Suspect in Hancock deputy’s killing has first court appearance. Here’s what happened.
A Hancock County man accused in the shooting death of sheriff’s deputy Lt. Michael Boutte had his first court appearance Thursday following his arrest on a capital murder charge.
Joseph Michael Rohrbacker, 30, was arrested with assistance from Louisiana State Police on Tuesday.
Judge Trent Farve ordered extra security at the Hancock County courthouse Thursday in preparation for the suspect’s first court appearance since his arrest.
Rohrbacker’s hands and legs were shackled and chained and authorities had wrapped a bullet-proof vest around his chest.
After Rohrbacker heard the charge against him, the judge ordered him held without bond.
The judge set a preliminary hearing on March 25.
Rohrbacker told the judge he didn’t know his home address, but his wife did.
He seemed to be confused at times when asked questions, but he’s been recovering from gunshot wounds.
A public defender asked the judge to ask the Harrison County jail to give him the medications he needed because he hasn’t received them.
On Feb. 1, Boutte responded to a 911 call about a suicide threat at a home on Earl C. Ladner Road in the Necaise community.
Rohrbacker’s wife, Shannon Rohrbacker, said he had a “mental meltdown” and she called for help when no one could calm him down. She made the call after Rohrbacker cut a dog’s throat.
Boutte was shot as soon as he stepped out of his patrol car. A second deputy arrived minutes later and, in an exchange of gunfire, shot and injured Rohrbacker.
She attributed his actions to his diagnosed bipolar disorder and paranoid schizophrenia, and said they couldn’t afford to pay for the treatment he needed to get better.
He also had a history of run-ins with law enforcement, and in one police report a relative described him as “mentally handicapped and had the mental capacity of a 5-year-old child.”
The antique 12-gauge shotgun he used, his wife said, had been given to him by a relative about six to nine months before the killing.
MBI has been the lead agency investigating the case. MBI Master Sgt. Jason Gazzo is in charge of the investigation and attended the hearing along with Hancock County Sheriff Ricky Adam and other deputies.
If convicted of capital murder, he could face a maximum sentence of up to life without parole or death by lethal injection.
At next week’s preliminary hearing, the defense attorneys plan to ask the judge to consider a bond in the case, but prosecutor Olen Anderson has already objected, saying Rohrbacker is a danger to the public.
When someone is charged with a capital offense, they are generally not entitled to a bond, though they have been granted in the past.
