A woman was found to have sinned by the courts after a confession to her pastor was used against her.
On Monday, October 30, Louisiana woman Penny Valentine was found guilty of first-degree attempted murder and home invasion following an incident in May 2022.
At the time of the ordeal, Valentine had been found breaking into the home of her fiancé’s other girlfriend and stabbing the woman during a fight.
But Valentine's lawyer had claimed that she was visiting the other woman - who had recently welcomed a child with her fiancé - amicably.
"There was no sign of forced entry, no doors broken, no windows broken. Somebody had to open the door," Valentine's attorney David Belfield III argued.
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“When she found out about the baby, she went to the house with a relative and brought the baby some clothing,” he went on.
“In her mind, they’re still trying to work the relationship out.”
But Ascension Parish Assistant District Attorney Brant Mayer said quite the opposite and that Valentine broke into the property while the woman was sleeping in bed.
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After the altercation, Valentine called her pastor - who is also a Major for the Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office.
He urged her to go speak to investigators after their chat and she went on to be 'interrogated' by them.
A 'distressed' Valentine then demanded she spoke with her pastor and confessed everything to him while another deputy was in the room.
She admitted to going to the house to try to catch her fiancé with the other woman.
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But, in light of it being a conversation with her pastor, Valentine's lawyer has argued that it was pastor privilege.
“Are you working as a pastor or a deputy? He never once told her, ‘Peggy, you have to be careful in what you say because I’m working as a police officer. What you say will be used against you',” said Belfield.
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“You wouldn’t sit in the room while she was talking to her lawyer, then why would you sit in the room talking to her pastor?”
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However, because Valentine wasn't alone with her pastor at the time of her confession, the judge ruled that there was no expectation of privacy.
Valentine is now awaiting pre-sentencing on December 30, with a sentencing date set for February 27.
She is currently being held at Ascension Parish Jail, Donaldsonville.
Niamh Shackleton