GUILTY MO - Edward Bagley & others for keeping teen as sex slave for 8 years, Lebanon, 2009

[Missizzy]

The news release from the U.S. attorney's office said Stokes worked for the Disabled American Veterans organization. In response, Dave Autry, a representative of the DAV's national office in Washington, D.C., sent this news release:

"The Disabled American Veterans (DAV) is appalled and horrified at the grave injustice done to the victim in the pending indictment against Michael A. Stokes and disgusted at the alleged conduct of Mr. Stokes and others.

Mr. Stokes is not a national representative of the Disabled American Veterans and only served in that capacity for one year in 1992. He has never been a paid employee of the DAV.

Clearly, this is a regrettable situation for all concerned, and it must be remembered that the DAV takes very seriously our obligation to maintain the highest ethical and moral standards as a veterans service organization. Therefore, we hope the public will not associate our organization with the disturbing charges against an individual who happens to be a disabled veteran and member.

The DAV Department of Missouri is suspending Mr. Stokes’ membership pending the outcome of his trial. The DAV provides free services for hundreds of thousands of veterans nationwide every year. More than 1.1 million wartime service-connected disabled veterans are members of the DAV.

Thousands of DAV volunteers provide free services in our name and serve veterans in their communities. Our members, volunteers, donors and veterans nationwide share our disgust in these charges levied against Mr. Stokes."

 

[bessie]

She was held approximately 2268 days. Seven years and three months.

I have no desire to identify this victim. She deserves all the privacy and safety which can possibly be afforded her. However, I'm intrigued as to how the disappearance of this child played out. She ran away from foster care in December 2002. Was she listed as an endangered child, due to her disabilities? Was there a respectable amount of effort which went into looking for this child? Or was she just another lost, throw-away child?

No, I certainly don't want to violate her privacy, either. I'm also very curious, though about her background and how this situation came to be. Did she have family that was looking for her? Was she able to fall off the face of the earth without anyone noticing? During her captivity did she have contact with anyone at any time from her past? Even a brief phone call. Probably not, but would it have mattered, anyway? In her mental state, it's unlikely she would have cried for help even if she'd had the opportunity.

And now, where has she been for eighteen months? Is she getting the help she needs? Is someone finally showing her true compassion? What becomes of a person after such an experience. You compared her to holocaust victims, and I think that's pretty accurate except that most holocaust victims had something she didn't, love and familial bonds. This woman has been tossed around like a piece of trash since she was a child. How do you put the pieces together and build that person into a whole human being again?

I'm also very curious about how she arrived at the hospital. Was she dumped on the curb? I can't imagine anyone walked in with her. And reading the gruesome details in the indictment, was she able to relate all of that? Or was some of it discovered in tapes and photographs?

Ugh...my head is reeling. How many other innocents are in similar situations that won't be rescued?

 

[Missizzy]

Those are valid questions, Bessie. Each one haunts me. I can't figure out where the line is on the "public's need to know". Most foster children do have family. Even if they couldn't be a resource for this girl when she was a child, how about now? You are correct about Holocaust victims, they often had family somewhere to take them in. Jaycee and Elizabeth had welcoming strong arms to envelop them from the moment they were discovered. Even Elizabeth Fritzl had her mother, children, and other relatives waiting when she was rescued from her dungeon. Who does this girl have?

There are certainly foster home for disabled adults. I know some wonderful ones. My guess is that a highly specialized one would be assigned for her. That might be where she went when she was released from the hospital. I'm hopeful that the state and feds are sparing no expense when it comes to her treatment. I would think that she has a GAL to represent her needs and a cadre of therapists, doctors, and case workers. As I said above, my heart tells me that she needs the tender love of animals as it seems she sought that out in the past. Animals can often heal the wounded long before the touch of another human can be tolerated.

I still have questions, though. Who dropped this woman off at the hospital. It's been over 18 months since she entered the hospital. Did she reveal the names? Are the men flipping on each other?

Here's a small update with a detail I had not seen:

http://www.newstribune.com/articles/2010/09/15/news_state/nt107state36sex10.txt

"Three Missouri men accused of taking part in the sexual torture of a young woman over several years have pleaded not guilty to federal charges.

The pleas were entered Tuesday in U.S. District Court on behalf of 43-year-old Edward Bagley Sr. of Lebanon, 50-year-old Dennis Henry of Wheatland and 44-year-old James Noel of Springfield..."

and

"...Prosecutors say Bagley abused the young woman for years and advertised online and in-person torture sessions. The other defendants are accused of being Bagley's customers...."


Bagley held her for almost seven years. Am I the only one who thinks that this is just the beginning of a long line of men and women to be arrested? Where did all the money go?

 

[Missizzy]

I just noticed this statement in the indictment:

"...Defendents Edward Bagley, Sr., Dennis Henry, Michael Stokes, James Noel, Bradley Cook and others known and unknown to the Grand Jury conspired and agreed with each other to...."

There are others.

 

[Belinda]

I think over that period of time there are many, many others and I fervently hope they nail every single one of them.

 

[IWannaKnow]

This is what I think of every time I see *advertiser censored* of any kind....Are all the participants willing??? Was this their idea?? I admit I'm thinking it about the women - I think the man's interest is obvious (I understand this could happen with gay *advertiser censored* too, but for the sake of argument I will stick with women...). Are the women drugged? Have they been beaten to make them agree with this? Linda Lovelace is a classic example that people will disagree with until the cows come home (she is now dead and cannot plead her own case any longer) but she went on the record saying that DeepThroat was not her idea and she was beaten each night to force her to perform the next day. The bruises on her legs are very clear. She had to get away from her *husband* - who forced her into filming that film - to get away from the *advertiser censored*. From what I've read, she went on to minister to other women who suffered the same fate and became very involved in the anti-*advertiser censored* movement. Some call that a sham and that she simply regretted what she did. I highly disagree. :twocents:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linda_Lovelace

"In her suit to divorce Traynor, she claimed that he forced her into *advertiser censored* at gunpoint, and that in Deep Throat itself, bruises from his beatings can be seen on her legs. She made the assertion that her husband "would force her to do these things by pointing an M-16 rifle at her head." Boreman wrote in her autobiography that her marriage had been plagued by violence, rape, forced prostitution and private *advertiser censored*. Some of her assertions have been challenged, but many have been verified by witnesses (as well as by lie detector testing)."

 

[IWannaKnow]

Stop and think of the number of people who watched these performances. How many knew of her actual terror? How many men and women raped and tortured her? This crime is not contained within a tightly constrained group of five men.

Has anyone mapped out where the perps lived and where the woman was kept? They traveled good distances. My only hope here is that two things occurred for this poor child/woman. I pray that her disability allowed her to pull inward and to shut out some of the pain. Being cognitively challenged, it's possible that she has yet to understand the moral and ethical and spiritual repercussions. And this is hard to say, but I hope she was drugged almost into unconsciousness.

This woman is going to require a lifetime of gentle care and treatment. She has to learn how to be human. I really see her on the same level as many concentration camp survivors. My first thought is that she needs therapy with animals as she seems to love them.

Has anyone considered the possibility that there might be more than one girl? With Jaycee, there were vague hints that there had been others. Could a single young woman have stayed physically capable of keeping up with this depravity. Wouldn't these men want to train others as she aged?

And does anyone have a theory as to why she was taken to the hospital? That act would ensure that the men would surely be caught. Death would have almost been a release at that point and a natural progression of the torture. Was their some moral line they couldn't step over? Or was it a certain man who said enough.

Missizzy - the link you provided about Taboo mag. stated that he had another slave girl, name starts with a 'N', and she had also been photographed.....I don't think that was a stage name for this girl, but I could be wrong. Indictments state this girl's name starts with 'F', FWIW.

I am completely baffled by him taking her to the hospital. Why not simply let her die and bury her as he stated he was going to? My only thought on that was that he expected to get off with the "it was consensual - she was over 18" malarkey, and was afraid he would be caught if he let her die? Or maybe he didn't want to lose his investment - even though she did not produce to his desired level??? $112K is alot of dough for a "transient"....

 

[reen]

I am really sad that her name and photo (blurred or not) are being tossed around in the mainstream media. Just more exploitation and now she's going to be hounded and stalked by who-knows-what kind of walking filth.

 

[Montjoy]

Indictments state this girl's name starts with 'F', FWIW.

Are you speaking of indictments that list her as 'FV'? That does not refer to her name, but means 'Female Victim'.

 

[IWannaKnow]

Are you speaking of indictments that list her as 'FV'? That does not refer to her name, but means 'Female Victim'.

Thanks Montjoy. I didn't catch that. This case takes my breath away and that was a detail I missed. Thanks for pointing that out.

 

[SunnieRN]

She was held approximately 2268 days. Seven years and three months.

I have no desire to identify this victim. She deserves all the privacy and safety which can possibly be afforded her. However, I'm intrigued as to how the disappearance of this child played out. She ran away from foster care in December 2002. Was she listed as an endangered child, due to her disabilities? Was there a respectable amount of effort which went into looking for this child? Or was she just another lost, throw-away child?

I agree 100 percent that anonymity must remain. As with Jaycee Duggard, it is important to know what type of environment and treatment is occuring.

The reason I believe this to be true, is so that someone reading an article can comprehend this scope of the problem and the solution needed.

There are people on this website that blame Jaycee for what happened and feel that she should be fine now that she has been freed. There is no thought given to what was endured, the feelings that go along with the abuse, or the need to learn how to relate to others on a daily basis.

Thank God Jaycee has a good support system. I am sad to think that there may be no one that welcomed this girl home!

As for the article that shows her on the cover blurred out, unfortunately the animals that like to perpetrate these crimes have UNBLURRED pictures at their beck and call. Unfortunately there has to be other FV out there.

Scare these perps! Make the punishment SO harsh, that it sends a message!

 

[Missizzy]

Sunnie--That's one of the biggest challenges. The sentences are still ridiculously light. We have to work on that. Quite possibly, this case might become of watershed moment for grasping this level of depravity. IWannaKnow, I'm really glad you brought up Linda. It was very sad that she was dismissed in such an off-hand manner. Blame the victim, as always. How many pedophiles have we heard yell and scream that the 9 year old "wanted it" or "came onto me". The mere fact that Linda is smiling in her films must prove that she was happy, right?

For this woman to be labeled as "mentally deficient" (a legal term), she has to meet certain criteria. She must have an IQ of under 69. From what I've read she was a special needs child so the brain damage is not due to her torture. God only knows what her intelligence level is now, after what she's gone through. We've watched with horror as Dustin Lafortune has struggled to relearn tasks. Most people, not all, who have such low IQs cannot make appropriate decisions for themselves and require community based services and family support. Bagley took that fact and ran with it. The photographer in LA used it to his benefit. Hustler benefitted from it. This poor human being became nothing more than a dollar sign.

The irony about IQs in the 60s is that most people still have reasonable communication skills. They can dress, groom and perform hygiene tasks for themselves. They can often learn how to use Myspace but have no idea how to set a clock. They typically have challenges with sequencing, reasoning, and understanding consequences. They do well with an educational system that has an element of "training"--learning through repetition and routine. If they are compliant, as it sounds like this woman was, they are usually overly compliant and need to be constantly reminded to ask for what they really want, speak up, self-advocate.

These monsters took a child with an attractive young body and exploited every single challenge this child exhibited for their own depraved lust. Next time you encounter a person with cognitive challenges out in the community, respectfully watch them for a minute. You'll be shocked at how easy it would be to exploit them--at how open and giving and naive most are. If you were friendly and promised a wonderful treat, 9 times out of 10, they'd follow you anywhere. They are just as vulnerable as a child. This is my personal experience as the mother of 7 children with IQs under 69.

 

[sfbaynancydrew]

I've worked with adults with disabilities and what you say is so true. The higher-IQ'd folks are SO DESPERATE for adult/"normal" friendships that they will say or do anything to get that approval and to feel they belong.

Some of them you wouldn't know they were disabled until you'd been around them for a significant amount of time. Then you realize that you're dealing with a 9 year old in the body of a 20 year old. Their trust and eagerness to please can be heartbreaking in it's vulnerability. This young woman most likely DID seem willing and happy at that photoshoot. She probably felt like this was her big break into Hollywood and everyone was actually being NICE to her. Who KNOWS how that monster framed the experience in her head to get her to behave and go along with it?

She is just a child in a (slightly) bigger body.

 

[sfbaynancydrew]

I am really sad that her name and photo (blurred or not) are being tossed around in the mainstream media. Just more exploitation and now she's going to be hounded and stalked by who-knows-what kind of walking filth.

reen, I was thinking that too. I'm sure back-issued copies are for sale everywhere. They shouldn't have identified the year/month at very least to make it harder to search for. ugh.

Edited to add, as I was writing this I googled "back issues" of the magazine to see how hard it was. Not hard.

 

[Fairy1]

Cordes alleged that Bagley has a “long history of sexually violent behavior” and said that investigators had found evidence that he had tortured and sexually mutilated at least one other female victim for years in the past.​

Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2010/09/09/2211420/indictment-alleges-years-of-torture.html#ixzz0zX4g4tmL​

Both Bagley and Cook have done this and recorded it. God Bless and keep those other victims. I wonder if they lived. Given the escalation, I wonder that they decided to bring her to the hospital when she coded??? Someone must have wanted to get caught.

I've been thinking about this today. It is a bit surprising that they took her to the hospital. Now that we've seen the indictment and know how severely abused she was, they had to have known they would be caught. I don't suppose they're the sharpest tools in the shed, but they must have been desperate to keep their slave. Poor little thing.

They damn well better plea this case. The perps

​

I understand those who would like to see this case go to trial so these freaks get the maximum sentences for their horrific crimes. That said, I hope they plea too. Based on what little we know about the girl's mental capacity and what all we know about what they did to her and for how long, I pray she will not have to testify in court. I really think she's been through enough and I can't imagine any good coming from her having to face her tormenters in a trial. And what the jury would have to listen to and see evidence of would just be too much for most.​

Let's face it, trial by jury or plea deal, the punishment will never be enough for them to pay for what they've done. I only hope she will recover and can go on to live a happy life. And that EVERYONE involved will be caught and stopped. And if she fell through the cracks of the system, they need to pay as well.​

 

[watcher9]

This is sick.

The only thing I can say is -

HOW MANY OTHER CHILDREN ARE HIDDEN OUT THERE THROUGHOUT AMERICA?

 

[bessie]

I've been thinking about this today. It is a bit surprising that they took her to the hospital. Now that we've seen the indictment and know how severely abused she was, they had to have known they would be caught. I don't suppose they're the sharpest tools in the shed, but they must have been desperate to keep their slave. Poor little thing.

I understand those who would like to see this case go to trial so these freaks get the maximum sentences for their horrific crimes. That said, I hope they plea too. Based on what little we know about the girl's mental capacity and what all we know about what they did to her and for how long, I pray she will not have to testify in court. I really think she's been through enough and I can't imagine any good coming from her having to face her tormenters in a trial. And what the jury would have to listen to and see evidence of would just be too much for most.​

Let's face it, trial by jury or plea deal, the punishment will never be enough for them to pay for what they've done. I only hope she will recover and can go on to live a happy life. And that EVERYONE involved will be caught and stopped. And if she fell through the cracks of the system, they need to pay as well.​

According to the indictment, there is video of the torture. And her scarred body tells the rest of the tale. I'm hopeful that any testimony from her will be limited, perhaps even videotaped or streamed from outside the courtroom. She shouldn't have to lay eyes on those monsters ever again. Not alive, anyway.

 

[Missizzy]

Does anyone remember what, Wayne Bleyle, the respiratory therapist for disabled children said when he was caught raping and photographing his young patients--most total care children. LE asked how many victims he had. He looked outside and said, "How many snowflakes are there?"

I've never forgotten those words.

 

[Missizzy]

Bessie--I hope you are right. But our children were video-taped when they disclosed and they each endured painful physical examinations. All their therapy notes were available. The investigation took almost a year and when we came to trial, each of the children (aged 7-12, all with special needs) were required to sit in the witness stand and be grilled for hours as their rapist stared at them. He even laughed a few times. I was ordered to not make eye contact with my children nor could I cry. Not even when I heard and saw their video-tapes. We had no idea as to the extent of their injuries and abuses until we sat in the courtroom as our family had been ordered to never speak about it amongst ourselves for the 11 months it took to get to trial. That was not easy with a busy household with 13 growing and hurting children.

I pray this girl won't have to testify but our children who are deaf, vision impaired, have cerebral palsy, autism, and who have cognitive challenges had to stay strong against a brutal defense attorney.

Twelve convictions. An appeal. The Supreme Court Affirmation. The Post Conviction Trial with new depositions (9 years after the rapes), the denial of clemency, the changing of a law. Over 3000 pages of transcript. We're twelve years in and not a day goes by without the abuses haunting our daily life through suicide attempts and PTSD.

The system is not set up to be tender on the victims. Not at all. The disclosure is just the first step. I'm very hopeful that this woman has strong supporters as the preparation for trial is grueling.

 

[IWannaKnow]

It occured to me last night that he could have been doing a live broadcast when she coded, and he had so many witnesses ("known and unknown") that he didn't dare let her die....could also explain the video of the torture. He must have been terrified that someone would turn him in. MOO.

I also totally agree that she may have appeared compliant, and in fact didn't fight what they were doing. She may have seen this as the first time someone "cared" about her, because from what I understand, it is much like an abusive husband afterward....ie "I love you, you were such a good slave, you made me so happy etc, etc.". MOO. She did run away from her foster home so she must not have been happy there. I wonder if they reported her as missing, or just continued to collect the $$?