Cabarrus County killer is up for parole from 1978 murder
CABARRUS COUNTY, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — Roger Warren Clark, a convicted Cabarrus County killer, is up for parole. The crimes gripped a community decades ago. The killer got life in prison, but it doesn’t mean he’ll stay there.
On Tuesday, the family of victim Phoebe Barbee, along with the Cabarrus County District Attorney and Sheriff Van Shaw, all traveled to Raleigh to meet with a parole commissioner to demand that the killer not be let out of prison.
Queen City News Anchor Robin Kanady spoke exclusively with the family of Phoebe Barbee, the woman who was killed, in their fight for justice.
Their childhood seemed idyllic.
“They called us the Midland girls,” said Sonja Barbee, Phoebe’s sister.
At first, it was just Phoebe and Sonja. Then along came Amy.
Phoebe was the big sister to both.
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“If there’s a pure, good soul that ever walked the earth, that was my sister,” said Sonja.
Phoebe Barbee was a kindhearted queen. She was crowned for Homecoming at Central Cabarrus High School in 1976.
The next year was even more special.
“I could still see her. She just clinched up and she was so excited,” said Sonja.
That year she crowned Sonja.
“It’s like I couldn’t get up there quick enough so she could get the crown on my head,” said Sonja. “She was so happy for me.”
After graduation, Phoebe and her high school sweetheart, Randy Thomas, got engaged.
“They were the top of a wedding cake. They just were always together and doing things together,” said Sonja.
Phoebe was 19 years old in 1978 working at Wendy’s on Albemarle Road in Charlotte.
She got off her shift and was driving home.
“He’s in a vehicle that looks like a tow truck type, so the women would trust his opinion,” said Cabarrus County District Attorney Ashlie Shanley.
A stranger flagged her down, telling her something was wrong with her car.
“He does it in a very calculated way. He does it on the highway,” said Shanley.
It was part of the trap. Phoebe got in his truck and never got out.
“The evidence showed that on that day Phoebe fought back,” said Shanley. “And then the crime occurs off Miami Church Road here in Cabarrus County where he murders her and he rapes her.”
In a matter of days, Phoebe Barbee’s case went from missing person to murder to an arrest.
Clark was 21 years old when he was arrested for killing Phoebe.
“He’s a dangerous man, the amount of violence that he is capable of, should scare anybody,” said Sonja Barbee.
A jury found Clark guilty of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to life in prison, but that doesn’t mean he’ll stay there.
“It’s so frightening and so infuriating, all at the same time,” said Barbee.
Clark is now 67 years old and up for parole once again.
It’s a fight Sonja and her family have to continue every three years to keep him in prison.
“Her life mattered, she mattered. She mattered,” Sonja said tearfully.
And because of that, they’ll never stop fighting for Phoebe.
“I just try and find strength in knowing that this is the only thing now at this point that I can do for my sister.”
Prosecutors say the same day Clark killed Phoebe, he also tried to kidnap three other women using the same ruse.
The district attorney said one of the other women also ended up trapped in his truck and wrecked the vehicle so that she could escape.
The Barbee family won’t get an immediate decision from the parole commission.
Clark will not appear before the commission but will be allowed to have someone speak on his behalf at a later date, according to a spokesperson.
The Barbee family is asking the community to send emails and letters to the Parole Commission.
The following information is from the N.C. Department of Public Safety website:
Victims may express their opinions about a case in writing at any time. They may also request that certain conditions be imposed on the offender upon release onto supervision. The letters are included in the inmate’s file and the Commissioners take the letters into consideration during the decision-making process.
Mailing address:
N.C. Post Release Supervision and Parole Commission
2020 Yonkers Road
4222 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-4222
Email: parole.commission@ncdps.gov
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