Arkansas Courts Go Ahead With Trial Date For Missing Man Charged With Incest

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In a case that continues to be twisted and yet disheartening for the family of Larry James Tate who was reported as having gone missing by his sister about 250 feet from shore last Monday near Port Aransas, TX, some new information was reported yesterday.

A local newspaper in Texas reported that a court date for Larry Tate was set for October 10th and will proceed as scheduled, despite his "missing" status. Crawford County, AK prosecutor Marc McCune was quoted in the CallerTimes as saying:

"We will just proceed as normal, and see if he shows up," McCune said. "If he does, great. If he doesn't, the judge will issue a warrant for failure to appear."

Tate has been missing now for nine days, when he was reported to have gone swimming in the debris laden and dangerous currents of the Gulf of Mexico off of Mustang Island near Port Aransas, TX which is a popular family beach location. The Coast Guard suspended its search for Tate on September 23rd.

Reports have surfaced following his disappearance, speculating that Tate might have faked his own death in response to some warrants issued for his arrest in Arkansas in relation to Incest charges. However, those speculations have not been proven.

The family has actually gone on television and Tate's own brother-in-law made the following statement in a KIII TV News Report(news clip included):

"The fact of the matter is he's dead, the Coast Guard knows he's dead, and if we find the body it will be a closing for us."

There is also some conflict between original news reports and the recent KIII TV News interview about the actual date the revocation warrant was issued for the bond from Tates August arrest. The KIII TV interview shows Tate's brother-in-law stating that he found out by the bondsman that the warrants were not issued until the 23rd of September, the day after his disappearance.

As reported in an earlier news report in the same Corpus Christi paper, the United States Coast Guard Public Affairs officer Lt. Armell Balmaceda did say that although it was his experience that a body is usually found, he was quoted as saying that "They usually surface within five days but it could take up to two weeks, depending on the currents," he said. "I don't want to speculate. There have been cases in the past where the body is never found."

From the looks of some of the horrible comments on several of the news sites, some of which have been removed by the station, the family is having to deal with more than just the loss of their loved one right now as hateful words and rumors are running rampant through the Internet community. However, many people are confused by the limited reports and information available to the public surrounding the missing man but most are supportive of the family and are hoping for the best through prayers and support.

Sadly, this family will have to deal with grief on some level no matter the outcome of the situation. As a purveyor of faith, I might never relinquish the hope that my loved be alive no matter how horrible the reasons are for him being that way.

For the grief they must be feeling, our prayers go out to the family.