CAMDEN HIERS - 5 yo (2010)/ Convicted: Grandmother; Marianne Bordt - St. George Island FL

The grandmother accused of drowning her 5-year-old grandson while on
vacation in Florida has been indicted in the boy's death.Court
data shows a Franklin County, Fla. grand jury has indicted 71-year-old
Marianne Bordt on charges of premeditated murder and aggravated child
abuse.Bordt, a German national, was arrested on Jan. 4 after she
told police she didn't want her grandson to grow up in a divorced home.



    The boy's parents had joint custody of Camden Hiers after
they divorced in 2006, but he lived mostly with his mother in an
Atlanta suburb.Bordt
is accused of drowning Camden of Roswell, in the bathtub of a
rental condo while her husband went to a store in St. George Island,
Fla.A court date has not yet been set.

The trial of
a 71-year-old German native, accused of drowning her 5-year-old
grandson in a bathtub at St. George Island will not be closed to the
public. That was the decision Monday by a Franklin County judge in
Apalachicola in the case of Marianne Bordt.
Bordt was in-tears when she showed up for a hearing on a series of motions
filed by her defense attorney. The attorney claims there's already too
much publicity surrounding the case to get a fair and impartial jury,
if and when the case goes to trial. They'd even asked that Monday's hearings be held behind closed doors, all
pre-trial evidence be sealed and that the judge issue a gag order. But
prosecutors and media representatives argued there has not been enough
publicity about the case to taint the jury pool.
The state pointed out publicity is not uncommon and both that both
Bordt and the victim are not from the area. The judge agreed.
"The judge hit the right balance. This is a society where we expect citizens
to rely on law enforcement and the judicial process, and without
transparency. It's very difficult for people to have confidence in what
they can't see; and I think the judge was very aware of that."
Bordt is accused of drowning her 5 year old grandson Camden Hiers in the
bathtub on January 5th. Authorities say when Bordt's husband returned
home from a shopping trip he saw her walking from the beach in wet
clothes. He claims she told him she tried to kill herself and had
killed their grandson.
She allegedly said she didn't want to see the child grow up in a divorced
home. Camden's parents, David and Karen were divorced in 2006. The boy
was living in Roswell, Georgia with his mother. His father lives nearby
in Alpharetta, Georgia.
Mrs. Bordt is being held without bond in the Franklin County jail at Eastpoint.

Bordt incompetent for trial, but what's next?

Prosecution, defense disagree on site for restoration
December 02, 2010 04:22:34 PM



DAVID ADLERSTEIN
Florida Freedom Newspapers


APALACHICOLA — Both the prosecution and defense in the first-degree murder trial of Marianne Bordt last week agreed the 72-year-old German woman is not competent to stand trial.

But what steps need to be taken to restore her to competency, and where that should take place, are very much in dispute.

At a hearing before Circuit Judge Angela Dempsey Nov. 23 at the county courthouse in Apalachicola, Robin Myers, assistant state attorney, said the report of forensic psychologist Dr. Gregory Prichard, of Bristol, determined Bordt was “marginally incompetent” to stand trial.

Bordt stands accused of first-degree murder for the Jan. 4 drowning death of her 5-year-old grandson, Camden Hiers, at a St. George Island vacation home that she and her husband, Heinz Bordt, were renting over the Christmas holidays.

The charge carries a possible penalty of death. She also has been charged with aggravated child abuse, a first-degree felony.

Prichard’s psychological evaluation marks the third such confidential evaluation that has been done on Bordt, who remains in custody in the Leon County Jail. All three have been cited by attorneys are calling for competency restoration.

The first two, conducted by Harry McClaren, of Quincy, and Ronda Harrison-Spoerl, of Lloyd, were held early in the summer at the behest of defense attorney Ines Maria Suber, without advance knowledge of the prosecution. Prichard’s evaluation was conducted a few weeks ago, with Suber present, after Dempsey on Sept. 13 granted Myers’ request for a third opinion.

Myers told the court last week Prichard recommended Bordt remain at the Leon County Jail, “and receive competency training there as opposed to going to the state hospital (in Chattahoochee).”

He said Prichard found Bordt, who is assisted in court by translator Michael Alsentzer, had “a lack of general understanding of the nature of the American justice system.”

Myers contended Bordt does not require further medical attention as part of the restoration process, and that keeping her in Tallahassee, where a German interpreter is readily available, would provide “limited interruption” as opposed to sending her to Chattahoochee. The Florida State Hospital is about 41 miles north of the jail, near the Florida-Georgia border.

“It would be a hindrance to the treatment she needs,” said Myers. “The state believes competency can be reached at a much faster rate if she is left at the jail. By sending her to Chattahoochee, we’re going to exponentially increase the time.”

Before scheduling the formal competency hearing where she will decide where the competency restoration would take place, Dempsey asked both lawyers how long they would need to present their case.

Myers said he planned to call one witness, presumably Prichard, and it would take no longer than a half-hour.

Suber said she is presently devoting“125 percent of her time” to the Gary Hilton case, a first-degree murder trial in Tallahassee which she said has “over 1,000 pieces of evidence.’

Dempsey repeated her question to Suber as to how long the competency hearing would take. “One hour at least,” she replied.

The hearing was slated for Dec. 13 at 1:30 p.m., also in the Apalachicola courthouse.

Suber, a public defender who specializes in capital cases, disputed Myers’ contention that Bordt’s lack of knowledge of the American judicial system was the only reason that the psychologists found her incompetent to stand trial.

Although she did not go into detail as to whether Bordt had been found by the psychologists incompetent to proceed due to mental illness, Suber cited section 916.13 of the Florida Statutes as to an area that must be considered in the upcoming competency hearing. The section of the law spells out the criteria for “involuntary commitment of defendant adjudicated incompetent” to a treatment facility, and refers specifically to mental illness.

Asked following the hearing about the psychological opinions she had secured over the summer without prior knowledge of the prosecution, Suber said “I’m not in the practice of purchasing the opinions of experts. I have never, ever purchased the opinion of an expert. I have no clue if they are told to find in one way or not. ”

She said it was her legal and ethical duty to determine whether a client is competent to stand trial. “When I choose an expert, it’s for the expertise,” Suber said.

Seated in the audience for the hearing were Camden Hiers’ father, David Hiers, and girlfriend Debbie Rouleau, as well as his parents, Bill and Pat Hiers. When she was escorted to the defense table by sheriff’s deputies, Bordt eyed the four individuals at length, but none of them spoke or acknowledged the other.

The Hiers family talked with Myers and assistant state attorney Jared Patterson at length following the hearing, at which time Myers told them it would likely be at least six months before the court would determine Bordt is ready to stand trial.

“To me it’s frustrating, because this means the case is going to stall no matter what,” said David Hiers. “It’s almost as though it’s in the hands of Marianne (Bordt). “It’s very frustrating to say we’re now putting the case on hold and putting it in the hands of the purported killer.”

Thomas Strieben, representing the Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany in Miami, was on hand for the hearing and spoke briefly to Bordt.

According to the newspaper “Gaeubote,” the daily newspaper serving the Bordts’ hometown of Nufringen, state prosecutors of Stuttgart have filed an official request to have Bordt extradited to Germany but have yet to receive an answer from U.S. authorities and assume they never will.

“This is all we can do,” said prosecutor Claudia Krauth. “We reckon the trial will be continued in the USA.”

http://www.newsherald.com/articles/bordt-89036-incompetent-trial.html

[UPDATE] Woman Accused of Drowning Grandson is Back in Court

Marianne Bordt was back in a Franklin County courtroom. The woman from Nufringen, Germany, is charged with first-degree murder in the January death on St. George Island of Camden Hiers.
Posted: 8:53 AM Dec 15, 2010
Reporter: Jerry Askin
Email Address: Jerry.Askin@wctv.tv; AP



UPDATE 12-13-2010 by Jerry Askin 7:30pm

The woman charged with drowning her 5-year-old grandson while vacationing in our area is back in court as attorneys on both sides argue whether she's competent to stand trial.


72-year-old Marianne Bordt is being charged with first degree murder and aggravated child abuse -- accused of drowning her 5-year old grandson in the bathtub while they were vacationing on St. George Island in January.

Monday, a Franklin County judge decided that Bordt will complete competency training at the Florida State Hospital in Chattahoochee.

Police said Bordt told them she didn't want to see her 5-year old grandson, Camden Hiers, grow up in a divorced home. Camden's parents had joint custody, but he lived mostly with his mother, who is Bordt's daughter, in Roswell, Georgia.

Bordt is from Germany and speaks little English. A psychologist who evaluated her told the judge today that Bordt's language barriers and major depressive disorder is a hinderance to her standing trial.

The judge said in two months, she will check on Bordt's mental status and then determine if she's competent to stand trial.

The victim's paternal grandmother Patricia Hiers says, "She has disgraced herself, her country, her family, by the actions she've taken against my grandchild."

http://www.wctv.tv/news/headlines/98364124.html

Bordt lawyer plans to challenge competency
June 22, 2011 2:48 PM
The newly-appointed public defender for accused murderer Marianne Bordt said last week he plans to challenge his client’s competency to stand trial when a formal hearing on the matter is held next month.

C. Andrew Thomas, chief assistant public defender for the 2nd Judicial Circuit of Florida, said following a preliminary hearing last week in Apalachicola that he and two psychologists hired by the defense had a chance last month to visit Bordt, 72, at the Florida State Hospital in Chattahoochee.

Bordt, accused of murdering her grandson Jan. 4, 2010 by drowning him inside a vacation home on St. George Island, has been held in Chattahoochee for the last six months. She faces first-degree murder charges, and the death penalty, for killing 5-year-old Camden Hiers, from Roswell, Ga., while the boy was on vacation with his grandparents.

The grandfather, Heinz Bordt, has not been implicated in the murder and has since returned to the family’s home in Nufringen, Germany, coming back to Franklin County only to testify at the Feb. 2010 grand jury hearing.

On Dec. 13, 2010, Circuit Judge Angela Dempsey ruled, after hearing testimony from three mental health experts as to Bordt’s emotional state and knowledge of the American judicial system, the German national should be handed over to the Florida Department of Children and Families for competency restoration at the state hospital.

The June 13 case management hearing at the Franklin County Courthouse gave Dempsey a chance to review a confidential report from state hospital officials that indicated Bordt was in a position to understand the criminal justice proceedings and assist her legal team in her defense.

Other than concern about fitting a hearing into their schedules, neither Robin Myers, the assistant state attorney, nor Thomas objected to a formal competency hearing. Both said they plan to ask the same North Florida psychologists who testified at the December hearing – Gregory Prichard for the prosecution, and Harry McLaren and Ronda Harrison-Spoerl for the defense – to examine Bordt and render opinions at the hearing, slated for 10:30 a.m. on July 26.

Thomas, who on March 17 was assigned to replace Maria Ines Suber as Bordt’s public defender, said that in advance of formal opinions from the psychologists, he is prepared to argue his client continues to lack competence for trial.

He said his position was based on having witnessed, along with psychologists, her “actual state” during their recent visit to Chattahoochee.

“Language will be an issue,” Thomas said, noting the written materials being used for Bordt’s competency restoration are in English and suggesting they posed a problem in providing the German national with sufficient understanding.

The attorney also said space constraints at the state hospital may have contributed to officials wanting to have Bordt declared competent for trial and returned to the Leon County Jail.

At the Dec. 2010 hearing, Myers had argued unsuccessfully that competency restoration could be handled at the Leon County Jail, where Bordt would be closer to the state-appointed translator that she requires for each aspect of the judicial process.

Thomas declined comment whether he believed Bordt now possessed the ability to assist in her own defense. “That’s for the experts to answer,” he said.

http://www.apalachtimes.com/articles/challenge-9568-plans-bordt.html

09/30/2011 WITNESS SUBPOENA ISSUED BY THE SAO (3)
09/28/2011 HEARINGS SET FOR 10/28/2011 AT 10:00 IN M/, JDG:

https://www2.myfloridacounty.com/ccm/do/docket?county=19&data=6014650f3b9f993500ae0b1bf86840d4

Updated: 7:17 AM Nov 1, 2011
[UPDATE] 72-year-old Bordt Competent to Stand Trial
A 72-year-old woman is in court, accused of drowning her 5-year-old grandson in the bathtub while the family vacationed on St. George island in January 2010.

UPDATE ] 10-31 at 6:15pm by Jerry Askin

A two day competency hearing has led a judge to find 72-year old Marianne Bordt ready to stand trial. A public defender spent Monday morning trying to convince the judge that Bordt is not ready.


"She doesn't understand the fifth amendment. She thinks I get to decide whether she gets to testify. She thinks Mr. Myers is going to sentence her if she's found guilty," says Public Defender Andrew Thomas.

Bordt opted not to appear via video link for the hearing, saying she didn't want to be upset.

She's accused of drowning her grandson, five-year old Camden last January. It happened while the family was vacationing on St. George Island.

"She's indicated that she could receive the death penalty or life in prison. If she's convicted, those are the only two possibilities," says Assistant State Attorney Robin Myers.

State Attorney Robin Myers says Bordt only speaks German and that's been the biggest barrier, but he claims she's ready for trial. He says her post-traumatic stress and mental health have very little to do with her competency.

Forensic psychologist Dr. Harry McClarin evaluated Bordt three times while she was being held at Florida State Hospital. He ultimately found her not competent to stand trial.

He claims she has an incomplete understanding of the American justice system, doesn't fully understand her first-degree murder charges and does not appear to have a clear understanding of what truly happened to her grandson.

"Much more attention needs to be placed on some delusional thinking that she has, both through psychology and psychiatry," says forensic psychologist Dr. Harry McClarin.

But state experts who testified last week said Bordt is competent, understands the legal system and is ready for trial.

The parents of little Camden were not in court today. We did call his father and he says he's relieved the case against his former mother-in-law can resume and move forward.

Attorneys in the case are scheduled to be back in court on November 14th to schedule a trial date.
______________________________________________________
[UPDATE] 10-31 - 11:30am -

The judge just found 72-year-old Marianne Bordt competent to stand trial. The judge agreed with the state that many people do not understand the court system and just because she has a language barrier or past mental illness does not mean she's incompetent.

________________________________

[UPDATE] 10-31 - 11am -

The court hearing for the woman accused of drowning her 5-year old grandson has began. Marianne Bordt has opted not to attend the hearing via video because she claims she didn't want the testimony to upset her.

Clinical forensic psychologist Dr. Harry McClarin is testifying now. He has spent over 55 hours evaluating Bordt for competency. He says Bordt has been through several traumatic events as a teenage girl. He says her father was a soldier and was killed In World War II. He claims she does not fully understand the American justice system or the first degree murder charges she's facing.

____________________________________

[UPDATE] 10-31 - 9:50am -

A court hearing continues today for 72-year-old Marianne Bordt. She's accused of drowning her 5-year-old grandson in the bathtub last January.

It does not appear that Bordt herself will be In court today. A public defender has scheduled one final witness to testify this morning. A judge is scheduled to make a decision on whether or not Bordt will be competent enough to stand trial after the hearing.

The court hearing for Marianne Bordt has been moved to courtroom 2D at the Leon County Courthouse so that Bordt can join us via video from the Leon County Jail. The hearing has not started yet.

__________________________________________

[UPDATE] 10-28-2011 at 6:15pm by Jerry Askin

72-year old Marianne Bordt walked in the courtroom Friday with no emotion. She's charged with child abuse and first degree murder in the death of her grandson 5-year old Camden Hiers.

The incident happened last January while the family vacationed on St George Island.

"The fact that she was a German native and their court system is different from our system, it's important that she understands how our court system works," says Dr. Leslie Dellenbarge.

Psychologist Leslie Dellenbarge has evaluated Bordt since she was admitted to Florida State Hospital last December. Dellenbarge says Bordt is competent and ready for trial based on evaluations from May and August.

Private psychologist Greg Prichard also evaluated Bordt, finding her competent. He says Bordt understands what she could face criminally.

"Bordt is able to indicate her prospective punishments - which are life in prison or the death sentence per capital case. She's accurate and she cries when she talks about it," says Dr. Greg Prichard.

But, a public defender says Bordt is not competent to stand trial because she suffers from mental health disorders including major depression and delusions. He says she needs more competency training.

Camden's father was in court, but too emotional to go on camera today. He says, "I'm frustrated with the delay in the court process because it's the only hope I have to get answers for the loss of my son."

The woman accused of killing little Camden is his maternal grandmother.

The public defender will call one more witness to testify Monday morning. We will be there and let you know what the judge decides about Bordt's competence to stand trial.
______________________________________________________
[UPDATE] October 28, 2011 - 1:30pm -

The hearing for Marianne Bordt has ended for the day. There has been no resolution on her competency to stand trial as of yet. The hearing will continue on October 31st at 10am.

The 72-year old woman is accused of drowning her 5-year old grandson in the bathtub while the family vacationed on St. George island last January 2010.

__________________________________

[UPDATE] October 28, 2011 - Noon -

A 72-year old woman is in court today, accused of drowning her 5-year old grandson in the bathtub while the family vacationed on St. George island last January (2010).

Marianne Bordt sat peacefully in the courtroom with her German interpreter today as three state psychologists deemed her as competent to stand trial.

Bordt has been at Florida State Hospital since December of last year. Because she's German and has been diagnosed with several mental health disorders in the past, she was admitted to the hospital to get competency training before she can stand trial. Her last evaluation to the court was in august and she was found competent to stand trial by a psychologist who worked with her on the understanding of the court system. A public defender questioned the psychologists today about Bordt's competency based on her past mental health issues and a report from an English language instructor noting she was 'making slow progress.'

____________________________________

[UPDATE] October 28, 2011 - 10am -

72-year-old Marianne Bordt is back in court this morning. She's accused of drowning her 5-year old grandson in the bathtub while they were vacationing on St. George island in January 2010. The public defender plans to challenge his client's competency to stand trial.

Two psychologists have taken the stand this morning so far. Dr Leslie Dellenbarge conducted competency evaluations with Bordt while she was at the Florida State Hospital. Dellenbarge worked with Bordt on the English language and on how the court system works. Dellenbarge says based on Bordt's competency restorations classes and evaluations, it appears that Bordt is ready to return to court and proceed.

_____________________________________

UPDATED 10.27.2011 by Julie Montanaro

A woman accused of drowning her grandson in the bathtub will appear before a judge in Tallahassee tomorrow.

Marianne Bordt was arrested in January 2010 and accused of killing her 5 year old grandson while on vacation at St. George Island.

Bordt is facing murder charges in Franklin County, but has been brought to Tallahassee for a competency hearing tomorrow.

Prosecutors say the hearing was moved to the capital city to make it easier to assemble all the necessary doctors and interpreters.

Bordt is a German citizen. Her husband told police she killed the boy because she didn't want him growing up with divorced parents.

Bordt is expected to be in court at 10am.
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http://www.wctv.tv/news/headlines/Woman_Accused_of_Drowning_Grandson_is_Back_in_Court_.html

01/10/2012 01:30:00 DEMPSEY, ANGELA C CASE MANAGEMENT MAIN COURTHOUSE : MYERS, ROBIN THOMAS, ANDREW
12/12/2011 01:30:00 DEMPSEY, ANGELA C HEARINGS MAIN COURTHOUSE : MYERS, ROBIN THOMAS, ANDREW

https://www2.myfloridacounty.com/ccm/do/courtEvents?county=19&data=5404a8c8cff4f827e75a02bf7cde7582

12/12/2011 CASE MANAGEMENT SET FOR 02/14/2012 AT 01:30 IN M
12/12/2011 JDG: DEMPSEY, ANGELA C
12/12/2011 HEARINGS CONTINUED BY COURT
12/12/2011 DEF. PRESENT W/ATTY & INTERPRETER MICHAEL ALSENTZ
12/12/2011 MOTION TO PERPETUATE TESTIMONY-CONT'D TO FRIDAY @
12/12/2011 9AM, SAO MAY FILE A NEW MOTION. DEFENSE ATTY
12/12/2011 REQUESTED CSM BE CONT'D TO FEB. 14, 2012

https://www2.myfloridacounty.com/ccm/do/docket?county=19&data=3899b5746fcad8bfb10955d25a8ffbc1

Bordt sentenced for murdering grandson

By DAVID ADLERSTEIN
Published: Wednesday, September 26, 2012 at 22:27 PM.

In a hushed Apalachicola courtroom Monday afternoon, a grieving father relived the pain of his young son’s murder, and then watched as the boy’s grandmother was sent to state prison for what will likely be the rest of her life.

Without comment beyond the detailed legal questioning, Circuit Judge Angela Dempsey sentenced 73-year-old Marianne Bordt, from Nufringen, Germany, to 21 years and six months for drowning her American-born grandson Camden Hiers, 5, in the bathtub of a St. George Island rental home on Jan. 4. 2010.

Bordt said nothing other than the necessary yeses and noes as she stood for sentencing, flanked by her public defender, Andy Thomas, and translator Michael Alsentzer. Just prior to that, throughout a slide show prepared by the boy’s father, Dave Hiers, to accompany his victim impact statement, she sat stiffly in her chair, following intently, without emotion, as heartbreaking images unfolded of the vibrant child whose brief life she ended violently.

Over the last two-and-a-half years, prosecutors sought the death penalty for Bordt on a charge of first-degree murder and aggravated child abuse. Thomas had laid the groundwork for an insanity defense that would have argued Bordt suffered dementia and depression from a skull fracture she sustained as a 5-year-old, when the Russians bombed her childhood home of Breslau in Oct. 1944.

After the first trial date last July was scrapped, the trial was re-set for next month, but last week State Attorney Willie Meggs and Assistant State Attorney Robin Myers, who prosecuted the case, agreed to a plea deal with Public Defender Nancy Daniels. To fit the agreed-upon years, which will mean Bordt will likely be at least 90 before she could be released, the first-degree murder charge was reduced to second degree and the child abuse charge dropped.

Hiers, who has long said he and his family were not intent on seeing Bordt put to death, objected to Monday’s plea deal, preferring a 30-year-sentence. In his victim’s impact statement, he said as much.

“If she is guilty of this crime, then I want her to not be able to enjoy life - the same life she took from him - albeit a terribly unfair trade as she has mostly lived her life,” he told the court. “If she is proven guilty, I want her to be punished as no person has ever been punished – and to be able to fully realize the extent and harm of her horrible crimes.”

Read more:  http://www.apalachtimes.com/news/local-news/i-want-to-know-why-1.17754