CO - Gannon Stauch, 11, found deceased, Colorado Springs, El Paso County, 27 Jan 2020 *Arrest* #54

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arielilane

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www.kktv.com

Jury selection begins in trial of Letecia Stauch

More than three years after a young boy disappeared in the Pikes Peak region, his stepmother is standing trial for his murder.
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Updated: 7 hours ago

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) - More than three years after a young boy disappeared in the Pikes Peak region, his stepmother is standing trial for his murder.

The trial has been a long time coming for Gannon Stauch’s loved ones, who have faced years of delays in the case, with everything from the pandemic to a brief attempt by the defendant to represent herself causing setbacks.

But Monday morning, the moment finally arrived: jury selection commenced in the trial of Letecia Stauch.

Stauch, now 39, is accused of killing her 11-year-old stepson Gannon in January 2020 and then trying to pass it off as a runaway case. The missing persons case made national headlines and brought people across the country into Facebook groups dedicated to both discussion and amateur sleuthing. On the ground in the Pikes Peak region, hundreds of citizen volunteers joined law enforcement searching for the boy. The community clung to hope he would be found alive.
 
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arielilane

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Only 18 potential jurors now remain after Werner dismissed 14 people following the end of voir dire. The remaining 18 potential jurors will return on April 3 for the end of jury selection.

38 people so far will return on April 3 for the final stage of jury selection, court needs 110 potential jurors before it can complete jury selection.

Another group of 75 will be brought in tomorrow to repeat this process until that 110 number is reached.
 
arielilane

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Love Never Fails said:
Hmmm, do you mean if the defense can convince the jury that LS is insane, she will walk out of court free? I don’t think so! That would be a travesty. That is NOT justice.

And add that, LS loves acting and playing games, what if she started chasing butterflies again? No I am not accepting that.
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Well, being found not guilty by reason of insanity IS a not guilty verdict. It just is. Perhaps you don't "believe in" NGRI and don't believe in the state laws that allow that verdict. That's fine-- apparently lots of people being questioned as potential jurors don't either (although they won't be chosen as jurors IMO.) But that's what it means. The idea is that someone who was insane at the time of the crime couldn't meet the legal elements of the crime to be correctly found guilty. So "justice" isn't to be found in punishing the person anyway (although certainly the victim is definitely dead because of the defendant's actions.) Often defendants do go to mental institutions afterwards but the staff make the decision about when to release the person not the judge. Some are likely not to be ever released (Andrea Yates) although she's unlikely to repeat that crime IMO. And if a defendant did "fool the jury" (whether insanity is involved or not) if she gets off, she's off. No double jeopardy or prison sentence anyway.

I'm not sure what you meant when you wrote what if LS chases butterflies again. I'm not sure what the harm is. (And honestly, do we even know that's what she was doing? If so, who told us?) That behavior doesn't speak to insanity or a lack thereof to me. But I don't see societal harm from it either.
JMO
 
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NuttMegg said:
Agreed, I have a hard time imagining insanity when afterwards they seem sane enough to concoct stories. Elaborate excuses, even interviews before the body is found. I always tend to (want to) think, when a child is involved, that the parent/adult didn't really mean it, as though it were an accident.

But with this chick, Watts, Todt, and dozens more, it's just evil, heinous, a result of many conscious decisions, not just one fly off the handle mistake. I realize Watts confessed, and Todt didn't claim insanity.

There's Andrea Yates then there's Leticia.
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Yes. I continue to wonder how exactly the defense will convince jurors that Letecia was insane at the time she murdered Gannon. Is a so-called psychotic episode like a water faucet where it turns on and off? If not the then how did the doctor conclude she was insane? Those Google searches sound more like jealousy and animosity than insanity, at least it would if I was a juror.

And clearly the psychosis ended quickly enough for Letecia to come up with a plan to clean the evidence and make up stories. Is there evidence that the people around her saw signs of insanity prior to the murder of Gannon.

I remember reading the psychiatrist's report regarding Luka Magnotta; he total snowed the doctor with lies and the doctor believed him. It didn't help as he's in jail. I wonder what Letecia told this doctor...

Anyway, it's frustrating but it's also probably going to be a swift verdict so I guess we should be happy that Letecia is trying to get out of punishment for her crime using a ridiculous defense. Go ahead and cover your face with your hair Letecia, we all know the truth...

MOO only
 
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