{Buckhannon, West Virginia}...During an argument to overturn a ruling Tuesday, Putnam County Prosecutor Mark Sorsaia told members of the Supreme Court that he cannot understand why former Putnam County Circuit Judge O.C. Spaulding allowed Joseph Lavigne, Jr., who spent 15 years in prison following a 1996 conviction for the rape of his five year old daughter, Katie Haught, to go free. Lavigne was released from prison in May 2011 after Judge Spaulding ruled he was denied a fair trial. Sorsaia, who is appealing on behalf of the state, says the state decided to appeal because, after reading the circuit judge's opinion, it was arguably obvious that the Circuit Court imposed their personal opinions as to the facts of the case. Lavigne's attorney argues Judge Spaulding was correct when he found the instructions the trial judge gave to the jury were unfair because the jury was instructed that, if they believed the victim's uncorroborated testimony, they could find the defendant guilty, saying the victim had identified Lavigne in court when she actually had not. Sorsaia argues the testimony of the daughter was clearly influenced by the mother who had instructed her not to accuse her dad of committing the crime although she told several people her father was the one who sexually assaulted her.
