s Office to determine the cause of death.
Chief Martin confirmed that Davis was last seen on Sunday, July 13, but was not officially reported missing until four days later.
“She went missing on the 13th, and the complaint was filed on the 17th by her family,” Martin said. “So we’re still trying to make sense of that gap. Part of the investigation is figuring out why she went missing on the 13th and wasn’t reported until the 17th.”
The case has had a significant impact on both law enforcement and the wider community. Chief Martin said his department is pursuing multiple leads and remains focused on finding answers.
“You know I ain't going home until this case is done,” he said. “This case has affected me… it’s just the totality of everything—the entire situation is just... it’s absurd to me.” News of Davis’s death spread quickly through the neighborhood, where residents like Katrina Mallory, a family friend, remembered the teen as a kind and gentle presence and says she’s still in disbelief over the situation. “I just... I caught a fit. I went in the house and cried. I didn’t wanna believe it,” Mallory said.
She said she often saw Davis outside playing and looking after her younger relatives.
“I’d check on her, always be watching and seeing her play in the yard—playing on that swing and everything. My grandson said, ‘We’re graduating, we’re going to the 12th grade,’ and I said, ‘She’d be graduating… and look, can’t even graduate.’” She said the neighborhood came alive with people after word of Davis’s death began to circulate.
“This street was like a Mardi Gras parade around here,” Mallory said. “And I ain’t gonna lie—everybody that you were hearing talking say that little girl was innocent.”
“She was a sweetheart. There’s nothing bad about that child, I can tell y’all,” she added.
Chief Martin acknowledged the emotional weight of the case.
“This hit our community hard,” he said. “Not only because she’s 16 years old—just anybody being murdered and left in a field is bad enough—but when it’s a 16-year-old, it hits everybody harder.”
The investigation remains active. St. Martinville Police urge anyone with information to come forward.
