In Focus: Family, authorities continue search for answers in triple homicide of Cassandra and Misty Ballou, Brian Ritchie

In Focus: Family, authorities continue search for answers in triple homicide of Cassandra and Misty Ballou, Brian Ritchie

SHERMAN, Texas (KXII) - It has been 16 years since firefighters discovered a nightmarish crime at a home in west Sherman, but no one has ever been brought to justice.

Cassandra and Misty Ballou were two sweet and spirited sisters, with families and children who loved them dearly.

Their aunt Betty Burris said life wasn’t easy from the beginning, but she was helping them get through. Until a nightmare in 2010 changed everything.

Burris said Misty’s boyfriend, Brian Ritchie, held a party at his home on Reynolds Road.

“There were a lot of people out there, and they were, you know, drinking, and riding those little dirt bikes, and they were just having a good time,” said Burris.

Soon after, on the morning of September 20, Sherman firefighters got a call about a fire at that house. Inside, they found three bodies.

“Obviously, you have to get the fire out, but then at that point, you know, everything’s a crime scene,” said Capt. Mark Kosemund of the Grayson County Sheriff’s Office.

Kosemund says it took only a few hours for investigators to identify the bodies as Cassi...