February 24, 2025 | By: Olivia Batchelor 

This story is part of a collaborative project between Project: Cold Case and the University of North Florida’s Applied Journalism class.

Toby Beaugh loved celebrating his birthday more than any other holiday, according to his older sister, Claire Cunningham. She recalls that she and Toby were best buds growing up. Claire remembers her younger brother as incredibly friendly and popular, the kind of guy everyone wanted to be friends with; he genuinely cared about others.

On the evening of February 25, 2006, Toby was hit by a car in New Orleans during the city’s annual Mardi Gras celebration. He was 29 years old.  There has been little investigation into his death, which was ruled a homicide. But in the quest for justice, Claire and her family have remained committed to keeping Toby’s memory alive.

Being born and raised in Broussard, Louisiana, Toby was immersed in Cajun culture and music, and he thrived in big family gatherings. He grew up loving and excelling in sports, especially soccer. Toby was always a super active and athletic person. Claire says Toby had interesting ways of saying things; the family called them “Tobyisms”. He often blurted things out of the blue and made everyone laugh.

Though Claire is Toby’s older sister, he still felt super protective over her. They played soccer together growing up because there were no girls’ teams for Claire to play on. One day, when a little boy on the team ran up during a practice and started making fun of Claire for being a girl, Toby jumped right in to defend her. “The little boy was making fun of me, and Toby just walked up to him and sucker-punched him in the gut. And said, ‘Be nice to my sister!’ At the time Toby was about 4 and I was 8,” says Claire.

Claire’s most cherished memories with her brother are from when they were in college together and would come home to their parents’ house to visit. They would sit outside together under the large live oak trees and just talk. “I miss that, going home to my parents’ house and being able to just chat and catch up with my brother,” says Claire. They both went to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (ULL), where Toby received a bachelor’s degree in psychology. He rushed with Kappa Sigma fraternity when he was at ULL and made many friends during that time. He loved and took pride in being a Ragin’ Cajun, the ULL mascot. After graduation, he found a job working for Enterprise Rental Cars in New Orleans.

Toby met his future wife Melissa out at a bar in New Orleans in 2000. “He couldn’t get her attention, so he started throwing balls of paper at the back of her head and got her attention,” Claire said. After they started talking that night, they never stopped and soon became inseparable. They dated for two years before Toby proposed in December of 2003. Claire says she knew it was something special and different from previous relationships.

Toby included Claire in his planning of the proposal to Melissa, which she thought was so sweet. He asked Melissa to marry him by presenting her with a pair of gloves that she wanted for Christmas. A gorgeous antique ring was inside one of the gloves. He got down on one knee when she opened her gift under the live oak trees strung with lights.  In April 2005, Toby and Mellissa got married, and it was a fairytale, according to Claire. “It was in this big cathedral in New Orleans, it was at night, and there were a ton of candles, and it was just beautiful,” she said.

On February 25, 2006, Toby was out at night with his wife Melissa, celebrating Mardi Gras at a friend’s house party in the city’s Garden District. Melissa and Toby were walking home on Magazine Street when they were targeted by a black truck that, according to police, circled the block to wait for Toby and Melissa to cross the street in front of it.  Melissa crossed the street a few steps in front of Toby, and as Toby walked behind her, the driver put his foot on the gas pedal, running over Toby and killing him in the street. There has been little investigation into his murder, but in the quest for justice, Claire and her family have remained committed to keeping Toby’s memory alive.

As a family, they continue to speak him into existence within their family and to keep him alive with their stories. Claire also continues to fight for more investigation into her brother’s murder and is hoping for a break in the case soon. Despite the pain of losing him and not knowing who is responsible for his death, Toby’s family has taken solace in remembering him as a funny, hardworking, kind man and someone who touched many people’s lives.

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Anyone with information concerning Toby Beaugh’s unsolved homicide is asked to call the New Orleans Police Department Homicide Line at (504) 658 5300. To remain anonymous and possibly be eligible for a reward, call Crime Stoppers Hotline at (504) 822-1111 or 1-877-903-STOP.

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