LA - Pastor and wife busted in child sex ring...

[LovelyPigeon]

Could very well be, concernedperson. I couldn't find anything about postponements, either--just nothing at all after Aug 3.

 

[BillyGoatGruff]

Could very well be, concernedperson. I couldn't find anything about postponements, either--just nothing at all after Aug 3.

I would recommend checking the Hammond justice system's online service. If they have a online court docket, you could find it there. I would not be surprised if its been tabled until the new year , though.
Hammond is closer to Mississippi--i'd say it's at least 50 miles from New Orleans as the crow flies.

 

[mysteriew]

I don't get Mowbray. She supposedly didn't participate, but she kept an extensive journal of the activitites including signed confessions. Was she intending to write a book or something? And who would sign a confession after an act like that anyway? Did she blackmail them into confessing?
The way they keep dumbing down the charges, soon there won't be anything to convict them for. Either someone influential is working on hiding this case or the LE jumped in and started arresting people without determining what they might be able to prove in court.

 

[LovelyPigeon]

"It appears that one of the leaders of the church exercised a tremendous influence over its congregants to the point of making them say they did things that they never did," Stewart said.

In a twist, he was not referring to Lamonica, who inherited the once large parish after his father's death, but to another parishioner, Lois Mowbray, who was charged with obstruction of justice and failing to report a crime after the fact.

In particular, Stewart cited Mowbray's 586-page journal in which she allegedly had other parishioners write out their confessions to the sex acts.--->>

Stewart alleges that Mowbray's influence caused parishioners write out confessions that were not true and had never happened.

The way the articles read, it sounds as if one of the witnesses is to be a female who says she was molested/assaulted before she was 2 or 3 years old. I don't know how old she is supposed to be now. That might involve "recovered memories" if I'm reading it right.

The other two victims are male and are now teens.

None of the victims testified to grand jury. A single deputy testified, apparently, to what he had been told.

 

[LovelyPigeon]

I would recommend checking the Hammond justice system's online service. If they have a online court docket, you could find it there.

I couldn't find an online court docket for either Hammond City or Tangipahoa Parish.

 

[H0NEYWEST]

I couldn't find an online court docket for either Hammond City or Tangipahoa Parish.

I tried too Lovely. It appears that hardly any of the parishes have court info online.

 

[BillyGoatGruff]

I don't know what the status is right now, but I remember after the initial story hit the wires that LE found a bunch of foam rubber puppets and costumes in storage, kind of like what you'd use in a pantomime play, that were tested for semen & dna, and came up positive, as well as finding animal carcasses that showed signs of sexual assault. ugh.

 

[concernedperson]

I don't know what the status is right now, but I remember after the initial story hit the wires that LE found a bunch of foam rubber puppets and costumes in storage, kind of like what you'd use in a pantomime play, that were tested for semen & dna, and came up positive, as well as finding animal carcasses that showed signs of sexual assault. ugh.

It is all there. But can they prove it and are the resources so strained that it isn't a priority? A lot of crimes will go by the wayside in Louisiana because of Katrina.Some creeps will get a get out of jail free.

 

[BillyGoatGruff]

It is all there. But can they prove it and are the resources so strained that it isn't a priority? A lot of crimes will go by the wayside in Louisiana because of Katrina.Some creeps will get a get out of jail free.

This may get kicked over to the FBI/federal courts if it involves crossing state lines at some point.
But according to several friends of mine who work in the justice system in LA, the courts and jails outside NO are functioning without much change. In fact, many of the state-appointed attornies, etc. have been reassigned to other parishes, so there may actually be MORE public defenders & DAs in some areas than before.
If ya wanna know what the status is on the case, call the court house. If they want to know who ya are, tell 'em you're a stringer for AP doing an article on how Katrina has affected previously high profile cases.

 

[LovelyPigeon]

If they want to know who ya are, tell 'em you're a stringer for AP doing an article on how Katrina has affected previously high profile cases.

I wouldn't recommend lying to anyone. If you want to know and you're asked, tell them you're interested in the case. The information is public as far as status goes

 

[Linda7NJ]

This may get kicked over to the FBI/federal courts if it involves crossing state lines at some point.
But according to several friends of mine who work in the justice system in LA, the courts and jails outside NO are functioning without much change. In fact, many of the state-appointed attornies, etc. have been reassigned to other parishes, so there may actually be MORE public defenders & DAs in some areas than before.
If ya wanna know what the status is on the case, call the court house. If they want to know who ya are, tell 'em you're a stringer for AP doing an article on how Katrina has affected previously high profile cases.

What's a stringer?

 

[LovelyPigeon]

I don't know what the status is right now, but I remember after the initial story hit the wires that LE found a bunch of foam rubber puppets and costumes in storage, kind of like what you'd use in a pantomime play, that were tested for semen & dna, and came up positive, as well as finding animal carcasses that showed signs of sexual assault. ugh.

There were rumors and accusations flying in the initial reports of this case, but there was no incriminating DNA evidence found and no signs of animal carcasses.

Churches are likely to have costumes and puppets in storage for use in both youth ministries and seasonal pageants.

From the last article (by CourtTV) I could find on the case (link on page one):
References to an occult element were dropped from the case, as were the bestiality charges, prompting lawyers for the accused child rapists to decry a lack of evidence.

 

[Linda7NJ]

What about evidence seized from computers? The Ohio woman and the confession from the ring leader, that wasn't true?

 

[LovelyPigeon]

What's a stringer?

A stringer is a person who has an arrangement AP and/or other media to write articles and submits them for publication. They get paid by the line of what's actually printed (not by the amount of lines submitted).

 

[LovelyPigeon]

What about evidence seized from computers? The Ohio woman and the confession from the ring leader, that wasn't true?

Computers? I don't know about computers.

The evidence seems to have boiled down to a journal kept by one of church "leaders" where she recorded alleged confessions by church members.

It's not clear from that last article whether any of the 3 (alleged) victims will be able to give direct testimony.

 

[Linda7NJ]

Computers? I don't know about computers.

The evidence seems to have boiled down to a journal kept by one of church "leaders" where she recorded alleged confessions by church members.

It's not clear from that last article whether any of the 3 (alleged) victims will be able to give direct testimony.

from post #14 this thread:

AMITE, La. (AP) -- Jailed former Tangipahoa Parish deputy Chris Labat has been booked on 24 additional counts related to the child and animal sex abuse scandal at the Hosanna Church in Ponchatoula, a sheriff's spokeswoman said Monday.

The new counts pertain to *advertiser censored* involving juveniles and were levied Friday night after agents with the FBI and Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's department searched computers seized at Labat's residence, spokeswoman Laura Covington said.

 

[BillyGoatGruff]

What's a stringer?

Freelance journalist.

 

[BillyGoatGruff]

There were rumors and accusations flying in the initial reports of this case, but there was no incriminating DNA evidence found and no signs of animal carcasses.

Churches are likely to have costumes and puppets in storage for use in both youth ministries and seasonal pageants.

From the last article (by CourtTV) I could find on the case (link on page one):
References to an occult element were dropped from the case, as were the bestiality charges, prompting lawyers for the accused child rapists to decry a lack of evidence.

Yeah--but the puppets and costumes had tested positive for semen and other bodily fluids, which doesn;t look good.
And the beastiality charges being dropped down't mean they didn't have evidence--it's just that beastiality is a misdemeanor charge and not worth filing in light of the other evidence. It also detracts from the actual crimes against children.

 

[BillyGoatGruff]

from post #14 this thread:

AMITE, La. (AP) -- Jailed former Tangipahoa Parish deputy Chris Labat has been booked on 24 additional counts related to the child and animal sex abuse scandal at the Hosanna Church in Ponchatoula, a sheriff's spokeswoman said Monday.

The new counts pertain to *advertiser censored* involving juveniles and were levied Friday night after agents with the FBI and Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's department searched computers seized at Labat's residence, spokeswoman Laura Covington said.

Yeah, the child *advertiser censored* and the deputy being a partof the church is the major lynch pin on this chase. And I remember reading that some of the activity had been videtaped by the pastor or someone else. So, yeah, they're all going to hell in a little toy boat.

 

[Linda7NJ]

Yeah--but the puppets and costumes had tested positive for semen and other bodily fluids, which doesn;t look good.
And the beastiality charges being dropped down't mean they didn't have evidence--it's just that beastiality is a misdemeanor charge and not worth filing in light of the other evidence. It also detracts from the actual crimes against children.

I agree, but I think from a prosecution standpoint I'd leave it in for those jury members that may not have children but do have pets.