Teen’s trial for assault on principal delayed

Judge orders competency test

A judge granted a defense request Monday to postpone the trial of a teenager accused of a violent attack on a Boston Public School principal until she undergoes an evaluation to determine whether she’s competent to stand trial.

Jury selection had been scheduled to begin Monday in Boston Juvenile Court in the case of 19-year-old Laurette LeRouge, who is accused of assaulting Patricia M. Lampron, principal of the Dr. William W. Henderson K–12 Inclusion School in Dorchester, in November 2021.

Judge Peter Coyne said the court received a report last week indicating that LeRouge had recently been hospitalized, and he was delaying the trial for a month to allow a doctor to evaluate her to determine whether she was fit to stand trial. He scheduled a competency hearing for Feb. 20.

“The court is bound to take action with that, and to take steps to proceed with a competency hearing before we can proceed to trial,” Coyne said. He did not provide any details about the length of LeRouge’s hospitalization or her treatment.

LeRouge, who was present during Monday’s hearing, declined to comment outside the courthouse, saying her mental health is “not anyone’s business.”

LeRouge, who was 16 at the time of the alleged attack on Lampron, is charged as a “youthful offender,” meaning proceedings are open to the public, and she may be sentenced as an adult if convicted of assault and battery on a person over 60 causing serious bodily injury. The charge carries a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison, according to prosecutors.

Lampron was knocked unconscious during the attack and was hospitalized, according to police. She has not returned to work for the school department since the incident, according to a spokesperson for the Boston Public Schools.

After the judge announced the trial was postponed, audible groans came from the spectator section of the courtroom, where supporters of Lampron had gathered. They declined to comment after the proceedings.

One of LeRouge’s supporters, Natalie Ornell, said she taught LeRouge at the Community Academy, a BPS alternative school in Jamaica Plain, which LeRouge attended after the alleged attack.

“She was a child when this happened,” said Ornell, adding that LeRouge never caused any problems in her classes.