St. Tammany Sheriff, Jack Strain is guilty on ALL sex crime charges! What about the children in Louisiana foster care because of Predator Sheriff Jack Strain. Jack Strain, the child sex predator sheriff from St. Tammany Parish was prosecuted yesterday, But there is more to this story! What about the children in state custody that were called liars and placed on psychotropic drugs when they reported abuse? The mothers that fled with their children? The people that committed suicide? The countless victims that were not in court?

A mother that fled Louisiana because her child was abused in St Tammany Parish joined a peer support group back in 2018 where she told this outrageous story about what happened to her family in Louisiana at the hands of the St Tammany and Louisiana State government. At the time, she was hoping that Louisiana SB291, a family law bill presented by Regina Ashford Barrow would pass. No one knew that God already had a plan and that Sheriff Jack Strain would eventually be prosecuted for his crimes. Unfortunately, justice will not happen just yet, but this is a start.

St. Tammany Parish Sheriff Jack Strain was found guilty in Covington, Louisiana on eight counts of sex abuse against boys, and four counts of aggravated rape, two counts of aggravated incest, one count of sexual battery, and indecent behavior with a juvenile yesterday, November 8, 2021.  

Predator Sheriff Jack Strain will be sentenced on January. 18, 2022. Strain’s attorneys asked that he not be taken into custody Monday night, but prosecutors objected, telling the judge a “mere drug dealer” would be remanded to custody immediately.

“The evidence was compelling, overwhelming and convincing”, North shore District Attorney Warren Montgomery said. Skip Keen, a victim and his family embraced each other after the verdict. Maybe now the victim and his family can finally begin to heal. Though, healing won’t be easy and the scars never go away.

26 witnesses including 5 men victims testified against the predator sheriff. Belinda Parker Brown from Louisiana United International was there to watch the trial and advocate for the victims and their families.

Mark Finn’s mother Patricia Finn discussed how the sexual abuse by former St. Tammany Parish Sheriff Jack Strain negatively affected Mark Finn’s behavior his entire life.

Strain showed no emotion and did not testify. He hugged his family and kissed his wife before being taken out of the courtroom. Prosecutors urged other victims to testify. Defense attorney, Billy Gibbens  focused on attempts tp discredit the victim’s testimony saying that “the entire case is a massive conspiracy of the U.S. government and state officials to crush Strain”. But the victim’s stories tell the truth about why Jack Strain was finally prosecuted and brought to trial.

Assistant District Attorney Collin Sims states that “common sense would tell them a conspiracy of that nature would have been impossible to coordinate”. Calling the defense theory, a “phantom conspiracy”.

The predator was elected to be chief of the police department in his hometown of Abita Springs at the age of 23. He is now 59 years old, so for 36 years Jack Strain had the power to do with the people whatever he wanted.

A the age 33, he became the Sheriff of St. Tammany Parish.  He lost that in 2015 when a federal investigation into privatized work release programs became public. “That work release program, what some might have been seen as simply cronyism, became the subject of a federal corruption investigation that revealed more shocking accusations — that decades before Strain had molested young boys in his orbit, continuing to do so with family members even as sheriff”, reported Sara Pagones of the Advocate in New Orleans.

The predator, Sheriff Jack Strain, also faces 16 counts of corruption that will be heard in December. Authorities charged in the federal probe include Jack Strain, and Keen and David Hanson. Prosecutors say that the three conspired a kickback scheme to privatize the work release program that was ran by the predator Sheriff’s Office. They then turned the company over Hanson and Keen’s adult children.

Justice will not happen on Earth just yet, but some people can begin to heal.  Maybe more will be prosecuted. There are still parents living in other states whose names I will not mention, but I do know that they fled St. Tammany Parish because of the predator Sheriff Jack Strain, and the child welfare system in Louisiana that failed to protect, or help them with their children after they were notified of the abuse by the predator sheriff.

There is more to this story. Children are still in state custody under the foster care system because the abuse was reported and the officials in St. Tammany Parish called the children and their parents liars. The Louisiana Department of Health placed children on psychotropic drugs to help them cope and deal with “their delusions”. Some mothers fled with their children. Some people committed suicide. There are countless victims that were not in court. Will the federal government investigate how the children and their families suffered? Will the people that covered up the crimes in St. Tammany Parish ever be exposed for their part in what happened to the victims?

Walter Reed, the district attorney for St. Tammany and Washington parishes for three decades and was convicted on 18 counts of fraud and corruption is no longer allowed to practice law. Walter Reed was allowed to serving some of his mere 48-month federal prison sentence at home because he was an undercover drug dealer for the government’s “War on Drugs”. West Virginiaallowed him to escape the prison sentence and return home to Covington in August 2020 “due to health concerns”. That sentence ended in October 2020…..but how many prisoners get to go home to die? Really West Virginia?

Walter Reed sold a condominium in New Orleans in order to pay restitution estimated at $125,000-$130,000 to the 22nd Judicial District Attorney’s Office after an extensive post-conviction battle to stay out of prison and to keep his law license! “Prominent public figures and attorneys offered documents noting his work as an undercover narcotics agent with the New Orleans Police Department and his role flushing out the sniper in the 1973 Howard Johnson’s attack”.

“The committee found that (Reed) had violated duties owed to the public, the legal system and the profession,” the report said, adding that his actions were “clearly intentional” and for his own personal benefit. His misconduct “caused harm to the public, the legal system and the profession.” While the committee said Reed’s work as a police officer and courage in the sniper incident were mitigating factors, as a long-tenured DA, “should have known better than to engage in the crimes for which he was convicted”.

So basically, for more than two decades people in St. Tammany parish had no one to turn to when it came to be sexually attacked, or their children being sexually attacked. To top that off the warden in West Virginia was more concerned about the man that should have prosecuted the sexual predators than the victims in Louisiana.

Sheriff Jack Strain would not arrest child sexual predators. The local county child protection workers sometimes even stated that they were “afraid to say anything”. Child protection services in Baton Rouge would send parents that tried to protect their children from sexual predators back to the fearful workers in St. Tammany Parish. There is no system of redress for these children or their parents, unless the federal government steps in to investigate.

Minding Hearts is building advocacy and peer support groups, “Hearts and Minds” in each state. The groups are created to raise awareness, educate, and advocate for those that might not otherwise be heard. We are here for encouragement, education, and support. We cannot give legal advice, but we can try and direct you in the right direction with your case. Links to legal services are listed with their states. Please share and let’s grow our groups. We are here to support families and develop resources that maintain family integrity. We look forward to your support. If you would rather become active by donating, then visit the donation page. Thank you.

Listen to WWLTV’s report on YouTube

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