HAVEN KIRKPATRICK GUILTY ON ALL COUNTS
Haven Kirkpatrick
WAYNE CO.—Edwards County resident Judge David Frankland has issued a verdict in the case of former Fairfield instructor and coach Haven Kirkpatrick: guilty on all eight counts of Aggravated Criminal Sexual Abuse of a child by a person in a position of trust, authority or supervision, all Class 2 felonies.
The verdict came down at 2:17 this afternoon, October 14, after a day and a half of testimony in the bench trial, in in which it was revealed that for all intents and purposes, Kirkpatrick not only pursued the teenager (beginning in February 2010) but took great steps to ensure the girl was quiet about the relationship between the two. Kirkpatrick was 29 at the time; while we’re unsure of the victim’s date of birth, it’s entirely possible that she was 16, and not 17, when the whole thing kicked off.
The closing arguments that commenced shortly before 1:30 today told the tale, encapsulated.
Mike Valentine, Edwards County’s prosecutor who was brought in on a conflict for Wayne’s duly-elected prosecutor (David Williams, whose wife works at the school where Kirkpatrick was employed for the past four years), eloquently summed it up, calling into play first the riveting testimony the victim (whom we WILL NOT, as was a promise more than a year ago, name), this testimony delivered mostly through sobs.
“She gave full and descriptive details of the actions that took place when she was with Haven,” Valentine recounted. “True, both sides wanted it, true, Haven said ‘This is so wrong, this is so wrong, this is so wrong,’ but laws are in place to prevent this kind of thing. Haven took advantage of a depressed, underage girl, one she believed was threatening suicide, between February and May of 2010. There were 3,956 texts placed by Haven to the victim’s phone and 1,617 received by the victim between May and June of 2010. Do we know what they were about? No, but if you ask me, there was more going on with them than ‘lol’ and ‘hi how ya doin.’
“The victim tried to protect Haven, which is why her story changed three times,” Valentine continued, “but in doing that, she did more than Haven did to protect her, showing that the victim was the mature one in the situation. You think she’s doing this for attention?! I sure don’t think so; it was an emotional two and a half hour testimony, and a grueling cross examination, all of it showing that while the victim was inconsistent in three interviews, Haven Kirkpatrick lied all over the place. Haven ordered the victim to watch the movie ‘Loving Annabelle,’ why? in order to warn her not to go out and talk about their relationship. Haven had no care for the well-being of the victim…she just didn’t want to get caught.”
Edwards County State's Attorney Mike Valentine, in the role of special prosecutor for the Kirkpatrick case.
During his closing, Valentine clarified something from Tiffany Williams’ testimony earlier in the day: that the photo Kirkpatrick had of herself and another girl in a car WASN’T of Williams, as Kirkpatrick claimed it was to the investigators when she showed it to them and told them she “could get all the sex she wanted from” the girl in the photo, indicating it was a former girlfriend (Williams). Williams stated she’d never been in that car with Kirkpatrick. Apparently someone arrived at the conclusion that it was the victim actually photographed in the car with Kirkpatrick….giving a sick kind of psychological twist to the fact that Kirkpatrick referenced this photo during her interrogative ‘interview’ with local authorities July 1, 2010.
Bryan Drew, as is his forte, gave a rather offensive wrap to a rather offensive defense.
He mentioned the “many inconsistencies” noted at the times of the incidents, places, ages, etc. of people/events revolving around these “stories” bout Haven Kirkpatrick.
“Haven was nothing more than a friend to this girl,” Drew said. “She was not in a position of authority on June 4, 2010 when the first kiss occurred. The incidents that happened between June 4 and 19, there was no way she was in a position of authority during this time fram, and the state hasn’t proved beyond a reasonable doubt that all statements and ‘facts’ are true!
“Rick White has a way of telling about the interview what he ‘thinks’ they all said,” Drew stated, referencing the fact that to the detriment of the case, White hadn’t recorded his interview with Kirkpatrick—always a stupid idea, if someone actually consents to be interviewed, but this is the way White rolls. “Haven had taken a Xanax that night she was interviewed; (the victim’s father) was out in the parking lot at the sheriff’s department and she was afraid for her life from this guy. White says Haven touched the victim, Haven denies it; Jonah Kinsolving says ‘yes you did,’ Haven denies it; Haven says she pushed the victim away on several occasions. There were so many discrepancies. Yet, Haven and the victim were in public and around friends on several occasions! Then we’ve got the victim smoking pot, wanting to have sex with Mr. Kirksey, who lost his job teaching at the high school” (Drew neglected to mention that testimony revealed Kirksey actually got his job back later) “and the testimony, all through this, is inconsistent!
“Are we gonna convict her on a journal?” Drew asked Frankland. “In that journal the victim says Haven is the only reason she’s alive, and she was so awesome to do this or that, helping her with her sexuality issues. Here we have a troubled girl with mental problems and pot problems, fabricating things. It’s ludicrous! There’s no evidence. Haven follows protocol, gets help for the victim, cared for her.”
Criminal defense attorney Bryan Drew
Then Drew completely outdid himself on the disgust-o-meter.
“The prosecution is just biased about Haven’s homosexuality!” he declared with no basis in fact for this allegation. “Did she make mistakes? Yes. Did she have to lose her job over them? Probably. But did she commit a crime? NO! No one has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt she has committed a crime, and I hope you find her not guilty.”
Valentine got the final word, and without missing a beat, jumped up and said:
“A position of authority doesn’t end at the end of a school day or at the end of a school year! It continues throughout the child’s term of a teacher’s employment at the school that child attends. You wanna call something ludicrous? That whole ARGUMENT was ludicrous! A 100-pound girl pushing Haven Kirkpatrick against a wall aggressively and Haven not being able to resist is LUDICROUS.
“This victim looking this teacher in the eyes in a grueling cross-examination and telling the truth is good enough for me,” Valentine wrapped up, ending the proceedings, at which time Frankland left the courtroom to make his decision.
When he returned, he read the law, then advised that the state had proven Aggravated Criminal Sexual Abuse beyond a shadow of a doubt, the state had proven position of authority and the victim’s age beyond a shadow of a doubt, and pronounced Kirkpatrick guilty on all eight counts.
Our reporter there advised that while the family of the victim was in tears, Kirkpatrick had no expression whatsoever, “I didn’t see a tear come out of her eye,” he told us. Drew responded by letting out a sigh with puffed cheeks, and threw his notepad down on the defense table in front of him. We couldn’t help but wonder if this was much like his reaction to the loss in the Gaddis case in Jackson County not too long ago. He’s batting a thousand in losses these days, it seems.
Kirkpatrick is scheduled for sentencing December 14 at 10 a.m. Since all 8 counts are Class 2 felonies, her sentencing range isn’t extensive (3-5 is what we’re thinking) but because she’s a first-time offender, there’s still a likelihood of probation. However, Frankland isn’t one to be messed with, as we’ve said before, and he might go the distance with this. In the meantime, Kirkpatrick is free on $10,000 cash bond, and left the courthouse today undetained.
There has been a considerable amount of speculation as to whether she’ll actually be at the sentencing. As much money as her parents have put out, the loss of the bond, were she to skip and just disappear, might not be that big of a deal. Back last summer, there was a LOT of talk between Carmi and Lawrenceville (towns of origin of her parents) that plans were being made to get Haven out of the country. Hopefully, some sense will prevail in this. Valentine, to his credit, did ask that Kirkpatrick’s bond be revoked and she be detained until sentencing. The only win Drew had this time was that he ask that the bond remain in place, and Frankland determined to do so.
In the aftermath, we’re wondering about all the punks in Fairfield who were so behind “saving Haven” as they were up to last summer. A bunch of young people were busy attending school board meetings in her defense, helping perpetuate the story that the victim was making up everything Kirkpatrick was being accused of. Their loyalty was nothing short of sickening, especially in light of what people in Gallatin County already knew about the woman. We haven’t heard a word from any of them….so perhaps this verdict will piss them off so bad that they’ll grace us with their presence here on the website. In the meantime, please feel free to voice your opinion. Do you believe Drew took on a losing case with the intent all along of disparaging the victim and revictimizing her, like he was going to do with Todd Fort’s victim? Do you think the age of consent in Illinois is ridiculous? How do you feel about Drew making much over the homosexuality aspect? And how do you feel about how ‘tolerant’ people are of 18-19-20-year old kids having openly homosexual relationships with a teacher, who is supposed to have had their best interests at heart when she had them in her classroom or on a team, coaching them? Let us know….we wanna hear you.
Short URL: http://www.disclosurenewsonline.com/?p=10242
Posted by Jack Howser
on Oct 14 2011. Filed under Breaking, Wayne.
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Pop goes the weasel!
HUMMMMMMM ????? Bang bang, Never have a BITCH trial >>>>>>>>> :O
Never hire a dumbass to represent you for a trial! You know like the dumb, redneck, hillbilly lawyer Bryan Drew!
…Brian Drew…0 for 2….what’s a pedophile to do?
Pedophiles need to learn to just say NO to Minors!
And I would D.A.R.E. say what I would do if I caught one with my child or any child for that matter!
i bet i could guess plenty of old oil wells between albion and fairfield aint it just nice to have worked in the oilfield for many years
The oil patch is nice but even a beanfield or cornfield, hell even a tall field of weeds would be serving justice in my opinion…Only problem with that is I would hate to feed the birds and wild animals such a poor choice of food!
Oh and while I am at it…why contaminate a good oilwell!
ROFL yea reminds me of the Movie The Outlaw Josey Wales his line of saying when asked if they were gonna cover up the hill people that Josey shot, he said Buzzards have to eat so do worms,
@Old Fart:…gotta agree with you there..,not completely
sure what I would do either, but a .12 gauge to the groin area would be my first shot….whilst I was tryin’ to make up my mind…
I just want to brag on Disclosure for the good,fair coverage of this trial.From start to finish your paper has had the best information available.Most important to me is how much respect you have shown the young victim and her family.As a friend of her father I know what toll this has had on her and her family.And you did your job without using the victims name.I will use a saying I have heard Our high school Supt.David Savage use many times over the years,”You took the high road,and stayed on it.” Jack and Angela Thanks for a job well done,not the easiest type of case to cover and stay on the high road,but you have.Bless you both.
GlockFan, you are too cool for words. Thanks for the props, & tell her family the next time you see em that even though we might have had issues with the patriarch (you know who I’m talking about), we would NEVER have done anything to cause anymore pain for that girl…she’d been through enough. It’s the same thing we told the Carrigans—we weren’t going to use a name until either they did, or they gave us permission. They did when they made the public statement, & that was good enough for us. Same for this family. And it WAS hard to tell it. But it had to be told…I think there are too many predators out there looking for young girls (and guys), and they need to be STOPPED.
GLOCK FAN, You are right it is not an easy thing to go through for this family… I watched it all (The Trial) and it was hard on me. I can’t imagine what that family was feeling. As a father I am proud of that young girls bravery and for all the investigators/prosecutors and Judge who convicted her and worked to convict her…all in all I want to conclude with I hope the healing process can now begin for this whole family
Question. Will K. loose her teaching license…or just be free to move to another state, county and do this again? Seems she didn’t learn anything from the Gallatin Cty situation, and this is strike 2 with a smack this time. Just wondering what the state will do since she was charged and found guilty.
Unless she can somehow get this conviction overturned she wont be able to go to a park much less a school unless her kids are in the said school district. With that being said being as she is a lesbian I doubt she will have children and I highly doubt anyone will allow her to adopt children. My answer is no she will probably not lose her teaching certificates per say but no one will hire her as she has been convicted on all 8 counts of Aggrevated Sexual Abuse and she will not be able to teach to anyone under the age of 18 and the colleges more than likely as a result of this will not hire her either. So without saying anything to mean or morbid I will say that she will not be teaching anyones children, unless of course they are in IDOC! I even doubt she will be allowed to teach there as many inmates convicted of a serious crime will not be allowed to do much but attend, church, school and rehab programs which this BITCH needs some severe rehab!
Old Fart is right IF she has a anything to say she was a legit teacher that all out the window now. From now till the time shes released from DOC while on parole or if she gets probation (which maybe unlikely) she wont be allowed to be around anyone under 18, Hoping the state deems her a Predator and that would make her life the same as ol Todd Fort. Registering for LIFE once a year unless the new law goes thru for the ones that are listed as predators. the IL Attny General is pushing for predators to register more often which is a good thing as those from stats are more likely to reoffend. Currently ones labeled as predator are only required to register once a year every year till they are deceased. Everyone on the list must report changes of addresses, schooling or employment and if that happens more than once a year well thats their tough luck. Shes wanting ones listed as predators to register every 6 mos,and in some cases where they have been charged with failure to report a change of address, subject them to the same fate as the ones who are listed as Dangerous or Violent. Both of these catagories of offenders have Constant ankle monitors (thru IDOC) and GPS units that the must carry at all times while away from the house. The only difference between prison and home for these people is no guards or other inmates They are basically confined to their homes unless employed, attending counseling, or the few hours out each week to get groceries Old Fart on your last line of comment, I think a DOG is more deserving of that title than what she is her pic is only worthy of maybe scaring the mice away
Well you have a point but I was a little upset at the statement that was made concerning the victim in this case, which was proven she was groomed to the needs, desires wants of one Haven Kirkpatrick and that she needs a chance to heal. I hope the victim chooses to be heterosexual but if she wants to be a homosexual she is 18 and able to do so. What happened to her started well before she was 17. The Victim was depressed and also vulnerable to the attacker who was Haven Kirkpatrick and that Haven Pounced on this opportunity on more than one or two occasions. Haven was in a Position of Authority which made the Victim feel that she needed to or had to do these things. Of course the Victim gave testimony that claimed she wanted it to happen it is proven that Haven made advances on her well before the Victim was 17 which makes Haven a Sexual Predator. I doubt Haven will receive probation but I do know she is trying to get just that, as she is going through a Pre-Sentence Investigation which is done for Defendants whom are seeking Probation. It is done through the Probation Department and would not be done unless she was seeking Probation. She once sentenced will not be allowed to teach anywhere in Illinois and as I understand it she will not be able to teach anywhere in the United States upon her conviction (Friday, Oct 14, 2011). I know some schools turn a blind eye to things and the school board and any staff whom was responsible for the hiring of Haven Kirkpatrick should be held responsible for their actions as well as any in Gallatin Co whom allowed such acts towards the students at that school. I hope all parents/students file the appropriate civil suits against the school districts, Haven Kirkpatrick and anyone else whom they can tack on the Lawsuit.
Essentially what I am saying is she does not have a License to teach she has degrees earned through a college course and you cannot take a college degree away from anyone as it was earned through hard work…unless you can provide proof that the said college she attended and got the degrees from illegitimately, then you might get her degrees yanked, but overall she will not be allowed within 500 feet of a school, daycare or park and upon release will have to sign and update annually to a Sex Offender Registry. She is done teaching no matter how many pretty degrees she has hanging on the wall.
Take a listen to this link: It will probably make a few wet eyes but hey its a good song and fitting for this as well as any other child abuse crimes.
http://youtu.be/7aiYg0BOsOs
She may go back to Gallatin County school.The Admin. is famous for not makeing waves and looking the other way.
I doubt she will be able to teach a dog at an obedience school or even an inmate at the prison she is likely to be attending soon.
Just jokeing Old Fart.But if someone would check into what is going on in the Gallatin Co. School now ????????????
I am sure there is corruption on more places around this area than what one would want to readily admit. I am just thankful she wont be able to hurt anymore children by means of her teaching/coaching career.
I surely agree with you Old Fart but how many more like her are out there this morning doing the same thing and getting by with it.It is a scary world out there for our young ones.
I just saw this Top Cat,
To answer your question though would be impossible other than to say in this perverse world in which we live, it is going on in more than one location, probably even as I am typing this comment to you. It trully is scary and all parents should keep this in mind and stay in touch with their children on all topics. It is a hard way of thinking for some but trust me some of those teachers are not there to teach and help children in a good way. There is always a teacher which is trying to make a sex slave out of a student. That is just what it was. Sorry I couldn’t put it into words any better but that girl has to live the rest of her life knowing what happened to her and be made fun of by many because it happened. The one who should be made fun of is the one that will soon be in IDOC as of her sentencing date. If that doesn’t change it will be held on Dec 14, 2011.
For any and all interested and this comes from the IDOC website concerning rules and some guidelines about “Good Time”
What is Good Time?
There are three types of good time, however not all inmates are eligible for each type.
Statutory Good Time refers to the percentage of time an inmate must spend incarcerated. Inmates serve 50%, 75%, 85%, or 100% of their sentence. This is determined by statute and is based on the offense that was committed. Inmates may lose some of that good time based on their behavior while in custody.
Meritorious Good Time (MGT) and Supplemental Meritorious Good Time (SMGT) refer to the discretionary time (up to 180 days) that the director may grant to an eligible inmate based on his or her behavior while incarcerated. Please note that the award of meritorious good time is not automatic; it is at the discretion of the director. Inmates convicted of certain offenses are not eligible for this type of good time credit.
The MGT/SMGT program was suspended in December of 2009 and terminated in January of 2010. The program is currently under review.
Earned Good Conduct Credit refers to time earned by an inmate for participation in education, drug treatment or Illinois Correctional Industries programs. Again, not all inmates are eligible; inmates convicted of violent and Class X crimes are not eligible. Inmates earn one-half day off their sentence for each day of participation in such programs if they successfully complete the programs (Example: if an eligible inmate completes a drug treatment program that is 30-days in duration, he may be awarded 15-days off his sentence).
ok she has 8 felonies. all class 2 min of 3 years chances are they wont run em consecutive, but concurrent. Knowing a few individuals that have had sex charges in Wayne county they probably wont be easy with her and will run her out of town. id hope she get the min of 24yrs running everything consecutive then the state should op for pressing for civil committment and so should the victim and the victims family I know of one where the family had their OWN son Civilly committed after what he did to his younger brother its so graphic it cant be mentioned here anyways days before he was scheduled to be released on parole, he went to court and they deemed him unfit to rejoin society the same thing could be done with Todd Fort. all the fam and vic need to to is persue it and it will esp work against him if he refuses to acept responsibility for his actions and that usually falls to the counselor that is the head of the SO Therapy and most usually its a head shrinker ( i cant ever spell the correct name they go by) and they have the info in front of them and if what they are being told by the inmate doesnt match the court records, chances are they recommend that the inmate be committed until such time set forth in court or how ever its done. Some men rot there. others are eventually released but they are a special class of humans after that. I was told (This is hearsay not documented fact) that while in Civil Committment, offenders are Chemically Casturated (Being injected with the form of Birth Control for females thats referred to as “The Shot” ) New York does this for there MORE SEVERE ones
They put this chemical in the food among all inmates. Its not documented its common knowledge. So avoiding any of their soy based diets is a good idea if you want to avoid the chemicals. The other thought you have about getting the victim and the state together to prolong the predators stay is a great idea. It should be done to all predators who are trully guilty and just don’t want to admit it. Although I would have to admit the reason they don’t do this is because some have been sent to prison wrongfully over such things. Making them admit to something they didn’t do would be much like a police tactic that a certain Special Agent uses often in this area. The Scare Tactic shall we say. Sometimes this gets a correct statement but some people think they can admit to something and the truth comes out in court. Wrong! If you admit to doing something you will be found guilty if you have 10,000 people to testify that you wasn’t there and couldn’t have been responsible for the crime committed. Nothing personal against you Truth just sayin what can happen in some situations.
im sure that happens about stuff in the food i was referring to Civil committment though not necessarily IDOC. i cant see them having a meat processing plant if they only have soy food ya know? But im not sure how the civil committment part works for sure only what i have “seen” thru court Docs on judici and what others have said. yes i agree that out of all the ones that are/have been in DOC that say 10-15% are innocent, and its not fair to them. But when you have someone that says oh well i took the blame since i dont have any kids just so my brother could raise his family, i mean come on, who in the heck would accept the following: 20+ yrs in DOC, name being ran thru the mud, a label for life, if you “didnt commit the crime”? I wouldt take the rap for my brothers not even for a seatbelt ticket. But yea the legal system is known for mistakes only thing is that it takes years before they realize it and someone’s life is ruined and the most that person gets is well we are sorry
The only problem with IDOC’s drug program is this. The inmates spend years in them, not just 30 days. If you don’t believe me go talk to an Inmate that is in one of those or has been in one of those programs. That being said some inmates are not eligible but some inmates are doing 35% or less of their assigned time. Now this may be against on statute, and upheld by another, as I am not privy to all the laws, rules and statutes. I am privy to seeing folks exit IDOC for an assortment of crimes in the Class 1-2 Felony range get out with 30%-35% of their assigned sentence. As was the case in 2009 if you were sentenced to 3yrs on a class 1-2 felony you would get that time cut in half automatically. That’s already a year and a half or 18 months. Then after being a good inmate for approximately 30-40 days you would get another 6 months off your sentence. So now we are down to a year 12 months. Then this same inmate goes to a rehab program for 6 months, then gets 3 more months of their sentence. This means they are released in as little as 9 months. Now I’m not one to set the rules but I can tell you that due to over crowding, budget woes and other things, they are pushing inmates through the prison system like hogs through the slaughter and back on the street. It’s amazing to see someone get so much goodtime and we won’t go into what would happen with someone serving a 1yr sentence other than to say they were out within 30-60 days and generally closer to the 30 days. Now you can figure up your own percentage of time actually served and why the system is under review,
You are right Old Fart that maybe the case but who really knows what will happen. the thing that use to be the talk of the pen was ok i have to serve one year, at 50% ok that makes my time to serve 6mos. ok I spent 2 mos in county that time i get credit for, so that makes it 4 mos i have to do, and when the MSG was in effect that was 3 mos off the top which in effect the inmate would only have to serve 1 month. BUT the catch was this Regardless if that was the case they were there for 61 days, then booted out. Same goes for someone else that with the time served in county, plus MSG and 90days credit for work/school training program (Cooperative Work Training or CWT for short) the inmate served 11mos on a 4 yrs sentence at 50% the bad deal was the good time was awarded would have put him out like at 10 mos but he didnt actually get the full 30 days on the last part that just gave him credit up to the day and made his release a cpl days after that Thats how messed up it is