An appeals court yesterday slammed the brakes on the sex-abuse case against Misty Roberts, the former mayor of DeRidder, Louisiana, upholding a lower court’s decision to declare a mistrial. The ruling followed a flurry of legal motions over whether a late-2025 grand-jury indictment was valid and forced a halt to jury selection that had just begun this week. Judge Kent Savoie had signaled his intent to declare a mistrial last week but held off making it official to give the defense time to file emergency appeals.
Appeals Court Backs Mistrial Call
The Third Circuit concluded that the August 2025 grand-jury indictment was invalid because judges who had previously been recused still oversaw that proceeding, leaving prosecutors with no standing charge to bring to trial, according to KALB. Faced with that procedural mess, Judge Savoie opted to declare a mistrial rather than push ahead with jury selection. He briefly delayed entering the formal ruling so the defense could seek emergency relief from the Third Circuit. The development was also shared by WVUE FOX 8 on Facebook.
How The Indictment Shifted Over Time
Roberts was first arrested in August 2024, just days after abruptly resigning as DeRidder mayor. She was initially indicted in September 2024 on a charge of carnal knowledge of a juvenile, and prosecutors later amended the indictment in August 2025 to add a count of indecent behavior with a juvenile, KPLC reports. Defense attorneys argued that the later grand-jury process was tainted because two Beauregard Parish judges who had been recused still took actions related to the August indictment. The Third Circuit agreed that those procedural missteps left the indictment vulnerable.
Charges And Fierce Defense Pushback
The amended charges left Roberts facing counts that included felony carnal knowledge of a juvenile and indecent behavior with a juvenile, along with a misdemeanor count alleging contributing to the delinquency of a minor, according to reporting by the American Press. Her lawyers have sharply criticized the case, calling parts of the indictment a “blatant misrepresentation of the truth” and arguing that Roberts was not contacted during portions of the investigation. She has pleaded not guilty and has maintained her innocence throughout pretrial proceedings.
What Comes Next In Court
The defense has now taken the fight to the Louisiana Supreme Court, filing an emergency writ that asks the high court to review the case, while prosecutors still have the option to re-file charges if higher courts leave the mistrial in place, KALB notes. For now, jury selection is on hold and the case sits in procedural limbo as courts weigh whether the original September 2024 indictment can be revived. Those decisions will determine whether Roberts faces a new trial or whether some counts are permanently tossed.
Small-Town Fallout In Beauregard Parish
The case has roiled small-town Beauregard Parish since Roberts’ abrupt resignation in July 2024 and her arrest days later, drawing steady local and regional attention as prosecutors reworked charges and defense attorneys pushed to have judges recused, KPLC reports. District officials have largely kept quiet, declining to comment beyond what appears in court filings, and the district attorney’s office has said those filings will dictate what happens next. We will update this report as new filings and court rulings emerge.
