Misty Roberts former DeRidder mayor in Louisiana found guilty of sex abuse of 16 year old son’s best friend after boy’s mom claimed she was on birth control and text messages asking others to lie about ‘drunken’ incident.
A former Louisiana mayor has been found guilty sexually assaulting her son’s 16-year-old best friend at a booze-filled pool party.
The jury at Misty Roberts’ trial reached a verdict after deliberating for less than an hour, according to KPLC.
Roberts, 43, a former mayor of DeRidder was convicted on charges of carnal knowledge of a juvenile and indecent behaviour with a juvenile.
Ex DeRidder may found guilty on two counts
The conviction comes after the boy she assaulted at the 2024 party testified in front of jurors that he was drunk when the sex crime unfolded.
Roberts will have to register as a sex offender. Her sentencing is scheduled for April 17.
Carnal knowledge carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, whereas indecent behaviour carries a sentence of up to seven years.
The conviction ends a lengthy court battle between Roberts and the state that includes multiple delays and a mistrial declared last month.
Former Louisiana mayor sought to blame victim for his own ‘sexual abuse’
The victim testified that during the night of the sexual abuse, Roberts touched his bare chest while dancing around him and told him he was ‘doing all the right things.’
The pair then kissed and went upstairs to a bonus room where the victim detailed the sexual encounter that followed. When Roberts realized that her son and other juveniles at the party had witnessed the two having sex, the victim said Roberts tried to blame him for everything, American Press reported.
‘She ran out, and everyone was yelling at her that she had just had sex with a minor,’ he stated. ‘She told them she didn’t do anything wrong and that if they were going to fight someone, to go fight their friend (the victim).’
Ex Mayor’s own children testified witnessing their own mom sexually abusing teen victim
The jury also saw previous testimony from several witnesses of the incident, including an interview of the defendant’s own son telling investigators he saw his mother sexually abusing his friend through a crack in the window.
Roberts’ daughter also testified that she saw Roberts and the 16-year-old ‘on top of each other’.
The former mayor’s best friend and former sister-in-law, Jill Weaver, testified to jurors that she had overheard Roberts’ teenage son screaming that his mum ‘effed’ his ‘best friend’ after the drunken pool party when she was asked to help mediate the chaos.
After that night, the victim’s mum texted Roberts about the possibility of her becoming pregnant and Roberts assured the mother she was on birth control, text messages showed.
Roberts’ own friends told her to take the morning after pill.
A local DoorDash driver also told the courtroom that they had delivered Plan B emergency contraception to her home in 2024 — possibly in connection with the assault.
In closing arguments, the prosecution showed jurors one last time text messages between Roberts and her friend and ex-husband, asking them all to lie about the incident and encourage others to lie for her.
The prosecution also showed jurors a photo of Roberts straddling the victim on a couch in the room, taken by her son through the window, and told the jury, “This shows you everything you need to know” about the case.
Roberts resigned as mayor of DeRidder, a town of 9800, days before her 2024 arrest.
Roberts at the time of her arrest, was in the middle of her second term as the municipality’s mayor, winning reelection with sixty percent of the vote in 2022.
