Haitian judge says still-jailed Silsby deceived fellow missionaries about taking children

Judge says Silsby deceived fellow missionaries

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — A Haitian judge says he dropped kidnapping charges against Laura Silsby and nine other U.S. missionaries because all the children they were trying to take out of Haiti were given over freely by their parents.

But Judge Bernard Saint-Vil tells The Associated Press he has ordered Silsby tried on a lesser charge of arranging illegal travel because she knew she had no right to take the 33 children out of earthquake-ravaged Haiti.

Saint-Vil also said Tuesday that Silsby deceived the other missionaries by telling them she had the proper documents to take the kids to the neighboring Dominican Republic.

The other nine were freed in February and March. Silsby remains in jail and faces up to three years in prison if convicted.