Haitian Judge Files Additional Charge Against Missionaries

A Haitian Judge Files Additional Charge Against Missionaries who were accused of trying to take 33 Haitian children from the country without proper authorization. That new charge is “organizing irregular travel.”

The Haitian judge, Judge Bernard Saint-Vil in the case of the 10 American Baptist missionaries, accused of trying to take 33 Haitian children from the country without proper authorization charged all of the Missionaries Friday, March 12th. 2010, with “organizing irregular travel.”

Of the 10 Americans, who were arrested in January of 2010, nine of them have been released on bail and have left Haiti and returned to America. The leader, Laura Silsby, still remains jailed in Port-au-Prince.

Judge Bernard Saint-Vil also rejected a petition for bail filed previously by Silsby’s lawyers. However, a new bail petition was been dropped off by Laura Silsby’s lawyer, Chiller Roy on Friday, March, 12th, 2010.

Saint-Vil states that he expects to have completed his investigation into the charges against the missionaries next week, at which time he will submit the dossier to the attorney general. The judge will then announce whether the courts will proceed to trial.

Haitian Judge Files Additional Charge Against Missionaries and those charges against all 10 of the American Baptists Missionaries are very serious. If they are found guilty, this is what they could face:

* Criminal association, 3-15 years;
* Kidnapping of a minor, 3-9 years;
* Organizing irregular travel, 3-6 years.

Laura Silsby originally stated that the children were orphaned or abandoned. But, it turned out that over 20 of the children had at least one living parent. Some parents stated that they placed their children in Silsby’s care because they thought that would ensure they would have a better life, after the earthquake.

The American missionaries stated that it planned to house the children in a converted hotel in the Dominican Republic and later move them to an orphanage.

Haiti continues to regroup and struggle after the earthquake. Please remember Baby Boomers, Haiti still needs a huge amount of help.

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