GERMANTOWN, Md. — The Maryland mother accused of abducting her two children says they are alive and she can take police to them, but a judge won't allow it.
The twist happened in a Montgomery County, Md., courtroom during Catherine Hoggle's hearing Thursday afternoon.
The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office and county prosecutors sought emergency custody of Catherine Hoggle so she could escort them to the children, but a judge denied that motion.
According to WTOP-FM, Hoggle is currently at a psychiatric hospital in Jessup, Md. The judge denied the request citing her mental capacity, ordering she remain held without bond, the Washington, D.C., radio station reported.
He set a January trial date, the radio station reported.
Hoggle's children, Sarah, 3, and Jacob, 2, have been missing since Sept. 7, when their mother disappeared with them. She was taken into custody Sept. 13. At the time, she said the children were alive and safe.
Police and volunteers have spent weeks searching for the children without any luck.
Montgomery County police have said that they don't expect to find the children alive and that they are building a homicide case against their mother.
Hoggle, 27, a diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic, underwent a psychiatric evaluation after she was arrested in early September.
She is charged with two counts of child neglect and obstruction and hindering related to the disappearance of the children.
The children's father, Troy Turner, has asked for an Amber Alert in the case, but police said it does not meet the criteria.
The Hoggle and Turner families are offering a $25,000 reward for any information that leads to the whereabouts of the two children.
Contributing: Nikki Burdine and Meta Pettus, WUSA-TV, Washington, D.C.
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