Police: Couple Planned to 'sacrifice' Three Children on Church Altar

Associated Press ^ | Nov 13, 2004 | Associated Press

[BenLurkin]

ROCHESTER, N.H. (AP) - A woman and her boyfriend are accused of plotting to sacrifice the woman's three children on a church altar. Nicole Mancini, 29, and John Thurber, 35, were arrested at St. Mary's Church on Wednesday after workers said they heard the woman say she wanted to sacrifice the boys.

"We could tell this woman was not right," said church secretary Donna Landolfi. "She said, 'Let's go make the sacrifice.'"

Mancini and Thurber were in jail Saturday on more than $25,000 bail. They were arraigned Friday on three counts each of misdemeanor child endangerment. Thurber was also charged with marijuana possession.

The children, ages 9, 7 and 2, were not harmed and were placed in state custody. Police said Thurber is the father of the youngest boy.

Police said Mancini told them that Jesus sacrificed himself for her, so she was going to sacrifice the boys to free her soul.

"Eighteen years I've been doing this and I've never come across anything like it," police Lt. Paul Callaghan said.

Mancini's attorney, Kimberly Shoen, said her client meant the children no harm.

"They were never tied to the altar, there was no blood, there were no constraints for sacrificial use," she said.

Linda Slamon, Thurber's attorney, said Mancini had been acting "irrationally" recently and Thurber accompanied her to the church to get her help.

"If anything, he was there to protect the children and protect Miss Mancini," Slamon said.

A judge ordered Mancini, of Rochester, to undergo a mental evaluation.

AP-ES-11-13-04 1259EST

[BenLurkin]

More madness in the blue states.

[Ptarmigan]

WTF??????????????

[nuconvert]

Another one for your "WTF" reply

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1279153/posts

[BenLurkin]

Mancini's attorney, Kimberly Shoen, said her client meant the children no harm.

"They were never tied to the altar, there was no blood, there were no constraints for sacrificial use," she said.

The attorney sounds as though she is surprisingly familiar with the practice of human sacrifice!

[Grampa Dave]

More specific, more madness in a Blue City with decades of lunacy and voting for DemonicRats.

[BenLurkin]

Yes.

[TheSpottedOwl]

Jeez, this is the third story about child abuse this morning.

[Ptarmigan]

Yes, this is a WTF thread.

[Prime Choice]

No doubt the ACLU will soon show up and claim that the state is interfering with this couple's "right to worship Satan."

Stranger things have happened. Look at the Kerry candidacy...

[pete anderson]

Religion of Peace?

[Tacis]

You beat me to it. But, the point is that in the future, source like AP will no longer report on any religious whackiness in a "blue state." They are now in the business of building the image that religious whackos supported Bush. Just as their description of a crime can wordlessly tell the race of the vic or the perp or the inclusion or omission of party affiliation can tell to which party a wrong doing public official belonged, so too will we be able to tell the state in which a Christian belongs from the words used in the article's description.

Of course, no Christian whackiness in a blue state can be tolerated.

[theFIRMbss]

>A woman and her boyfriend are accused of plotting to sacrifice the woman's three children ... Thurber was also charged with marijuana possession

Wow. A drug user
who was going to commit
a crime. Whodathunk.

[BenLurkin]

I understand your point -- I hesitate to refer to these folks as "Christians' however. I suspect their Christian walk is either extremely weak, or more likely, entirely non-existent.

[montag813]

Thurber was also charged with marijuana possession.

Ah, looks like he was worshipping the blessed Mary Jane.

[NewRomeTacitus]

"...and claim that the state is interfering with this couple's "right to worship Satan."

She wanted to sacrifice them for Jesus (Carrie's mom comes to mind). Her lawyer can coach her to rant about "dirty pillows" to get her off on an insanity plea.

[Cicero]

I love the statements by their two lawyers. Next they'll be asking for separate trials, at double the expense to the taxpayers.

The woman's lawyer will have a hard time making a case. The man's lawyer might possibly have an argument. It's at least conceivable, if doubtful, that he wanted to protect the kids from their crazed mother. OTOH it's going to be very hard to argue that sacrificing the kids on an altar couldn't possibly harm them.

[Prime Choice]

She wanted to sacrifice them for Jesus (Carrie's mom comes to mind). Her lawyer can coach her to rant about "dirty pillows" to get her off on an insanity plea.

Creepy. Just...creepy. Makes you wonder what gets people that kind of backfire in the brainpan, don't it?

[Freebird Forever]

The attorney sounds as though she is surprisingly familiar with the practice of human sacrifice!

Pro choice no doubt.

[gnarledmaw]

If she wants her soul to be free so badly, I say we strap her to an alter and oblige her request.