Caddo Court Finds Man Guilty of Molesting His Granddaughter

A Mooringsport man who molested a granddaughter with a developmental disability was convicted Tuesday, October 3, 2023, in Caddo District Court.

The eight-man, four-woman jury in District Judge Chris Victory's court deliberated 30 minutes before returning its unanimous verdict that Michael Harris, 69, was guilty of molestation of a juvenile or a person with a physical or mental disability in connection with an attack that occurred September 24, 2021.

The jury learned that the victim, a 28-year-old with the cognitive abilities of a 12-year-old, woke up to her grandfather committing lewd and lascivious acts on her while she and a sister were sleeping over with their grandparents during a medical emergency involving their mother and a sibling.

Harris has a 2010 conviction for molestation of his daughter, the mother of the two females involved in the 2021 incident, for acts committed from 1991 to 1997.

Judge Victory remanded Harris pending sentencing. When he returns to court for sentencing November 8, 2023, Harris faces imprisonment at hard labor for at least 25 years and not more than 99 years, with at least 25 years to be served without benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence.

Harris was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Victoria Washington and Sam Crichton. He was defended by Michael Enright and Dave Knadler.

The case was docket No. 389817