ALBANY — It took just seconds on Sunday on Interstate 12 to shatter a family’s world.
But for Jess Dehnel, the loss is measured not just in a crash report — but in three minutes.
Three minutes.
That’s how much older Bailey Lassabe was than her twin sister.
“She was older than me by three minutes,” Dehnel said softly. “She would call me at midnight every birthday and tell me it was her birthday first. I had to sit there for three minutes and wait until it was mine. She’d gloat the whole time.”
Their birthday — April 26 — is coming up soon. This year will be the first without Bailey, also, without Dominic.
The Crash on I-12
According to Albany Police Chief Boyd Wild, the crash happened around 1:40 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 15, near mile marker 32 on Interstate 12 westbound. A small vehicle entered the westbound lanes through an exit ramp, traveling the wrong direction, and crashed head-on with a motorhome.
The vehicle caught fire, trapping three people inside. All three died at the scene.
They were identified as Jamie Pourciau of Albany, Bailey Lassabe of Albany, and her nine-year-old son, Dominic.
The occupants of the RV were able to escape with minor injuries.
Police have not ruled the crash a murder-suicide. Toxicology reports are pending, and the investigation remains ongoing.
But Bailey’s family believes what happened that afternoon was no accident.
MORE: Livingston Parish: Mother & son among the three killed in fiery crash on Interstate 12
Twin Connection | “I can’t even look at myself in the mirror”
Dehnel described her sister as quiet but fiercely protective.
“Bailey didn’t really have many friends or anything like that. She was always a quiet person. We were very close with each other, and her and my mother was very close as well. She was sweet. She was nice. She loved jokes.”
She laughed remembering how different they were.
“I always tell everybody, I’m the nice one. She was the mean one, because she would throw hands first. I was the talker and she was the action person.”
Then her voice breaks.
“I can’t even look at myself in the mirror because all I see is her. She was my twin but also my best friend.”
Dominic: “He Had So Much Life Ahead of Him”
Dominic was nine years old. He had autism. He was full of energy. And according to his aunt, full of love.
“My nephew was the sweetest thing. He would tell every woman that they were beautiful. He was a little flirt.”
He loved giving small treasures to people.
“He would try to give gifts to everybody and say, ‘If I give you this, then you can look at it and think of me.’ Little things like that.”
He teased his big sister, Emily. He played hard. He was rambunctious.
“He would give his mom a hard time sometimes, but I mean, all kids do. But he was a sweet little boy. He really was.”
Dehnel says her sister loved Dominic fiercely — advocating for him, caring for him, protecting him.
“He was a happy boy. He had so much life ahead of him.”
The Hours Before the Crash
Dehnel says her sister had grown concerned in the days leading up to the crash. She believes Bailey suspected Jamie had relapsed on drugs and planned to confront him.
“At 12:45, the day of the accident, my sister called my mother about 30 minutes before it happened,” Dehnel said. “She told my mother she was going to make Jamie take a drug test. They were headed to a store to pick one up. She said if he was dirty, she was leaving him.”
Dehnel claims Jamie had not slept for days and was acting paranoid, repeatedly talking about fears involving his father, who is incarcerated.
“I don’t know if he overheard the conversation,” she said. “All I can assume is they were arguing on the way to get that drug test.”
Investigators have not confirmed those claims. Authorities are awaiting autopsy and toxicology results.
A Sister Saved | “She just lost her mom and her brother”
There is one small mercy in this tragedy. Bailey’s 11-year-old daughter, Emily, was not in the car.
“Thank God,” Dehnel said. “My mother had picked her up that Friday. She said Jamie was acting strange. He wouldn’t look at her, wouldn’t talk to her.” The lack of communication was very odd, according to Dehnel.
Emily is now safe with family.
“She just lost her mom and her brother,” Dehnel said. “She’s not okay — but she’s alive.”
A Mother’s Love
Bailey did not have a driver’s license, according to her sister. Dehnel believes Bailey was powerless in those final moments.
“She loved her kids. I’m pretty sure she sat there saying, ‘I’m so sorry, Dominic,’ the whole time,” Dehnel said. “I know my sister could have jumped out of that car, but she chose to go with peace, with her baby. Because that was her baby.”
Her voice steadies.
“She was a good woman. She loved her kids very much.”
Honoring Their Memory
As toxicology results are still pending and the investigation continues, Bailey’s family is focused on remembering who she was — not just how she died: A twin who never let her sister forget those three minutes. A mother who loved her children beyond measure. A little boy who told every woman she was beautiful.
“This man may have taken them from us,” Dehnel said of Jamie. “But he does not get to define who they were.”
For Dehnel, grief now comes in waves — in mirrors, in birthdays, in quiet moments.
“I can’t even look at myself in the mirror because all I see is her.”
Three minutes apart. Now a lifetime without her.
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