Court set to hear arguments on moving Bethel Home trial

The Baton Rouge Advocate/AP

LUCEDALE, Miss. -- A circuit court will begin hearing arguments next week on a request to move the trial of the Rev. Herman Fountain, operator of the Bethel Home for Children.

Fountain, whose home has been the subject of investigations into alleged abuse and neglect of children, faces three counts of felonious assault on a police officer stemming from a welfare department raid at Bethel. He has pleaded innocent to the charges.

Three other Bethel workers, all of whom were charged with felonious assault on a police officer, appeared with Fountain at the arraignment and pleaded innocent. Circuit Judge Clinton Lockard has not set a trial date.

Bill Bailey, Fountain's attorney, filed the motion to move the trial shortly after the hearing. According to Bailey, media coverage of the George County Youth Court hearings was biased against his client.

In July, 17 children were ruled abused or neglected while under Fountain's care at the home.

"The newspapers have been helpful in forming public opinion," Bailey said. "He needs a fair and impartial trial and I don't think he can get it here. He may not be able to get it anywhere. I don't think he can get a fair trial on the moon."

Fountain could not be reached for comment, but he said after the Oct. 28 hearing that he thought a fair trial was impossible in George County. Also, Fountain denied striking police officers and said he had a videotape of the June 13 incident that proved police initiated the fight.

The four men allegedly struck officers when they swarmed Bethel on June 13 looking for minors who authorities believed may have been abused or neglected at the fundamentalist-run home. Armed with a court order signed by Youth Court Judge Robert Oswald, police raided the home for wayward children twice in one week, rounding up 72 children.

According to George County Prosecutor Mark Maples, Fountain and two Bethel supervisors still owe $252,000 in contempt-of-court fines. During a June 22 Youth Court hearing, Fountain, Tom McDonald and David Owen refused to answer questions on conditions and the number of children at the home and were fined $500 a day each until they decided to testify.

Fountain has refused to cooperate with the court and the state Department of Welfare and vowed to keep the home open at all costs.