Friday, November 22, 2013

Accused Planned Parenthood arsonist pleads not guilty

Jedediah Stout, 29, Joplin, waived the formal reading of his indictment and pleaded not guilty Tuesday to arson charges in connection with fires set at Joplin Planned Parenthood.

Stout was represented by a public defender during the 12-minute hearing which was held in Springfield.

Stout has admitted to law enforcement officers that he was involved, not only in the Planned Parenthood fires, but also that he was responsible for the arson fire that destroyed the Islamic Society Mosque of Joplin. At this point, no charges have been filed in that case.

The revelation about the mosque fires was first made public in a motion to hold Stout without bond filed October 21 in U. S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri.
After being advised of his Miranda rights, the defendant confessed to the attempting set fire to the Planned Parenthood facility on October 3 and 4, 2013. 9. The defendant also confessed to setting fires at the Islamic Society of Joplin’s building on July 4, 2012 and on August 7, 2012. The building was completely destroyed in the August 7, 2012 blaze.
The United States submits that there is clear and convincing evidence that there are no conditions which the Court could place on the defendant’s release which would reasonably assure the defendant’s appearance in Court and the safety of the community.
The following news release was issued today by the U. S. District for the Western District of Missouri.
Jedediah Stout, 29, was charged in a two-count indictment returned today by a federal grand jury in Springfield, Mo.Both counts of the indictment allege attempted arson at the Planned Parenthood building at 701 S. Illinois Ave. in Joplin, Mo., on Oct. 3 and 4, 2013. Today’s indictment replaces the federal criminal complaint that was filed earlier against Stout.
This remains an active, ongoing investigation. Additional information will be made available to the public when, and if, an announcement is warranted or permissible. 
Federal law protects the confidentiality of grand jury proceedings; therefore, the U.S. Attorney’s Office will have no further comment regarding today’s indictment. We are prohibited by federal law from providing any information outside the public record. Department of Justice policy also precludes us from disclosing the details of a federal investigation. We cannot comment upon the status of an investigation or speculate about the outcome of an investigation.

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