WASHINGTON — Approaching the third anniversary since a young brother and sister were last seen, their mother is due in Montgomery County District Court to determine if she is mentally competent to stand trial for their disappearance.
Catherine Hoggle is charged with three misdemeanors — neglect, abduction and hindering the investigation — in the disappearance of her children.
Hoggle was the last known person to see then-2-year old Jacob and 3-year-old Sarah, before they disappeared from their Clarksburg home in Sept. 2014.
For more than two years, Hoggle has been undergoing treatment at the Clifton T. Perkins Hospital, the state psychiatric hospital.
Hoggle’s lawyer and prosecutors will discuss the most recent report, prepared by hospital doctors, to see if Hoggle is competent to stand trial.
In an April hearing, Hoggle’s attorney David Felsen told the judge that doctors believe Hoggle is taking steps toward being able to understand what is happening and assist in her own defense.
In earlier hearings, prosecutors with Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office have suggested Hoggle is malingering. State’s Attorney John McCarthy has said prosecutors are building a murder case against the mother.
Under Maryland law, if a person charged with a misdemeanor is not found competent within three years, the charge must be dismissed.
Felsen has dismissed the suggestion his client is feigning mental illness as a legal strategy.
“Ms. Hoggle is continuing to respond well to treatment. The doctors believe she’s on the right path, and hopefully she will be found competent,” Felsen told reporters in April.
This week, the children’s father, Troy Turner, posted a Facebook message wishing his son a happy birthday.
“I feel like this post should be about how big he’s gotten,” wrote Turner. “I’m just praying they’re still alive.”
Turner, who has acknowledged the slim likelihood his children are still alive, continues to hold out hope.
“If someone out there does have my son and my daughter, please tell them daddy loves them so much, and please give them both hugs for me and wish Jacob a happy birthday,” he wrote.
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