Missing Hoggle Kids: Mother Still Incompetent To Stand Trial

ROCKVILLE, MD — Catherine Hoggle, the 30-year-old schizophrenic mother of two missing children, is still incompetent to stand trial in the 2014 disappearance of her kids, doctors and a judge said in Hoggle's status hearing Thursday, according to reports.

Hoggle was the last person to see the children in September 2014 and has refused to say what became of them, only that Sarah, now 6, and son Jacob, now 5, are safe with someone.

She faces charges of neglect, obstruction and hindering in the case. Until Hoggle can face trial, the judge will not allow her to be interrogated about the fate of the children.

On Thursday's status hearing, Hoggle's doctors at the state mental health hospital where she's been in treatment for over two years said she can't assist in her own defense, WTOP reports. She will return to court for another competency hearing at the end of August.

Prosectors with Montgomery County State's Attorney's Office have suggested Hoggle is malingering and said they're building a murder case against her.

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Troy Turner, the missing children's father and Hoggle's longtime partner, 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.

The Montgomery County State's Attorney's Office first filed misdemeanor charges against Hoggle in September 2014. The law says that an accused person must go to trial with three years, so the state must file news charges by fall 2017 or she could be released, reports WJLA.

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.

Turner has implored the public to sign an online petition launched to spur public awareness about the youngsters as a way to bring them home. To date, 2,400 signatures have been placed on the petition. Turner asks that the judge change earlier rulings and let police question the mentally ill mother about what she did with young Sarah and Jacob.

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• 'Mystery Must End' Says Missing Hoggle Kids' Grandmother

"Sarah and Jacob Hoggle were taken by their mother, Catherine Hoggle, almost two years ago never to be seen again. She remains in an inpatient psychiatric facility where she is protected by patient rights," Turner says on the petition site. "Police and other important officials are unable to question her as to the whereabouts of the children due to Judge Wolfe's order. We are asking this order be lifted so we can finally bring our children home."

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," Montgomery Community Media reports.

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.

»Photo of Catherine Hoggle via MCM, photos of Sarah and Jacob Hoggle, courtesy of the FindSarahFindJacob Facebook page