'My Kids Are Gone,' Says Father Of Missing Hoggle Kids At Vigil

GERMANTOWN, MD — Sarah and Jacob Hoggle have been missing for five years, but family, friends, and strangers refuse to give up hope.

Dozens of people gathered Saturday evening for a candlelight vigil at the site where the search began in Germantown. People stood outside the Chick-fil-A restaurant on Century Boulevard for several hours, holding candles and praying for the siblings' safe return.

"I just can't believe it's been freakin' five years," Troy Turner, the children's father, said. "You know, I just can't believe we're still standing here in the same place, having the same conversation, doing the same thing with no progress."

Sarah and Jacob, the two youngest of Turner's three children, were 3 and 2, respectively, when they disappeared in September of 2014. Authorities believe that Catherine Hoggle — the mother of Sarah and Jacob — was the last person to see the children.

She has since been arrested and charged with two counts of murder. She refuses to tell authorities where the children are, but insists that they are safe.

Hoggle, who has paranoid schizophrenia, remains incompetent to stand trial, experts and judges say. Since her children's disappearance, Hoggle has been held for treatment at Clifton T. Perkins Hospital in Jessup.

To honor Sarah and Jacob, Turner holds a candlelight vigil for them every year.

This is the first year Marci Russell and her daughter, Heather Russell-Quinn, have attended a vigil for the kids.

Russell-Quinn, who now lives in Hagerstown, went to Seneca Valley High School with Turner more than two decades ago. She and her mother have been following the case since the youngsters disappeared.

"Why does (Catherine) only have rights? What about the children's rights and Troy's rights?" Russell-Quinn said. "He needs answers. Enough is enough."

Hoggle's doctors at Perkins have repeatedly said she is unable to stand trial. Until she can face trial, the judge will not allow her to be interrogated about the fate of her children.

"She's the only one the justice system cares about," Russell-Quinn said.

A Father's Desperate Search For Sarah and Jacob

In September of 2014, when Turner first realized the kids were missing, he pressed Hoggle about their whereabouts.

She assured Turner that the kids were safe at a daycare center in Montgomery County. She even agreed to take him there, but instead drove around in circles for several hours. It was during this drive that Hoggle said she couldn't remember where she dropped them off.

Growing impatient and increasingly worried for Sarah and Jacob's wellbeing, Turner demanded that they go to the police station. Hoggle then changed her tune, saying she knew where the children were.

But first, she wanted to stop at Chick-fil-A and buy a drink. According to Hoggle, her medication was starting to kick in, and the soda would keep her awake long enough to tell Turner where the daycare was.

While Turner waited outside the fast-food restaurant, Hoggle slipped out a side door and ran away. She was arrested by police on misdemeanor charges less than a week later. In 2017, she was indicted on murder charges.

Justice For Sarah and Jacob

It's been 1,828 days since Turner arrived at the police station and reported his children missing. And still, Turner knows virtually nothing about what happened to them or where they are now.

Meanwhile, doctors at Perkins are trying to restore Hoggle to competency, so she could shed light on what happened to Sarah and Jacob. But doctors have been unsuccessful.

For Turner, hearing that she cannot face trial for the murder of their two kids is a nightmare. He says it feels like he's reliving the same day over and over again.

"It feels kind of like a horror movie version of 'Groundhog Day,' or something, in some ways," Turner said in August, after one of her competency hearings.

Prosecutors believe the mother is malingering so she can avoid trial on felony charges. Her most recent evaluation led prosecutors to say that Hoggle was improving and is "approaching a level of understanding in which she could be considered competent."

Under Maryland state law, there is a five-year limit on how long someone charged with murder can be held under medical care. If Hoggle doesn't stand trial soon, prosecutors may have to drop the charges brought against her.

That five-year deadline, Montgomery County State's Attorney John McCarthy contends, ends on Dec. 1, 2022.

Regardless of what happens to Hoggle, Turner says he just wants his kids back. He continues to hold on to hope. But so far, Turner has no closure.

"What the hell is closure? There's no closure. My kids are gone," Turner said.