Judge rules on request to delay Dennis Perkins trial

LIVINGSTON, La. (WAFB) - A Livingston Parish judge has granted a motion to delay the upcoming trial for Dennis Perkins.

Perkins, a former high-ranking Livingston Parish sheriff’s deputy, was set to go on trial on May 9, 2022, on charges of rape, child pornography, sexual battery and video voyeurism. He is also accused of covering desserts with his own semen so that they could later be fed to children.

His trial is now set to begin on October 11, 2022.

During a hearing in Livingston Parish Tuesday, May 3, 2022, a prosecution witness shocked many in the courtroom by disclosing that investigators actually seized close to “a million” different images from multiple devices inside the Perkins home. However, prosecutors claim a much smaller number, less than 2,000 of those photos and videos, contain any evidence that is actually relevant to the case.

Attorney Jarrett Ambeau, who represents Perkins, told the court he was stunned by the admission Tuesday that there is such a large number of images in the custody of prosecutors. He said he has the right to review all of the images and determine for himself which could potentially help in defending his client.

In a motion filed last month, Ambeau asked to delay the trial to give him more time to review all of the evidence in the nearly two-and-a-half-year-old case. Presiding Judge Erika Sledge held Tuesday’s hearing to determine whether to grant that delay.

Perkins’ former school teacher wife, Cynthia, pled guilty in the case earlier this year. She was sentenced to 41 years in prison and agreed to testify against her now ex-husband. The two were married at the time of their arrests.

“I think that it’s the right thing to do to make sure this trial happens once and it happens right,” Ambeau following Tuesday’s hearing.

The case is being prosecuted by the Louisiana Attorney General’s Office.

”No matter the day and no matter the time, we are prepared to take him to trial,” prosecutor Erica McLellan said following the judge’s decision.

“He’s only delaying the inevitable,” she added.

In announcing her ruling Tuesday, Judge Sledge said she knows the community is ready to get this case behind them.

“However, I have to make the decision that is right under the law,” she said.

Sledge warned both sides that she will be in regular contact with them to make sure they are prepared for trial in October.

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