Mentally Ill Mom Catherine Hoggle To Remain In Hospital For Year

ROCKVILLE, MD — Despite three years of treatment at a state psychiatric hospital, Catherine Hoggle, the 30-year-old schizophrenic mother of two missing children and the last known person to have seen them, remains incompetent to stand trial on murder charges, a judge has ruled. Hoggle was indicted this fall on two counts of murder in their disappearance and ordered held without bond at a state psychiatric hospital.

Her estranged partner Troy Turner, the father of Sarah, now 7, and Jacob, now 5, has previously said that after long holding out hope the children would be found, he believes their mother killed them, and that her family knows more than they've told authorities.

At her Friday status hearing, the judge ruled Hoggle remains incompetent to stand trial, but doctors think she can be restored to health; she will return to court in November 2018 for a competency hearing. The children were last seen with their mother in September 2014. Hoggle, however, has refused to say what became of them, only that they are safe with someone.

"Not competent again. No competency hearing for another YEAR. This can't be real," Turner's supporters wrote on the FindSarahFindJacob Facebook page.

A grand jury indicted Hoggle Sept. 14 on the murder charges, a day before misdemeanor charges against her were set to expire. While police believe Hoggle killed the siblings, their bodies have never been found.

Her mother, Lindsey Hoggle, said the confirmation of her daughter's diagnosis was odd. "That’s not what anyone wants; I will still keep working to solve this mystery," Lindsey Hoggle wrote on Facebook. ... "For those struggling with mental illness -there is #hope and many working to find the best options. We first need to get past the stigma."

Ramon Korionoff, spokesman for the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s office, told WTOP the murder charges against Hoggle have no statute of limitations and they will stand until she is ready to stand trial.

Turner told Montgomery Community Media in September that he's not surprised murder charges were filed. "It's what I expected," he said. "I don't like dealing with it this way, but at the same time it's how it has to be at this point from where we are. She's not saying anything and the other people who may know something, like her dad — they're not speaking."

In an interview with WTOP, Turner said he tried to hold out hope. "It has always been a faint hope, and I know now that with the passage of time that Catherine killed my babies," Turner said.

Until she can face trial, a Montgomery County judge will not allow Hoggle to be interrogated about the fate of the children. Her doctors at Clifton T. Perkins Hospital, the state psychiatric hospital where she has been in treatment for over three years, have repeatedly said she is unable to assist in her own defense.

Prosectors have suggested Hoggle is malingering and said they're building a murder case against her. Turner has maintained that Catherine is acting a part so she can avoid trial on charges linked to the children's disappearance. On social media, Turner has said that Catherine tried at least eight times last year to escape from her maximum security facility, either by tying bedsheets together or taking a security card from staffers.

SEE ALSO:

• Missing Hoggle Kids: Mother Returns To Court Thursday
• Missing Hoggle Kids: Mother To Remain In Mental Hospital
• Missing Hoggle Kids: 2 Years With No Answers
• Dad of Missing Hoggle Kids: 'They Deserve to Come Home'

Jacob was last seen with his mother on Sept. 7, 2014, in Darnestown or Clarksburg; Sarah was last seen with Hoggle on the morning of Sept. 8, 2014. Hoggle's family says she is paranoid and was making plans to leave the area, so she gave the young children to someone for safekeeping. On Sept. 12, 2014, Hoggle was found and arrested in Germantown.

Catherine's mother, Lindsey Hoggle, believes her grandchildren are still alive. "I want Sarah and Jacob home," she told the county website after the August court hearing. "It's time we resolve this mystery."

SEE ALSO:

• Missing Hoggle Kids: Prosecutor's Case Dealt a Setback
• Missing Hoggle Kids: Is Mom 'Trying to Work System'?
• Missing Hoggle Kids: Mom Again Found Not Competent to Stand Trial
• Missing Hoggle Kids: Hope Alive One Year After Disappearance
• 'Mystery Must End' Says Missing Hoggle Kids' Grandmother

Sarah's 7th birthday was Nov. 20. Turner posted on Facebook that day, " Happy 7th Birthday Sarah. We love and miss you more than words could ever describe. "

Jacob's 5th birthday was July 3. Turner posted a "happy birthday" message to Jacob on Facebook, saying: "Happy birthday my beautiful baby boy. I feel like this post should be about how big he's gotten and all of the things that we're doing today. However my babies still aren't home. Instead of celebrating a birthday, I'm just praying they're alive."

Hoggle is a schizophrenic who reportedly refused to stay on her medication. Turner has said in interviews and on social media that Catherine understands her situation based on conversations with her and that she should be questioned in court about the children's fate.

Police interviewed Catherine for more than 10 hours when she was first found, her mother said. While Lindsey spoke with her daughter several times a day for part of 2015, she has not seen her since Catherine fled home with the children.

Family members ask anyone in the Clarksburg area who may have seen Sarah and Jacob to message the Facebook page, call or text (301) 549-9044 or submit a tip on the website www.findsarahfindjacob.com. Tips can be made anonymously.

»Photos of Sarah and Jacob Hoggle, courtesy of the FindSarahFindJacob Facebook page; photo of Catherine Hoggle courtesy of Montgomery County Police