New trial date set for ex-Biloxi official Cliff Kirkland, accused of molesting young girls
The sex crimes trial for Biloxi city official Fredrick Cliff Kirkland, set to begin in Harrison County Circuit Court on Tuesday morning, has been delayed.
Judge Larry Bourgeois said the trial will start on Thursday in Biloxi.
Kirkland faces nine criminal charges accusing him of molesting young girls for years.
“Sometimes things come up,” Bourgeois said, and the court has to deal with that.
Kirkland was in the courtroom Tuesday, wearing a navy Blazer and and conferring with attorney Keith Pisarich. Several family members were in court to support him.
Jury selection took place Monday.
Assistant district attorneys Alison Baker and George Huffman are prosecuting the case.
Kirkland is accused of fondling three minor girls over a period of years at his home on Thomas Street in Biloxi.
Twenty-two people are listed as potential witnesses, including the three alleged victims, friends and relatives, Biloxi police officers and some of Kirkland’s family and friends, along with authorities trained in forensic examinations.
No media in court for victim testimony
Prior to trial, Harrison County prosecutors filed court papers asking Bourgeois to close the courtroom to the public when the three alleged victims testify. The judge granted the request, and no one —including media — will be allowed to hear their testimony in open court.
One of the victims, court records say, was 11 when Kirkland allegedly started molesting her.
The second victim, records say, was 9 when the alleged fondling began, and the third alleged victim was 13 years old at the time the alleged molestation began.
The crimes allegedly occurred at different times between August 1, 2013, and July 13, 2017, though the allegations of wrongdoing didn’t surface until years later when one of the three alleged victims confided in an adult who helped supervise her in school activities.
The first victim identified the two other victims, and all later underwent forensic interviews to determine the validity of the allegations against Kirkland.
Police identified the initial victim four days after the school supervisor reported that a minor girl told her Kirkland had allegedly been touching her sexually from the time she was in the fifth grade until she was a senior in high school.
A top Biloxi city official
Investigators conducted a forensic interview with all three minors at the Harrison County Sheriff’s Office, according to an affidavit filed in the case.
One of the teens said Kirkland repeatedly molested her at different times in an upstairs room at his Biloxi home, the records say.
A second teen told investigators she pretended she was sleeping when Kirkland molested her on at least one occasion.
Another teen remembered waking up in a bed at Kirkland’s home with him laying right beside her and molesting her, according to the affidavits filed in the case.
Kirkland had been working as a top Biloxi city official at the time of his arrest.
Biloxi Mayor FoFo Gilich initially hired him to be a part of his transition team following his election in May 2015. Gilich later hired Kirkland to fill the position of Chief Civic Innovation and Development Director at an annual salary of $96,000. His salary increased after that.
After Kirkland’s arrest, Gilich called the charges against Kirkland “shocking” and assured the community that the man he had called a friend for over 30 years would not receive “any special treatment” in his case.
Kirkland has denied any wrongdoing.
This story was originally published May 10, 2022 at 9:29 AM.
