CO - Gannon Stauch, 11, Colorado Springs, 27 Jan 2020 MEDIA MAPS TIMELINE *NO DISCUSSION*

  • #621
Week 4 Day 13

4.24.2023

The murder trial for Letecia Stauch is resuming this morning. The trial is now in week 4. I'll be bringing you the latest from the courtroom and updates throughout the day.

Jonathan Grusing, a former special agent, is taking the stand again. He’s testifying about his interrogation and interview with Letecia Stauch at the Myrtle Beach Police Department after she was arrested for murder in March 2020.

Grusing testified saying that Letecia would challenge him on knowing statements about where Gannon was. He said, if he wasn’t correct with his guesses about what happened to Gannon, Letecia would get upset. He said it was an effective way for her to not answer his questions.

Grusing said Letecia was reluctant to answering questions and didn’t give him any clues to help find Gannon.

He’s talking about different tactics that he used including asking questions about the blood in Gannon’s room. “Since she’s not pushing it to anybody else, she’s basically saying it was her,” said Grusing.

Letecia was talking about God during parts of her interview, saying the truth will come out one day and “show the entire world.”

Grusing was heard asking questions over and over about Letecia’s last image of Gannon. Letecia said she saw nothing negative. “Gannon was happy. Gannon is my favorite stepchild, my baby,” said Letecia. She never fully answered what her last memory of Gannon was.

Grusing questioned Letecia asking if she didn’t hurt him, why would it be a problem for her to tell him what her last memory and image of Gannon was. “If she’s saying she’s innocent of this, then the questions that I’m asking should be easy for her to answer,” Grusing testified.

The interview ends and Letecia and Grusing walk outside of the room.

Grusing testified saying, “Right outside the door... She said something in a small voice about North Carolina that I couldn’t hear. She said she and I should go to North Carolina. And I asked if Gannon was in North Carolina, and she didn’t answer.”

Grusing testified saying Letecia knew where different lines of questioning would go, and what would be damaging for her to answer truthfully. His testimony ended by acknowledging Letecia never changed personalities, talked in a Spanish accent, or wanted to be called other names.

Cross examination is underway for Grusing. Will Cook, Letecia’s attorney, asked about Letecia referring to herself in the the third person. He said this was not that unusual or odd to him.

During cross examination, Grusing was also asked how many stories Letecia told about Gannon’s disappearance. He said there were about five to 10 different stories.

The defense passed the witness. Grusing then testified saying, “Her not being able to articulate a last image of Gannon was very indicative that the last image was awful. I came away with more of a certainty that something bad happened to Gannon.”

Recess break until 10:35 am MT

The murder trial for Letecia Stauch will resume at 1:30. District Attorney Michael Allen said they’ll be calling seven more witnesses to testify as they finish presenting the evidence in their case. Two more witnesses are testifying today, with three more tomorrow.

The defense will be calling their witnesses to the stand late this week. Judge Gregory Werner said they’re ahead of schedule and could possibly begin jury instructions on Friday, with the jury reaching a verdict likely next week.

This is the 5-page list of about 150 potential witnesses that have already been called or may be called by prosecutors to testify in the Letecia Stauch murder trial. District Attorney Michael Allen said 7 more witnesses will be testifying before they're finished their case.
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We’ve learned who a few of the prosecutor’s witnesses are who still have to testify this week: - FBI Agent Kevin Hoyland - Dr. Jackie Grimmett with the Colorado Mental Health Institute in Pueblo - Dr. Loandra Torres with the Colorado Mental Health Institute in Pueblo
- Dr. Christine Mohr, Larned State Hospital, Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services

Here is the notice of endorsement of witnesses by Letecia Stauch's attorneys: - Dr. Ronda Niederhauser, UCHealth Memorial Hospital We expect to hear from Dr. Niederhauser late this week.

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Sherrie Holes, a forensics serologist, testified saying a piece of carpet, electrical cover, scrub brush, empty vinegar bottle, an Amazon box, and a shoe believed to belong to Letecia Stauch, all tested positive for presumptive evidence of blood.

Holes said the shoes had a strong cleaning oder. She said the pink suitcase with a blue blanket inside, also tested positive for presumptive for evidence of blood. Fingernails from Gannon Stauch also tested positive for presumptive evidence of blood.

Donna Monague, the next witness to be called to the stand, developed a DNA profile from Gannon Stauch’s toothbrush.

Monague testified saying the carpet, outlet cover, electrical socket, carpet, scrub brush, Gannon’s bed, pink suitcase, blanket from suitcase and the Nike shoe that all tested positive for presumptive evidence of blood, all matched Gannon Stauch's profile.

The amazon box and vinegar bottle all matched Gannon Stauch's profile too.

Some of these items had two contributors, and were a mixture of unknown profiles. However, the major male profile matched Gannon Stauch.

No more witnesses will be called today. The murder trial for Letecia Stauch will resume tomorrow morning at 9 a.m.

 
  • #622
Week 4 Day 13

4.24.2023

I’m in court covering the 13th day of the #LeteciaStauch trial this morning, in place for @ZachNDupont. Follow along for live updates @csgazette

We’re picking back up today with the testimony of former Denver-based FBI agent Jonathan Grusing, who interviewed Stauch after she was arrested but before Gannon’s body was found in Florida. Playing clips from that 5-hr interview.

In this clip, Grusing brings up her body language: “You know what innocent people do? They’d be freaking out. You’re not freaking out.”

Stauch talks about her faith, & how repentance involves laying sins at the foot of the cross. “My sins are laid down, and it does not involve hurting … or killing (Gannon).” Grusing again asks her to help him locate Gannon if that’s the case. “You know where an 11-year-old is.”

Allen asked Grusing if Stauch’s resisting opportunities to give more details was a “logical thought process” someone may use to avoid implication. Grusing: “Very.”

In the clip, Grusing asks Stauch many times to describe her last memory of Gannon - what he was doing, his facial expression. She refuses. He told her that parents who lost a child never forget, even decades later, the image of the last time they saw their child.

“Gannon was happy - Gannon IS my favorite stepchild,” Stauch said. Grusing told her she was only describing Gannon’s characteristics and asked why she refused to answer “easy” questions. He just told Allen that she was preoccupied with what others thought of her.

Defense attorney Will Cook up for cross-exam. Cook asks Grusing if he recalled Stauch referring to herself as “Tecia” in 3rd person, but Grusing said he didn’t find it too strange in the moment. Cook asked if it would be strange if he spoke of himself in the 3rd person

during x-exam. Grusing said it would be unusual. Grusing said he’s known self absorbed people to refer to themselves in the 3rd person, and said he never had the impression that #Stauch was exhibiting multiple personalities.

Back after a.m. break. Next witness called is FBI special agent David Donati, who worked in #COS at the time of Gannon’s disappearance and who handled Stauch’s vehicle’s telematics system, which tracks GPS data, car movement, dates & times, etc.

Donati said he sent that device securely to FBI HQ in Quantico, VA for experts to analyze. He said he received data points from Stauch’s travels from that analysis but did not elaborate on what that data said.


Next witness was FBI electronics engineer Dwight Falkofske, who explained to the jury how the device is combed for information, including geocoordinates and time stamps. Still no info on what those coordinates/dates were.

Judge Gregory Werner said witness testimony is going faster than expected this morning, so the court is breaking for lunch early until 1:30. Allen says he has 7 witnesses left, 2 of which are expected to testify this afternoon. 3 more are expected tomorrow.

And we’re back. Next witness is Sherrie Homes, a forensic serologist + DNA analyst with the CSPD Metro Crime Lab. Holes is here as an expert witness in body fluids, specifically related in the investigation of Gannon’s disappearance.

Holes is going through several boxes of packages containing items, like Gannon’s toothbrush, sections of carpet or Nike sneakers believed to belong to Letecia Stauch, that reacted positively to blood tests. She’s also explaining swabbing and chemical test practices.

Holes is holding a large pink suitcase and is showing jurors how she swabbed it for blood/DNA analysis. I can’t see the inside of the suitcase from here, but it seems the jury should be able to see visible stains inside the suitcase.

Next witness, CSPD Metro Crime Lab DNA analyst Donna Manogue, is now going thru those same objects - also including scrub brushes, bedsheets, a blanket inside the suitcase - confirming that those blood tests matched Gannon’s DNA. Cells from inside the shoes matched Letecia.

Manogue said buccal (cheek) swabs of Gannon’s father, Al Stauch, and mother, Landen Hiott, showed a 99.99% likelihood that they were the biological parents of the person whose DNA was found on a toothbrush, known to be used by Gannon.

Once Gannon’s body was found in Florida, a femur bone sample showed to match the DNA on the toothbrush. A separate analysis of a rib bone, done by a Florida analyst, also matched. This created a more solid picture identifying the remains as belonging to Gannon, she said.

That concludes today’s portion of the trial. Jurors will be back tomorrow to hear 3 witness testimonies for the prosecution.


 
  • #623
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4/25/23

6 Damaging Lies Told by Accused Child Killer Letecia Stauch​

 
  • #624
Week 4 Day 14

4.25.2023


Back covering the #LeteciaStauchTrial today. FBI Special Agent Kevin Hoyland is the first witness to take the stand this morning.

Agent Hoyland is on the FBI Cellular Analysis Survey Team (CAST)

#LeteciaStauch present between her two attorneys in the court room.

Agent Hoyland was called upon to try to identify where Gannon was during his disappearance using cell phone data.

Letecia had phones affiliated with AT&T and Verizon that he analyzed

On the rented cargo van, every six hours gps would ping and give a location

He's going through the text messages leading up to Gannon's reported disappearance.

Getting moved to a developing story in Denver now. I will look back and catch up when I can.


https://twitter.com/FierroNicole
 
  • #625
Week 4 Day 14

4.25.2023

DAY 14 Letecia Stauch trial A cell phone data analyst is on the witness stand. Yesterday, prosecutors said they have a few witnesses left. We have yet to hear from the mental health experts expected to testify.

Cell phone records back up that Harley Hunt, Letecia Stauch’s daughter, was not at the family home around the time it’s suspected that Gannon was killed. Hunt’s phone pinged to towers near her work at that time, according to expert testimony.

NOW Dr. Christine Mohr, a clinical psychologist, is taking the witness stand.
This is the first career mental health professional to testify in the Stauch trial.

Dr. Mohr says she did a mental health assessment on March 5th, 2020 on Stauch as she was being processed into the El Paso County jail. Mohr says Stauch seemed calm and polite at the time. Mohr also says Stauch showed no “overt” signs of severe mental illness.

"I did not do this ... I feel like an animal in a cage, and I am innocent ... I don't belong in a place like this," Stauch reportedly told Mohr when being processed into the El Paso County jail.


https://twitter.com/melissahenryTV
 
  • #626
Week 4 Day 14

4.25.2023

The murder trial for Letecia Stauch is resuming now. Today, jurors will be hearing about one of the sanity evaluations conducted on Stauch after she was accused of murdering her stepson Gannon back in January 2020. I'll be bringing you updates here on Twitter throughout the day.

The next witness prosecutors called to the stand is FBI Special Agent Kevin Hoyland, who is assigned to the Cellular Analysis Survey Team. He analyzed data on four cell phones including Letecia Stauch’s two phones, Gannon Stauch’s phone, and Harley Hunt’s phone.

Morning break until 10:35 am MT.


Agent Hoyland is showing and describing his analysis of all four cell devices on January 26 (the day before Gannon’s disappearance) on January 27 (the day of Gannon’s disappearance), and the day after. This also included data from the Life360 Tracking App and Letecia's vehicle.

The analysis corroborates what’s already been testified including: - Letecia and Gannon going to Garden of the Gods on January 26 - Letecia and Gannon going to Petco on January 27, with Letecia's device being left at home - Harley Hunt being at work

- Phone calls/text messages to/from Letecia's device on the evening of January 27 including calls to 911 - Letecia going to the airport to pick up Al the morning of January 28 - A stop at Starbuck’s around 1:30 in the afternoon for an interview with the Sheriff’s Office

- Letecia going back to the Stauch home late January 28/early hours of January 29 - Letecia going to the Sheriff’s Office on the afternoon of January 29 where her car and phone were seized

- Letecia renting a cargo van in Colorado Springs which had a tracker on it, then going to a Walmart in Trinidad and buying a new phone on the afternoon of February 1

- Letecia driving through Texas and the southern part of the country in the rented cargo van through February 4, about a week after Gannon was reported missing

- Letecia then traveling north from Florida, then going toward Myrtle Beach, South Carolina In total, this was about five days of travel from Colorado Springs to South Carolina with stops along the way

Some interesting points/notes we did not know prior to Agent Hoyland’s testimony

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Dr. Christine Mohr is the next witness to be called to the stand. She’s the first mental health professional to testify in the Letecia Stauch murder trial.

In March 2020, Dr. Mohr was the Mental Health Director at the El Paso County Jail. On March 5, 2020, she did an assessment on Letecia Stauch.

Dr. Mohr said she remembered Letecia being calm and polite throughout their conversations. Dr. Mohr said given the nature of the crime, and Letecia not having any criminal history, jail can be traumatic and scary, and she wanted to make sure Letecia was safe and stable.

Dr. Mohr said Letecia told her about being diagnosed with anxiety and having general symptoms. Dr. Mohr said Letecia denied having any disorders, in-patient or out-patient treatment, and also denied any past suicide attempts.

Dr. Mohr said she placed Letecia on suicide watch, because of the alleged crime and her first time being in jail, and Letecia didn’t agree with that.

When asked if Dr. Mohr noticed Letecia having any mental health issues, she said “not anything overt.” Dr. Mohr said Letecia was anxious and nervous, which seemed consistent with her self report of having anxiety.

My apologies for the delay in Tweets and notes, as it's been a lot of information coming very quickly. I will follow-up later today.

Afternoon recess until 3:40 pm MT.

Here's a recap of Dr. Mohr's testimony this afternoon during the murder trial for Letecia Stauch.

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https://twitter.com/AshleyPorteeyo
 
  • #627
Week 4 Day 14

4.25.2023

I’m back in court for day 14 of the #LeteciaStauchTrial, in place for
@ZachNDupont
. Jury is in, and we’re getting started.

Today’s first witness is Kevin Hoyland, an FBI special agent with the Cellular Analysis Survey Team. He’s an expert in taking phone network data and mapping where and when cell phones of interest have been used - call detail records.

Hoyland presents the jury with a legend for various phones/devices - Gannon’s, Letecia’s, Harley Hunt’s, the GPS from Letecia’s car, GPS in a rental cargo van, another rental Nissan Altima & the Life360 app on one of Letecia’s devices. The legend will be used in upcoming maps.

Hoyland going through maps of phone and GPS activity from the evening of Sunday, Jan. 26, 2020 - Jan. 28 Notable: Harley Hunt was at work on Jan. 27. Gannon’s phone was being used while El Paso County Sheriff’s Office deputies were at the home on Jan. 27.

January 27 was the last day Gannon was seen alive.

Hoyland also corroborates that Stauch rented a car to pick up her then-husband, Al Stauch, from the airport around 8:30am on Jan. 28. DA Michael Allen asks if this helps show that Stauch left her Volkswagen Tiguan elsewhere, and Hoyland says “Correct.”


Morning break until 10:35 am MT.


On Jan. 28, roughly 24 hrs after Stauch called 911 at 6:55pm on Jan. 27, data from the Tiguan picks back up, leaving the airport toward a shopping center in Falcon. That evening, she travels up to the Larkspur area with her phone either off/on mode.

Allen asks whether turning off a phone or putting it on mode requires conscious effort. Hoyland says that unless the battery dies, then yes.

Later, Stauch was supposed to head to the EPSO but Hoyland said he noticed “some oddity” in the route she took. On maps, he saw she likely stopped at a car wash, which Allen said corroborates the SO’s report that her car appeared to be washed and “still wet” when she turned it in

There was a lot of info here, but Hoyland has detailed every move tracked by Stauch’s phone, car and rental van GPS down to Amarillo, TX to Pensacola, FL, where she was found to stay in a Candlewood Suites just south of where Gannon’s body was later found in March 2020.

Her trip began on Feb. 1, where she bought a new phone in Trinidad and activated it with Verizon. Verizon towers were used across the country to track her movement - from Colorado to Florida and eventually to South Carolina - from Feb 1-6. She was arrested in SC.


We now reach the prosecution’s expert witness in forensic psychology, Dr. Christine Mohr.

Mohr, who completed an initial mental assessment for Stauch on March 5, 2020 at the El Paso County Jail, said she did not see any “overt” signs of a mental health disorder. Said Stauch self-reported a general anxiety disorder, which seemed “consistent” with her behavior in jail.

Mohr testified that Stauch never exhibited signs of having dissociative identity disorder - like having no recollection of certain prior events - and told Mohr on March 9 that she had “control of her brain” and that she wanted to “advocate for herself.”

Mohr said Stauch would “blurt out” case-related info or voluntarily offer up details without prompting. Mohr said she encouraged Stauch to not speak about her case with anyone except her attorneys.

Mohr just said she believed she was the first person to tell Stauch that Gannon’s body had been found, and that he was not alive, but did not say where. Mohr said Stauch then voluntarily said “she was never in Florida.” Prosecutor asks why Stauch brought up FL w/out prompting.

Mohr is now recalling how Stauch began to report increasing nightmares, desires to leave the medical ward and overall mental illness over that spring. Said June 5 was the first time Stauch brought up trauma from molestation at age 14.

Prosecutor said June 5 was the same day she began to raise competency issues in court, and Mohr noted that Stauch now wanted to go back to the medical ward.

Mohr said multiple staff had concerns that Stauch was “going to act out because she wants to be listed as crazy.” Mohr said inmates accused of high-profile crimes may have ulterior motives to “fake” mental illness, and that Stauch’s claims were “inconsistent” with true symptoms.

Mohr said Stauch‘s behavior reflected that of someone who may skew their behavior according to court proceedings, and of someone who was faking bipolar disorder & dissociative identity disorder, rather than suffering from those diagnoses.

Time for cross-exam. Defense attorney Will Cook is questioning Mohr on litigation against EPSO/the county jail regarding a large Covid outbreak in 2020, and seems to be making ties between the quality of care under her leadership and that litigation.

For background, I believe Cook is referring to this case, where for-profit jail medical care provider, Wellpath (Mohr’s employer at the time) was sued for itsCovid outbreak mitigation.

Afternoon recess until 3:40 pm MT.

Cook asks if, because she was not monitored constantly while locked up 23/7, it was possible that she shifted personalities in her cell. He’s also questioning whether Mohr could rule out various disorders within a 30-40-minute initial assessment.

Mohr says that someone actually experiencing those disorders would usually self-report due to a lower quality of life: “There would be a general concern that I would expect someone to report.”
She also said that even if they don’t self-report, there would be observable oddities.

In the redirect, the prosecutor asks Mohr if, in a jail setting, clinicians must be extra careful diagnosing inmates because of the higher chance of a motive to fake disorders. Mohr said “yes.”

Plenty of objections from both sides during X-exam and redirect, and some jurors look plenty amused. Cook just objected to hearsay, and prosecutor Young was about to defend himself. Judge Werner: “Stop, both of you.”

Cook, to Werner: “Can you advise Mr. Young to not taunt me?”

Mohr also noted during redirect that no other family member or other staff at the jail had ever reported dissociative behavior by #LeteciaStauch. Said it’s very common for family to be aware of, as well as report, those oddities.

Cook, granted more questioning, is disputing the prosecution’s jail document showing that no attorney visited #Stauch prior to Mohr’s first assessment on March 5 (when Stauch voluntarily brought up Florida).
Cook says that log doesn’t include WebEx visits, implying he could …

… have told Stauch about Gannon’s body found in Florida ahead of Mohr’s assessment.
That line of questioning has been cut off, as Judge Werner is dismissing the jury for the day.

Sorry, not necessarily Cook. He’s telling Werner he may want to present new defense witnesses (if Stauch agrees) next week, likely the attorneys who allegedly met Stauch on March 5.

That’s all for today! Follow @ZachNDupont tomorrow for updates.

https://twitter.com/brooke_nevins
 
  • #628

4/25/23

Testimony began Tuesday with FBI Special Agent Kevin Hoyland, who is assigned to the Cellular Analysis Survey Team. He analyzed data on four cell phones including Letecia Stauch’s two phones, Gannon Stauch’s phone, and Harley Hunt’s phone, Letecia's daughter.

Agent Hoyland showed and described his analysis of all four cell devices on January 26 (the day before Gannon’s disappearance) and January 27 (the day of Gannon’s disappearance), and the day after. This also included data from the Life360 Tracking App and Letecia's vehicle.

The analysis corroborates what’s already been testified including:
- Letecia and Gannon going to Garden of the Gods on January 26
- Letecia and Gannon going to Petco on January 27, with Letecia's device being left at home
- Harley Hunt being at work
- Phone calls/text messages to/from Letecia's device on the evening of January 27 including calls to 911
- Letecia going to the airport to pick up Al the morning of January 28
- A stop at Starbucks around 1:30 in the afternoon for an interview with the Sheriff’s Office

Below are some interesting notes that we did not know prior to Special Agent Hoyland provided by Ashley Portillo from the courtroom.

1682471913009.png

In March 2020, Dr. Mohr was the Mental Health Director at the El Paso County Jail. On March 5, 2020, she did an assessment of Letecia Stauch.

Dr. Mohr said she remembered Letecia being calm and polite throughout their conversations. Dr. Mohr said that given the nature of the crime, and Letecia not having any criminal history, jail can be traumatic and scary, and she wanted to make sure Letecia was safe and stable.

Dr. Mohr said Letecia told her about being diagnosed with anxiety and having general symptoms. Dr. Mohr said Letecia denied having any disorders, in-patient or out-patient treatment and also denied any past suicide attempts.

Dr. Mohr said she placed Letecia on suicide watch, because of the alleged crime and her first time being in jail, and Letecia didn’t agree with that.

When asked if Dr. Mohr noticed Letecia having any mental health issues, she said “not anything overt.” Dr. Mohr said Letecia was anxious and nervous, which seemed consistent with her self-report of having anxiety.
 
  • #629
Judge Gregory Werner said they’re ahead of schedule and could possibly begin jury instructions on Friday, with the jury reaching a verdict possibly next week.
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EL PASO COUNTY, CO — The murder trial of Letecia Stauch, the El Paso County woman accused of murdering her step-son in 2020 continued Monday as the fourth week of the trial began with Jonathan Grusing, a former special agent, taking the stand again.

Grusing testified about his interrogation and interview with Letecia Stauch at the Myrtle Beach Police Department after she was arrested for murder in March 2020.

Grusing testified saying that Letecia would challenge him on knowing statements about where Gannon was. He said, if he wasn’t correct with his guesses about what happened to Gannon, Letecia would get upset.

Grusing said Letecia was reluctant to answer questions and didn’t give him any clues to help find Gannon.
 
  • #630
  • #631

Doctor testifies about santity in Letecia Stauch trial

By: Ashley Portillo, Aidan Hulting EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KOAA) — The murder trial of Letecia Stauch, the Colorado woman accused of murdering her stepson in 2020 continued Tuesday with the long-awaited sanity evaluations from mental health professionals. Testimony began Tuesday...
 
  • #632

DAILY TRIAL UPDATES​

DAY 14 – 4/25/23

  • FBI agent Kevin Hoyland testified to data analyzed from four cell phones, including two belonging to Letecia, one belonging to Gannon, and one belonging to Harley Hunt as well as data recovered from vehicles.
    • Data showed two outgoing calls from Gannon’s cell phone at 7:30 p.m. on January 27, after he had already been reported missing.
    • Letecia’s vehicle was in the area of Palmer Lake at 8 p.m. on January 28, where a blood-stained board was later found.
    • Before her interview at the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, data showed Letecia’s car went to a carwash.
    • On February 4, the cargo van Letecia rented was powered up at 4:15 a.m., less than two miles away from where Gannon’s body was found in Pensacola, Florida.
  • Dr. Christine Mohr, the Mental Health Director at the El Paso County Jail, testified to an assessment she did of Letecia on March 5, 2020.
    • Letecia appeared calm and polite throughout the interview.
    • Letecia denied having any disorders, in-patient or out-patient treatment.
  • Dr. Mohr said she did a second assessment of Letecia on March 9, where Letecia described herself as mentally fine and not guilty.
  • On March 20, Dr. Mohr said she told Letecia about Gannon’s body being found, and that Stauch was tearful and overwhelmed. She also allegedly denied being in Florida.
  • Dr. Mohr said that on June 5, 2020, Stauch first raised the issue of competency and asked for an evaluation.
  • READ MORE: Doctor testifies about sanity in Letecia Stauch trial
  • WATCH: Witness Testifies to Data Records From Letecia Stauch’s Phone
 
  • #633
Week 4 Day 15

4.26.2023

First witness of the day

The murder trial for #LeteciaStauch is resuming now. I'll be bringing you updates from the courtroom throughout the day.

The first witness to be called to the stand this morning is Dr. Jackie Grimmett. She worked as a forensic psychologist at the Colorado Mental Health Institute at Pueblo in 2020. Dr. Grimmett conducted a competency evaluation on Letecia Stauch in December 2020.

Dr. Grimmett said she met with Letecia Stauch for about 3 hours and 40 minutes. This was a court-ordered competency evaluation requested by the defense.

Before meeting with Stauch, Dr. Grimmett reviewed the discovery in the case, which included police reports, video, and a lot of information. She said she noted a lot of consistencies in the report and was concerned about that.

Early on in her testimony, Dr. Grimmett said during her interaction with Letecia Stauch, “She was humming to herself, she was hitting her head on the wall. She seemed happier then she should’ve been."

“At some point she turned around to talk to somebody else, then turned around to talk to me. She said she was talking to a vampire,” said Dr. Grimmett, talking about her interaction with Letecia Stauch.

Dr. Grimmett said Stauch was complaining about nightmares and anxiety and mentioned being bipolar. Dr. Grimmett said she consistently observed Stauch not having mental health issues, hallucinations, etc. and Stauch did not mention anything about dissociative identity disorder.

Dr. Grimmet said Stauch said she was impulsive all her life, was hyper, and would be manic for a few minutes to a few hours. Dr. Grimmett said she didn’t rule out anything at first.

Dr. Grimmett said Stauch mentioned two instances where she found herself in places where she hadn’t planned on being. Stauch also told her she had various personalities, and she named them.

“She named Taylor, Tecia, Jasmine, and I believe Jasper,” said Dr. Grimmet, when testifying about the different personalities Letecia Stauch claimed she had.

Dr. Grimmett said she didn’t see any signs that Letecia Stauch was changing personalities. She said she considered dissociative identity disorder as a diagnosis. She also said she has never reviewed someone with dissociative identity disorder.

Dr. Grimmett said dissociative identity disorder affects up to 1% of people. She said it’s a very destructive behavioral disorder, and can be very frightening because people don’t know what’s happening to them.

She added dissociative identity disorder can be strange, and people can’t hold down jobs or hold down relationships. She said when talking to Stauch, Stauch’s history didn’t support that.

Dr. Grimmett said Stauch had selective names based on things she liked and aspirations she had. She added, "alter egos present themselves to you," and people don't create them.
When testifying about Letecia Stauch referencing vampires, Dr. Grimmett said, “Mrs. Stauch introduced a vampire called Justice and said there is a button in her cell where she could summon Justice, Jasmine…”

Dr. Grimmett said Letecia Stauch said she’s been experiencing the vampires since her stay in Alaska. She said Stauch referenced the vampires throughout the interview, and also directed Dr. Grimmett toward the movie Twilight.

Dr. Grimmett said she didn’t ask Stauch about vampires initially. “It sounded like a fabrication… It seemed like she was conveying a story from fiction," said Dr. Grimmett.

Dr. Grimmett said it seemed like Letecia Stauch was presenting symptoms that she didn’t have, and there were some suggestions she wasn’t as impaired as she was portraying.

Dr. Grimmett said she believed Letecia Stauch has personality disfunction, including borderline personality disorder and a narcissistic personality.

Dr. Grimmett also said Letecia Stauch talked about Gannon and his death. She said Stauch, based on her religious beliefs, believed Gannon could be brought back to life. Dr. Grimmett said, “clinically it appeared delusional,” but it was something to explore further.

Dr. Grimmett said the symptoms Letecia Stauch presented, seemed to be an effort for Stauch to achieve something for herself. She said Stauch was trying to feel better and make sense of her situation, while making efforts to portray herself in different ways.

Dr. Grimmett said there was an absence of mental illnesses, but some behavior that was present, which included the borderline personality disorder and a narcissistic personality. Dr. Grimmett believed Letecia Stauch was competent to stand trial.


Morning recess until 10:40 am MT.


During cross examination of Dr. Grimmett, defense attorneys questioned how sexual abuse and assault as a child can impact an adult, and how it’s more traumatic if it’s a family member as opposed to a stranger.

The defense also questioned how mental disabilities impact someone’s ability to hold a job or keep relationships with people, and how someone who can’t do either of these may be showing signs of a mental disability.

The defense also questioned that diagnosing dissociative identity disorder can take years, and that dissociative identity disorder and borderline personality disorder can be caused by childhood trauma.


Second witness of the day

The next witness to be called to the stand in the #LeteciaStauch murder trial is Dr. Loandra Torres who works in the office of Civil and Forensic Mental Health for the state of Colorado. She's testifying as an expert in the field of forensic psychology.

Dr. Torres said she got involved in the Letecia Stauch case in 2020, and conducted Stauch’s initial competency evaluation along with Dr. Thomas Gray. After Stauch pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity in 2022, Dr. Torres and Dr. Gray also completed a sanity evaluation.

Dr. Torres is testifying about the competency evaluation her and Dr. Grey completed on Stauch in mid-2020. Dr. Torres said Stauch was staying at the hospital for about two weeks before they saw her, which allowed for some observation.

Dr. Torres said Stauch stayed in a high security forensic building, in a unit specifically for female defendants.

Dr. Torres said during the 2020 competency evaluation, Stauch never mentioned being psychiatric hospitalized. Dr. Torres said during the sanity evaluation in 2022, Stauch said she was psychiatric hospitalized in Canada, but wasn’t able to tell them what hospital or in what city.

Dr. Torres said when Stauch arrived to the mental health hospital, she told staff she heard voices in the past related to an ex-husband, wasn’t currently experiencing hallucinations, had past trauma and flashbacks, had panic attacks several times a week, etc.

During the evaluations, psychological testing was performed on Letecia Stauch. Dr. Torres said some of the results were invalidated due to exaggeration by Stauch and/or the scales of exaggeration were elevated.

During the competency evaluation, Dr. Torres said they noted Stauch showing features of a borderline personality and a narcissistic personality.

For borderline personality, they noted her mood swings, intense reaction, and impulsiveness. For a narcissistic personality, they noted entitlement and touting her intelligence.

We’re now watch video of the insanity evaluation conducted on Letecia Stauch on March 24, 2022. She begins by saying when she was 10 or 11 years old, she created the personality of Harmony and let Harmony get molested, and not herself.

Stauch is also talking about her other personalities. Taylor is her main personality. Maria is the protector. Victoria has the empathy. Letecia is bipolar and “doing the most.”

Earlier in her testimony, Dr. Torres also testified saying there were notes that Stauch at one point asked staff whether or not they could tell when a patient is faking instability or illness. Dr. Torres said, you don’t see that very often in the records, you see it on occasion.


Break until 3:30 pm MT

Jurors are seeing more video of Stauch’s interview during her sanity evaluation in 2022. Stauch said the devil is telling her to do things. Dr. Torres testified saying that's not a credible symptom of dissociative identity disorder, which Stauch’s lawyers are claiming she has.

Jurors are now watching the video again of Stauch hitting a deputy in the head with a monster energy drink during her transport from Myrtle Beach, SC to Colorado Springs.

Prosecutors asked Dr. Torres if it appeared that Stauch switched personalities to Maria, and said Stauch claimed she switched personalities when she did that. I am sitting right behind Stauch and I heard her say, “I never said that.”

Prosectors: What is your take on Stauch saying she turned into Maria when Gannon was killed?

Dr. Torres: “I would think, or that my understanding of dissociative identity disorder, these different personality states have their own details associated with them.”

"To me, in terms of Mrs. Stauch’s self report, her presentation, it has always been confusing to me how all of the personalities seem to have an awareness of Mrs. Stauch’s own history," Dr. Torres testified.

The #LeteciaStauch murder trial will resume on Friday morning at 9 a.m. Testimony from Dr. Torres will continue, and more video will be played for jurors of her sanity evaluation on Stauch. One more witness called by prosecutors will be testifying too.

The prosecution could rest their case on Friday or Monday. I spoke with Letecia Stauch’s attorneys today, who said they’re calling their two witnesses to testify on Monday. Therefore jurors could reach a verdict in the trial sometime next week.

 
  • #634
Week 4 Day 15

4.26.2023

Back in Colorado and back covering Letecia Stauch’s jury trial. First witness of the day is Dr. Jackie Grimmett, a forensic psychologist.

Grimmett is testifying that she conducted one of the two competency evaluations on Stauch, not one of the sanity evaluations. A competency evaluation is a determination on if someone on trial is competent to proceed to trial or not.

Grimmett stated that she did not believe Stauch suffered from a severe mental illness.

Grimmett added that not only did she believe Stauch did not suffer from dissociative identity disorder, but that she has never actually met someone who had suffered from dissociative identity disorder so far in her career.

Grimmett’s testimony took up the entire first half of trial today, with the defense spending ~2 hours during cross-examination reviewing possible traits and symptoms in certain mental health diagnosis’s. Second witness of the day will be called after lunch.

Second witness today is Dr. Loandra Torres, the clinical director of the court services department in Colorado.

Torres is testifying that she is one of the forensic psychologists who conducted Stauch’s initial competency evaluation, as well as Stauch’s sanity evaluation.

Like Grimmett this morning, Torres is testifying about how Stauch was found competent to proceed in her trial, and how there were concerns she was faking things during the evaluation.

Torres and Grimmett both stated in testimony today that Stauch displayed a lot of characteristics similar to someone who would have narcissistic personality disorder.

Prosecution is now playing a video clip of Stauch’s insanity evaluation conducted by Torres in March 2022. In the video Stauch is talking about her different personalities she switches between such as “Harmony,” “Victoria” and “Maria.”

Stauch can he heard saying at one point that “Taylor” is her “main personality.”

Torres said that the fact Stauch claimed she created her personalities led her to believe that Stauch may be exaggerating or lying, because often people suffering from dissociative identity disorder may not even realize they are switching between personalities.

“The fact that she told us she created them herself… we began to wonder if she was exaggerating,” Torres testified.

Torres testified that she found Stauch’s claim that she could hear the devil, which was just heard in one of the interview clips played to the jury, was “not credible” and that she was likely “exaggerating.”

Torres testified that Stauch also at one point stated that she became the Maria personality when she assaulted the El Paso County deputy while being transported back to Colorado after being arrested in North South Carolina.

Trial ended for the day about 15 minutes ago, Torres’ testimony will resume on Friday with more clips from her forensic interview with Stauch. Michael Allen said there’s only one more prosecution witness after Torres.

Prior to being dismissed for the day, informed Judge Gregory Werner that the prosecution intends to rest its case on Monday at the latest, but potentially by Friday. Sounds like next week could be the final week of Stauch’s trial.

https://twitter.com/ZachNDupont
 
  • #635

4/26/23

Letecia Stauch told forensic psychologists that she “created” different personalities for herself, and that switching between these personalities helped her deal with the sexual abuse she says she suffered as a child, according to video clips prosecutors played for the jury on Wednesday during Stauch’s murder trial.

“I’ve taken so many different personalities in life,” Stauch says in one of the clips, conducted during a sanity evaluation.

“So many different ways to cope.”

[..]

But Loandra Torres, a forensic psychologist with the state hospital in Pueblo, told jurors she was skeptical because Stauch “told us she created them (the different personalities) herself.”

“We began to wonder if she was exaggerating,” Torres added. “All of it seems a bit far fetched to me in terms of dissociative identity disorder.”

[..]

Stauch claimed that the Maria personality was the one who assaulted an El Paso County deputy while she was extradited to Colorado after her arrest.

[..]

Every witness who was asked about Stauch’s alleged other personalities denied hearing her refer to herself that way, or any way other than Letecia Stauch.

Torres, the forensic psychologist, said it appeared Stauch was exaggerating about her symptoms during her sanity evaluation, when she told Torres she could “hear the devil” and how she used to have flashbacks about her stepfather.

The sanity report from the state hospital found Stauch to be sane at the time prosecutors say she killed Gannon. A contrasting report filed by the defense’s expert found Stauch to be insane at the time Gannon was stabbed and fatally shot.
 
  • #636
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After a brief delay we are now underway, prosecution is about to play an hour long clip from Stauch's forensic interview with Dr. Torres.

In the hour + long clip Stauch can be heard describing the events that led up to Gannon’s death where she makes numerous different claims like that she was being followed by a man in a black car named “Michael the Archangel."

Stauch goes on to claim that on Jan. 28, not Jan. 27, she shot Gannon because she thought he was “a man in a black cape,” who had broken into her home, and that she and her stepdaughter carried his body out of the home.

“To me, or to whoever I was, it was a man in the cape… that was the only reason the gun went off,” Stauch said at one point in the interview. “I was not ok.” Stauch says a couple times in the interview that it was her personality "Maria" who did this.

Torres testified that she had significant concerns about Stauch's "credibility" after conducting the forensic interview. Torres is walking through how much of Stauch's interview did not align with someone who was actually suffering from severe dissociative identity disorder.

Prosecution is now playing a clip from the second forensic interview conducted on Stauch in June 2022.

COURT LUNCH RECESS

Breaking for lunch, but prior to that Judge Werner is giving Stauch a brief scolding for her earlier today loudly blurting out “no” to a question asked by the prosecution to Torres. Stauch said she was sorry for that.

In the second video clip, Stauch can be heard describing to Torres some of her alleged personalities in detail, including how her Maria personality is her “protector” and that Maria speaks Spanish and Russian but Stauch herself does not.

Torres is testifying that the combination of nobody in Stauch’s life reporting noticing multiple personalities, plus Stauch’s demeanor about her alleged multiple personalities during interviews were major drivers in finding her sane, and ruling out her having DID.

Torres added that the defense expert finding Stauch to be insane several months later did not change her opinion on her findings regarding Stauch's sanity.

Torres went as far as to add that even if Stauch did have dissociative identity disorder, that the way she answered questions during her interview showed clear intent and an ability to separate right from wrong.
1:44 PM · Apr 28, 2023
 
  • #637
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Judge Werner said he knows Letecia Stauch is not feeling well, and may need to be taken out of the room at any point today. “If it feels like you’re going to throw up or something like that, you need to let your attorneys know,” said Judge Werner.

Dr. Loandra Torres, a forensic psychologist, is resuming the witness stand. She conducted a competency evaluation and sanity evaluation on Letecia Stauch.

“At this part of the evaluation, what we’re trying to do is get out the defendant’s story, their perception of everything that happened to them, what they were thinking or feeling, and what actions they took. This is important of evaluations of insanity,” said Dr. Torres.

Jurors are now listening to part of the forensic interview with Letecia Stauch. It’s more than an hour long.

Forensic psychologist: “Talk to us about what happened on the day of the event. There may be things leading up to it.” Stauch: “Where do you want me to start at?” Forensic psychologist: “Where do you think it begins?”

Letecia Stauch described an accidental shooting, when she shot someone who was wearing a cape, who she later learned was Gannon. Letecia said, “I would never purposely hurt Gannon… I never knew once that it was Gannon.”

She said the noise woke Laina up, Gannon’s younger sister. She mentioned a report where Laina, “she said on there, Gannon’s body was not moving… she helped me carry Gannon’s body to the car.”

Stauch said, “I didn’t even know it was Gannon at that time until I moved the cover.” She said Gannon was barely talking but was still alive. Stauch said she was in complete and utter shock, and began throwing up.

“They painted me as this monster,” said Letecia Stauch during her insanity evaluation. Stauch said she believed she was not okay and was going crazy. She said she had never been through hallucinations, but she believes she was in a psychosis and was going to wake up eventually.

Stauch at one point believed she could bring Gannon back from the dead. “I told my mom I completely lost it… They told me, ‘You had lost it, you can’t bring somebody back from the dead... You are crazy, and you need to go to a hospital.’”

Dr. Leondra Torres has resumed the witness stand. Prosecutors asked about Letecia Stauch reviewing Gannon’s autopsy. “I believe she said she had obsessed over it,” said Dr. Torres during her testimony.

Dr. Torres testified saying, “There were concerns about Mrs. Stauch’s credibility.”

During the forensic interview, Stauch said Gannon wasn’t killed on the afternoon of January 27. Instead, she said Gannon was killed after midnight that night, which was the 28th.

Dr. Torres talked about Stauch’s comments of seeing someone in the home who was wearing a cape, and her personality 'Maria' shooting them.

“It seems as though that’s what she’s trying to imply, because she talks about going into protection mode. Often times she references 'Maria' as the protector," said Dr. Torres who testified about Stauch claiming she switched personalities when the crime was committed.

Dr. Torres said if Stauch had dissociative identity disorder, she believes Stauch would have had a lack of understanding, awareness and memory of that point in time, and would have expected her to report more loss of memory, and not the small details.

Dr. Torres also said she reviewed the interview with Laina, Gannon’s younger sister. Dr. Torres said Laina did not mention being present or helping carry a body upstairs. At one point during the forensic interview, Stauch said about Laina, “it was very traumatic for her too.”

LUNCH RECESS

During the forensic interview, Stauch also alluded to how she wanted to take Gannon’s body from one place to another, so someone could bring him back to life.

Dr. Torres testified saying when Stauch reviewed Gannon’s autopsy, Stauch said they were not stab wounds on Gannon’s body, and instead, they were burns.

During a forensic interview from June 29, 2022, Stauch said, “When I’m in Maria mode, I have power, unbelievable power, special powers you could say.” Stauch said Maria moved Gannon’s body to the car to try to go to the hospital.

Stauch also said Maria can speak Spanish and Russian. When asked how Maria knows these languages, Stauch said she doesn’t know.

Prosecution said Stauch’s passport is in evidence right now, and there’s no indication that Stauch was in Canada. In previous testimony, Stauch indicated to witnesses that she had psychiatric in-patient treatment in Canada.

Dr. Torres said typically people with dissociative identity disorder experience problems with their functioning and do need some sort of psychiatric treatment. Dr. Torres said it’s not something that can be controlled and people tend to be ashamed to talk about their experience.

Dr. Torres said many people with dissociative identity disorder also tend to withhold information or don’t want people to know they have an illness.

“One of the most striking components to me is she doesn’t seem to be disturbed by having all of these personalities… that’s meaningful to me,” said Dr. Torres, who said she wasn’t convinced that Stauch had dissociative identity disorder.

Dr. Torres said Stauch’s symptoms of her claiming she had dissociative identity disorder, “seemed to increase over the course of the two years, from the time of the offense, to the first time we saw her, and to the time she was seen by Dr. Lewis in November 2022.”

Dr. Torres said during their sanity evaluation, they diagnosed Stauch with a personality with traits of borderline and narcissistic personalities.

Dr. Torres added, there wasn’t sufficient information to say with confidence that Stauch had dissociative identity disorder at the time of the alleged offense.

Dr. Torres testified saying after Stauch shot the person in the cape, she dissociates, and it’s her personalities that help cover up what it is that happened. “There is no particular mental illness that is impacting Mrs. Stauch’s ability to know what is right or what is wrong.”

Prosecutors: "What is your final opinion in regards to Stauch’s sanity?" Dr. Torres: “It was that Mrs. Stauch was sane at the time of the crime.”

During cross examination, Josh Tolini who is one of Letecia Stauch’s lawyers, asked Dr. Torres about implicit bias at the state hospital. Dr. Torres said “I don’t think there is an implicit bias in the way that you’re describing it here.”

Jurors watched part of the sanity evaluation conducted in March 2022 on Stauch. She is talking about abuse, when her stepdad hit her mom and busted her head, and Stauch called the police. Stauch said everything was her fault, and that’s when she first vividly remembered abuse.

Tolini asked about how dissociative identity disorder is diagnosed and that it takes 6-12 years for someone to be diagnosed. Dr. Torres acknowledged that and also said, “It would be difficult to diagnose within an hour… Just off of observations, I think it’s unlikely to happen.”

The murder trial for Letecia Stauch will resume on Monday morning. Prosecutors have one more witness to call to the stand before resting their case. The defense has two witnesses to call to the stand.
4:27 PM · Apr 28, 2023 PT
·
 
  • #638

4/28/23

Letecia Stauch admitted to fatally shooting her 11-year-old stepson Gannon, telling a forensic psychologist that she saw a “man in a black cape” enter the basement of her El Paso County home in January 2020 and that she shot him out of fear.

It wasn't until later that she realized the caped man was Gannon, according to a recorded interview jurors heard Friday.

Stauch, who stands accused of first-degree murder and other counts, claims that she didn't know what she was doing when she pulled the trigger because she was insane.

[..]

In the interview, conducted in March 2022, Stauch told the psychologist that she had become very paranoid in the days leading up to Gannon's death.

Stauch said she believed she was being followed by someone in a black car, and that she also believed a man named “Michael the Archangel” was following her.

She also told the psychologist that she couldn't remember large chunks of the day that Gannon was reported missing, and that at one point she ended up naked in her garage and didn’t remember how she got there.

[..]

During an interview with a psychologist, Stauch claimed that there were no stab wounds on Gannon’s body and that the autopsy was “wrong” in saying he had been stabbed 18 times.

At trial, prosecutors have pointed out that Stauch has told several stories about what happened to Gannon, including that he went missing while going to a friend's house, that he was abducted from the Stauch residence after Stauch was assaulted, and that he was abducted by a man from whom Stauch was trying to buy a bike.

[..]

"There is no mental illness that is impacting Ms. Stauch’s ability to interpret what is right and what is wrong," Torres said.

An expert for the defense, Dorthey Lewis, came to the opposite conclusion, ruling that Stauch was insane at the time of Gannon's murder.

On Friday, defense attorney Josh Tolini spent nearly two hours cross-examining Torres, pointing out that Stauch had certain traits that could correlate to a dissociative identity disorder diagnosis, including anxiety, OCD and significant trauma suffered as a child.
 
  • #639
  • #640

4/28/23

Dr. Loandra Torres, with the Office of Civil and Forensic Mental Health for the State of Colorado (OCFMH), returned to the stand Friday morning after last week’s testimony on Stauch’s mental health. She was responsible for conducting both a mental competency exam and a sanity exam for Stauch.

A video recorded during Stauch’s sanity evaluation in 2022 was played for the jury. Stauch was given a chance to describe herself, in her own words, along with what she remembered from the day Gannon died. Torres said it was necessary to get the suspect’s “perception” of the events and herself in order to provide an accurate diagnosis.

[..]

Torrs said that her findings were that Stauch was sane during the time of Gannon’s death. Torres said Stauch didn’t show evidence of dissociated identity disorder (DID), although she did show evidence of borderline personality disorder with narcissistic features.

“There is no particular mental illness that is impacting Mrs. Stauch’s ability to know what is right or what is wrong,” Torres added.

Stauch, during the forensic interview, claimed that a man in a cape was in her home when Gannon died. Stauch also claimed she could speak different languages, and would speak in Spanish when one of her other personalities, “Maria,” would come out.

Maria, according to Stauch, ended up shooting the caped man.
 

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