Stepmother of dead DeBlase children still being transported to Mobile

Published: Sunday, December 12, 2010, 10:34 PM ??? Updated: Sunday, December 12, 2010, 10:59 PM

MOBILE, Ala. -- The 22-year-old stepmother of a young brother and sister found dead this past week was still being transported tonight from Kentucky back to Mobile to face charges related to their deaths, authorities said.

Heather Leavell-Keaton was to be charged with two counts each of aggravated child abuse and abuse of a corpse, authorities said.

Leavell-Keaton left jail in Louisville, Ky., on Thursday in the custody of a private carrier that transports prisoners between several institutions, according to Mobile County Sheriff’s spokeswoman Lori Myles.

As of 10 p.m. tonight, Leavell-Keaton had not been booked into the Mobile County Metro Jail.

The children’s father, John DeBlase, 27, is in Metro Jail, charged with two counts each of murder, aggravated child abuse and abuse of a corpse.

Leavell-Keaton’s transportation from Louisville took place over several days, during which the remains of 4-year-old Natalie DeBlase ware found off Prine Road and Beverly Jeffries Highway in a remote area of northwest Mobile County.

The remains of Natalie’s brother, 3-year-old Jonathan "Chase" DeBlase, were found Wednesday in a rural area near Vancleave, Miss., authorities in Jackson County, Miss., said.

Investigators believe Natalie was killed in March, and Chase died in June.

The search for the two children began in late November after Leavell-Keaton’s mother reported their deaths to the police.

Louisville police said Leavell-Keaton had asked for a restraining order against DeBlase, who had left for Florida. He was arrested Dec. 3 in Milton, Fla., and was originally charged with two counts each of aggravated child abuse and abuse of a corpse.

The stepmother was originally charged with two counts of willful abuse and neglect of a child. Mobile County District Attorney John Tyson Jr. on Friday said the charges had been upgraded against Leavell-Keaton.

Court documents obtained by the Mississippi Press graphically detailed instances of abuse and torture against the children.

In one instance, specified in an arrest warrant for DeBlase, the document said the father allowed Leavell-Keaton to duct tape Chase’s hands to his side and a broom to his back. A sock was put in his mouth before he was forced to stand in a corner all night while the adults slept, the document said.

Another document stated that DeBlase allowed Leavell-Keaton to duct tape Natalie’s hands and feet in a similar manner, place a sock in her mouth and place the girl inside a suitcase. The girl remained in the suitcase inside a closet for about 14 hours, the document said.

Chase’s remains were found Wednesday in a wooded area off Miss. 57, about 12 miles north of Interstate 10 in Jackson County. Sheriff Mike Byrd said the father told authorities where the remains would be found.

DeBlase also disclosed the location of Natalie’s remains before the search near Citronelle began, police said.

John Thompson, an attorney standing in for DeBlase’s lawyer, Don Sears, said the father intends to plead not guilty by reason of insanity or mental disease at his next hearing, scheduled for Jan. 4.

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Search for missing children believed to be dead moves to Citronelle

Published: Sunday, December 05, 2010, 5:55 PM ??? Updated: Sunday, December 05, 2010, 8:11 PM

The search for two missing children that investigators now believe are dead was suspended in Mississippi today as detectives combed an area west of Citronelle, according to authorities.

Investigators searched for any sign of Jonathan Chase DeBlase, 3, and his older sister Natalie Alexis DeBlase, 5, for more than eight hours today in the far northwest end of Mobile County, said Mobile police Officer Christopher Levy.

The youngsters haven't been seen since July when they moved to Kentucky with their father and stepmother, Levy said.

"Again, we had no results," Levy said as the search concluded this afternoon.

On Saturday, the search unsuccessfully led detectives to an area north of Vancleave, Miss., just off Miss. 57.

The children's father, John Joseph DeBlase, 27, led Mobile and Jackson County, Miss., investigators to the Vancleave area, where he thought he had dumped his son's body, Levy said.

DeBlase was apprehended in Milton, Fla., late Thursday by a Santa Rosa County sheriff's deputy responding to a report of a suspicious person, according to previous reports.

DeBlase was brought to Mobile on Friday, where, Levy said, he was questioned by Mobile police and then charged with two counts each of aggravated child abuse and abuse of a corpse.

"When we get information, we have to check, even if it doesn't add up," Levy said of today's search outside Citronelle. "The father is being cooperative, but we've just had no results."

Levy said the search would continue in both areas this week.

Jackson County Sheriff Mike Byrd said his investigators would rejoin the search with the department's helicopters.

Byrd said the Vancleave area searched Saturday was about 12 square miles and too broad.

"We need to get a better idea where the body was left," Byrd said. "And that's just if he's telling the truth."

Stepmother Heather Keaton was arrested last week in Louisville, Ky., and faces two counts each of willful abuse and neglect of a child, Levy said.

Byrd said Keaton and DeBlase are each accusing the other of killing the children, but both have agreed that the body of at least one of the children was left in Vancleave.

On Wednesday, Keaton waived an extradition hearing and is expected to be brought to Mobile this week, Levy said.

Authorities were alerted in late November that the children were missing after Keaton asked Kentucky police for a restraining order against DeBlase, Levy said. The couple had been living in Louisville but had separated, Levy said, and DeBlase went to Florida.

Keaton alleged in her complaint to Kentucky police that she was fearful of DeBlase because of events that took place six months prior in Mobile, Levy said. She told authorities that the children were killed in Mobile, Levy said.

"What we know is that they are both responsible for the death of their kids," Levy said. "We know that, but we haven't been able to determine exactly how they died. If we could locate their bodies, that would help our investigation out quite a bit."

Asked about the corpse-abuse charge, Levy said it’s the result of the children not being buried properly, and carries a penalty of up to 30 years in prison. ?

Levy said the most disheartening fact is that friends and family members are now coming forward saying they suspected DeBlase was abusing the children.

"Where were they a year ago when these children needed some protection?" Levy asked. "Why didn't some report it to police?"

When contacted today, family members declined to comment.

Anyone with information in the case is asked to call the Mobile Police Department at 251-208-7211.

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Search for bodies of missing children begins Saturday; father arrested by Mobile police

Published: Friday, December 03, 2010, 6:21 PM ??? Updated: Saturday, December 04, 2010, 5:59 AM

MOBILE, Ala. -- Mobile police will begin searching Saturday for the bodies of two children — Jonathan Chase DeBlase and Natalie Alexis DeBlase — after their father, John Joseph DeBlase, blamed their stepmother for their suspected fate.

As two officers escorted DeBlase from police headquarters tonight, he accused the children’s stepmother when asked who killed them, and responded, “Don’t’ know,” when asked why.

DeBlase, 27, remained in the Mobile County Metro Jail late todaycharged with two counts of aggravated child abuse and two counts of abuse of a corpse.

Mobile police Chief Micheal T. Williams said tonight that police will bring in cadaver dogs to search an area that’s within 100 miles of Mobile.

“We are not sure exactly, but he has given us an indication of a location where they may be, or where he remembers burying the children,” Williams said, adding that police believe the children are dead. “Based on what he told us, we believe that.”

Williams said that DeBlase could face additional charges.

“We want to make sure we find these children and that they are buried properly with the dignity and respect they deserve,” Williams said.

The children’s stepmother, Heather Leavell-Keaton, remains jailed in Louisville, Ky., charged with two counts of willful child abuse.

Williams said he did not know when Leavell-Keaton would be brought to Mobile.

DeBlase was apprehended in Milton, Fla., late Thursday by a Santa Rosa County sheriff’s deputy responding to a report of a suspicious person, according to a police report obtained by WKRG-TV Channel 5.

DeBlase was brought to Mobile, where he was being questioned this afternoon, according to police.

Jonathan, 3, and Natalie — whose birth date is given as Nov. 24, 2005, according the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children website — have not been accounted for since July, police spokesman Officer Christopher Levy said.

The search for DeBlase intensified this week after Leavell-Keaton, 22, was arrested in Kentucky and charged with two counts of willful child abuse in connection with an incident that occurred while she, the children and their father were living in west Mobile.

On Thursday night, the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Department received a complaint about a suspicious person living at a home on Charles Circle, according to WKRG.

When the deputy arrived, the homeowner told him that DeBlase had been staying at the house for two days. The homeowner told the deputy that he called the Sheriff’s Department after hearing about the investigation into the children’s disappearance and DeBlase’s potential involvement.

According to the report, the homeowner had confronted DeBlase, who yelled, “I didn’t do it!” and fled.

The deputy took DeBlase into custody at an intersection just blocks from the home. The deputy wrote in his report that DeBlase “made a spontaneous statement of ‘I didn’t do it.’”

Mobile police moved DeBlase to police headquarters this afternoon, where he was questioned.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children posted online pictures of Natalie and Jonathan on Tuesday, listed them as “endangered missing.”

Anyone with information in the case should call Mobile police at 251-208-7211.

(This report was updated with additional information at 8:35 p.m. Press-Register reporter Jillian Kramer contributed to this report.)

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Mobile police sorting through tips on missing children last seen in July

Published: Thursday, December 02, 2010, 7:00 PM

Mobile police were receiving numerous calls Thursday as they kept up their search for two young siblings last seen in July.?

"The detectives are sorting through that information to see if any of it is helpful or not," said Officer Christopher Levy, a police spokesman.

The children’s stepmother remained jailed Thursday in Louisville, Ky., awaiting extradition on two counts of willful child abuse. Heather Leavell-Keaton, 22, was arrested in Louisville on Wednesday, and her bail was set at $50,000.

Mobile police are looking for Natalie Alexis Deblase, 5, and Jonathan Chase Deblase, 3.?

Their mother, who lives in Mobile, has met with detectives, Levy said. "She said she hasn’t seen them in over a year," Levy said.?

"The last place they were seen was in Mobile," Levy said.?

Police also are searching for John Deblase, 27, the children’s father.?

"Our understanding is that he lives in Kentucky and we have not located him. We would like to," Levy said.?

Concern for their welfare accelerated when a man believed to be a relative of Leavell-Keaton walked in to a police department in Kentucky and told officials that the children were dead.?

John Deblase, Leavell-Keaton and the two children were living at Peach Place Extended Inn on Jeff Hamilton Road in west Mobile until they moved out in late July, police have said.

The family left a forwarding address in Rome, Ga., officials said.?

Louisville officials said they were unsure when Leavell-Keaton would be transferred to Mobile. She has a court appearance in Louisville scheduled for 9 a.m. Dec. 10.?

Officer Carey Klain, a spokeswoman with the Louisville Metro Police Department, said that Leavell-Keaton made a report on Nov. 18 "reporting increasing violence in the home in mid-November, but there were no specifics."?

"We didn’t make an arrest because she didn’t give any specifics and we didn’t locate any injuries on her," said Alicia Smiley, another Louisville police spokeswoman.?

That report was not related to Leavell-Keaton’s arrest on Wednesday, Klain said.?

Klain said that Louisville detectives are not investigating the children’s disappearance.

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Protection for gay children

Droits de l'homme Protection for gay children

Posted by Max Brantley sea, October 27, 2010 at 6 H 44

An announcement in a timely manner to the u.s. Education Department hier.Il explains school districts fail to protect gay students can lose federal dollars.

The letter said schools "must take prompt and effective action reasonably calculated to put an end to the harassment, to eliminate any hostile environment and its effects and to prevent harassment happens."

I hope that the Midland school district, Ark to conclude that "eliminate any hostile environment" would include member of Clint McCance, whose page Facebook wanted dead gay children school apology and promises to run off the coast of any young gay in his "neighbourhood". also called for a denunciation of such a view by other members of the School Board and the Director that such hostile opinion is not tolerated in schools school insurance.

So far, neither I nor anyone succeeded in obtaining by McCance and other school officials, but the effort will continue today.

Tags: gay bullying, the Midland school district, Clint McCance

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