'Husband declares he is innocent' 11.13.07

HUSBAND DECLARES HE IS INNOCENT
By J.R. WELSH
November 13, 2007
jrwelsh@sunherald.com

BAY ST. LOUIS -- The husband of a Kiln woman found Saturday during a volunteer search in Hancock County told the Sun Herald he is innocent of wrongdoing in the death of his wife, Brandi Hawkins Laurent.
Laurent, a mother of two, was reported missing Aug. 3 from their home off Road 528 near Kiln by her husband, Leo Laurent. He told deputies she had been using drugs for several days and left their FEMA trailer on foot at midnight after the couple had argued.
Authorities have considered Leo Laurent a person of interest in the case for weeks. He has been questioned on a number of occasions by Sheriff's Investigator Rita Blaize-Watson and others, and has taken at least two polygraph exams.
Leo Laurent has posted on Internet sites that he passed both tests, which normally are not admissible as court evidence, "100 percent."
Off the record, Sheriff's Department sources have said he failed both tests.
Leo Laurent acknowledged to the Sun Herald on Monday that he has been closely questioned by authorities. But he maintained his innocence.
"I had nothing to do with this," he said. "I don't want to be in the public's eye as being hated. This has been the hardest experience I've ever had to deal with."
He also said he has received death threats since the case began, adding, "I'm in a protective housing type of situation now." He declined to say who is protecting him from whom, or where.
Officials maintained Monday that autopsy results were still out on the case, and said crime scene examination results and dental record comparisons are not yet complete. However, sources close to the case said an initial examination showed Laurent may have been strangled.
Hancock County Coroner Norma Stiglet would neither confirm nor deny that strangulation may have caused Laurent's death. "I don't even have a death certificate yet," she said.
The death is now being considered a homicide.
Hancock County Sheriff Steve Garber declined to release further information and refused to say whether he has a suspect. Garber also said he had no knowledge of any autopsy results, and that his department has been instructed by District Attorney Cono Caranna's office to maintain silence on the case.
"The district attorney is telling us not to say anything," he said.
Caranna could not be reached by the Sun Herald on Monday and his office was closed for the Veterans Day holiday.
On Saturday, Laurent's body was found off a power company line clearing about a mile from the trailer. Local horseback riders participating in a search led by Texas Equusearch made the discovery. The body apparently had been originally buried in a shallow grave, then was possibly unearthed by animals before being found.
Garber said two of his deputies had searched the area where Laurent was found about two weeks after she was reported missing. Chief Investigator Kenny Hurt said he and another deputy combed the area on four-wheel vehicles.
"We rode that thing from one end to the other," Hurt said.
In addition, seven of Laurent's friends also had searched the same area a month after her disappearance. "We rode through there, but we missed it," said Andrea Dominach, who grew up with Laurent.
In both cases, if the body had not yet been unearthed, a shallow grave would not have been difficult to overlook. The remote area has stands of tall grass six to eight feet high.
Laurent's mother, Alabama resident Anita Moody, said she was still awaiting more word from authorities on her daughter's death. Moody said closure over the fate of her daughter gave her no comfort. "I didn't want this. I'd rather go 20 years not knowing she was dead," she said.
Family members and friends are hoping to see an arrest soon. And questions from the public began surfacing Monday over how a recovery team was able to find Laurent's body after looking for only 10 minutes, when she had apparently been lying in the elements since disappearing the night of Aug. 3.
"She didn't bury herself, that's for sure," said Cindy Wisdom, who commanded Saturday's search for Texas Equusearch.
Deputies said they are hoping crime lab results will give them more to work with.
"We're hoping to get something back by the end of the week," Hurt said.
Leo Laurent, husband of Brandi Hawkins Laurent
Cindy Wisdom, Texas Equusearch team member

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