Trial for school administrator reset for September

DE QUEEN, Ark. — The trial of a former Horatio High School administrator accused of maintaining a sexual relationship with a student has been reset for September after her attorney filed a motion of continuance last week.

Labrada Vann’s trial had been scheduled to start Wednesday. Her attorney, Charles Friday, filed the motion after July 21, when Prosecuting Attorney Erin Hunter gave him notice of a new witness expected to testify.

The Arkansas Rules of Criminal Procedure provides that the prosecuting attorney provide a number of items to the defense counsel, including the names and addresses of persons whom the prosecuting attorney intends to call as witnesses at any hearing or at trial.

“The disclosure of a significant witness so late in the process and so close to trial is a violation … and significantly impairs defendant’s right to a fair trial and due process and has a prejudicial effect upon the defendant,” the motion states.

“Further, an evidentiary hearing concerning the nature of the allege testimony and its admissibility is needed and additional time for research and trial strategies based upon that eventual ruling are necessary to avoid undue prejudice against the Defendant and to preserve her rights to a fair trial. An evidentiary hearing concerning the admissibility of and/ or suppression of the evidence provided by the new witness can only be properly conducted if a continuance is granted,” the motion states.

The motion for continuance was granted by Ninth West Judicial District Judge Bryan Chesshir, according to court documents.

Vann’s pretrial is now set for Aug. 31, and her trial date will be in September, according to court records.

Vann is charged with one count of sexual assault, according to court records. She was arrested in April 2022 on a felony count of first-degree sexual assault. During the time of the alleged incident, Vann served as vice principal.

She has maintained a plea of not guilty to the charge since her arrest.

According to the Sevier County Sheriff’s Office, investigators were contacted by the Arkansas Crimes Against Children Hotline in April 2022 in reference to a possible inappropriate relationship between Vann and a student. The Sheriff’s Office began an investigation and eventually issued a warrant for Vann.

Vann posted a $100,000 bond after her arraignment in April 2022.

First-degree sexual assault carries a prison sentence of six to 30 years.