Two women arrested by the Sierra Vista Police Department in separate cases for the alleged sexual abuse of the sons of friends are seeing their cases slowly moving forward.
Melissa Michele Blampied will be back in Cochise County Superior Court on Thursday for a pre-trial conference. She is slated to stand trial in February on two counts of engaging in sexual conduct in 2018 and 2019 with a minor under age 18.
Meanwhile, Rhonda Fouch is undergoing a court-ordered restoration to competency program with hopes she can stand trial next year on six felony charges involving sexual conduct with a minor and involving a minor in a drug offense. She is scheduled to be back in court next month for a status hearing.
Fouch, who turns 45 on Monday, was indicted in November 2018 after a friend contacted SVPD in January to report his suspicions that Fouch had been having inappropriate conduct with his 15-year-old son. The teen alleged that the sexual misconduct began in December 2017 and that Fouch had provided him marijuana.
The indictment also includes two additional counts of involving a minor in a drug offense and one count of aggravated assault against a child under age 15. Those counts involve other victims, according to court records.
Fouch was taken into custody on the Arizona indictment in New Mexico on Oct. 31, 2019. Despite a $100,000 bond order and an extradition notice, a New Mexico judge released Fouch after she posted only a $50 bond in a local child abuse case. That delayed her appearance in Cochise County Superior Court on the sexual abuse charges.
Once back in Cochise County, Fouch’s court-appointed attorney made a request in June for an examination to investigate Fouch’s mental condition at the time of the offenses and determine if she understands the proceedings against her and can assist in her own defense.
On Sept. 4, Judge Laura Cardinal found Fouch was not competent to stand trial at this time but was likely restorable to competency. The judge ordered Fouch into a restoration program at the Cochise County jail.
Cardinal was advised during a status hearing last month that Fouch’s treatment is continuing. The judge scheduled the next hearing for Dec. 11, but no trial date has been set.
While Fouch’s case has been delayed by her legal troubles in New Mexico and questions of her competency, the delays in Blampied’s case appear related to SVPD’s extensive investigation and then COVID-19 issues.
Court records show Blampied, 47, came under investigation in July 2019 after a woman contacted SVPD to report an alleged sexual incident in April between her son and Blampied, who had been invited to spend the night at the family’s home.
Blampied was arrested Aug. 28, 2019 on two counts of sexual conduct for intentionally or knowingly engaged in sexual intercourse or oral sexual contact with a minor under the age of 15. However, she was released from custody the next day after the Cochise County Attorney’s Office did not pursue charges.
Those charges were finally filed in February, although the two counts allege the boy’s age was under 18, instead of 15. The prosecutor has also alleged an aggravating factor in that the victim “suffered physical, emotional, or financial harm.”
Blampied remains out of custody pending a jury trial set to start Feb. 9, 2021. She has rejected at least one plea offer, according to her case file.
Sierra Vista Det. John Andela noted in his report that the day after Blampied stayed at the boy’s home, his parents were told by a young child that “something weird” occurred between Blampied and the teen in the livingroom. It’s unclear why the family waited several weeks to contact police as their nanny-cam showed Blampied disabled the device in the living room around 2 a.m.
Andela interviewed the teen, who also described a prior sexual contact with Blampied. In her interview, Blampied told the detective it was “possible” she had sex with the teen but could not recall due to “drinking and drugging a lot.”