The Colorado Springs Gazette final

Suspect Letecia Stauch ordered to return to court this month

Letecia Stauch, accused of killing her stepson Gannon Stauch, will be returning to court this month after the Fourth Judicial District Court received results of her mental health evaluation.

Stauch has been awaiting trial for more than two years after allegedly killing 11-yearold Gannon in January 2020, but delays have occurred because of the need for her to have a sanity evaluation done due to her plea of not guilty by reason of insanity.

“Nothing can be done, and the case can’t move forward without this report,” Judge Gregory Werner said in late July, when the court was still waiting evaluation from the

Colorado Mental Health Institute at Pueblo.

Judge Werner said that if the evaluation wasn’t finished soon, a show cause hearing would be needed, requiring someone with the CMHIP facility to explain why the evaluation wasn’t finished.

Documents this week show that the court received the mental health evaluation report, and the court’s online docket shows a hearing scheduled for Aug. 25. Stauch, 39, has been ordered to appear in person.

Most recently, Stauch was in 4th Judicial District Court in June, when the court was informed that more time was needed to complete her evaluation.

Initially, Stauch pleaded not guilty to the charges filed against her, but in February she was granted permission by Werner to change her plea to not guilty by reason of insanity.

The change in plea required the state to conduct a mental health evaluation on Stauch.

In addition to a murder charge, Stauch faces charges of child abuse and tampering with evidence. If convicted of first-degree murder, she faces life in prison.

Stauch also faces a second case in which she is accused of attempting to escape from the El Paso County jail.

Stauch was arrested in South Carolina in March 2020 and has been in jail since March 5, 2020, after she was extradited back to Colorado.

LOCAL & STATE

en-us

2022-08-11T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-08-11T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://daily.gazette.com/article/281724093327467

The Gazette, Colorado Springs