Roxanne and Chelsea
Our Story Part 2
Roxanne: 1/8/18: My supervisor called me saying that she needed to speak with me. Apparently, my ex had called the school board stating that I was having an affair during work hours. He was going to bring phone records to prove this. What he didn’t know was that I had taken time off from work to put my plan into motion so all the phone calls were not during work time but during time documented as off time. 1/9/18: A domestic violence detective accompanied me to the school board and explained the situation to them. They fully understood and warrants were issued for defamation of character. 1/10/18: He turned himself in. 1/18/18: Bond set at $20,000 for defamation charge. No bond set for breaking protective order:-). 3/23/18: Released from jail with an ankle monitoring device.
Chelsea: 4/7/18: My dad was never one to go places, especially not festivals. Yet, he was seen at the Boudin Festival. He had an ankle monitoring device. How was he allowed to go to the festival? He wasn’t but the monitoring company wasn’t keeping an eye on his location! My dad had told everyone that he could go wherever he wanted as long as he informed the monitoring company. This was a lie. Always manipulating things!
Roxanne: 4/12-19/18: He always sits at a local grocery store watching me as I leave for work and often following me. This goes on daily. Always living outside the laws and the parameters set on him. ALWAYS!! I video him and document EVERYTHING!!
Chelsea: 4/20-22/18: We spent some time relaxing at Cajun Palms. It was nice to have down time. It was quiet. I stayed with my mom for the day then returned home that night. The next day when my mom was headed back she passed on the highway he lives on. He spotted her stopped in traffic and chased after her down the highway on foot!! He was so mad!! He said that I was following right behind her even though I wasn’t. He makes himself believe things that just aren’t true.
Roxanne: 4/23-27/18: He never allowed me to go back into our home and get the things I had left behind. He burned, destroyed, or let strangers go through MY things. After days of negotiating between him and the Police’s Civil Department, I was escorted there by three sheriff's deputies. He packed what he chose he wanted me to have. I got a friend of my brother’s to help me. In typical fashion, he wouldn’t allow that person on his property. So my sister and I took the friend’s truck, escorted by a sheriff's deputy to his house and loaded “my things”. Once loaded we were escorted back to a predetermined spot where my ex passed, blew the horn, and flicked off all of us including the Sheriff’s deputy. Classic behavior for my ex!!
Chelsea: 4/29/18: So many threats have lead up to this day! I decided that he was no longer going to call me a whore. I didn’t want to think about him watching me and giving me the payback he claims I deserved. I knew I wasn’t as dumb as a box of rocks like he’d told me. I didn’t want to go die in the woods like he said. This was the day I was going to put a stop to it! My whole life my dad had been downgrading my mom I was not going to let him do it to me. I called the police and decided to press charges. I asked the cop if they were waiting for him to kill us or were they going to do something about it before that actually happened. The officer asked me if I knew my dad’s location then he would go pick him up. But, to further protect myself I would need a restraining order against my dad. On 5/10/18 I faced him in court. I was terrified! He yelled at me across the courtroom, he swore that I was lying, he constantly moved to get me to look his way. I didn’t budge. I cried but I stood strong. He signed my protective order!
Roxanne: 6/21/18: Another court date! Of course he always sits where he can stare at me the WHOLE time!! He constantly shakes his head, smiles, and laughs. Always the intimidator! He, of course, pleads not guilty so another court date it is!!! This is his way of continuing the manipulation.
Chelsea: 10/18/18: I turned in to the police department 10 days of constant emails as evidence. From that evidence he was charged with 15 counts of violation of a protective order third offence. I was supposed to speak in court that day but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I was too terrified, even in a courtroom. As a victim, I did not have to appear in court. My attorney represented me that day.
Roxanne: 12/13/18: I assumed our court date today was about one of his seven felonies or his fifteen misdemeanors. SURPRISE!!! He’s attempting to get out of jail early!! I answered all the questions asked of me. Then the judge asked how I would feel if he was released from jail that day. I broke down crying and said, “No!! That can’t happen!! My daughter doesn’t even know I’m here today!! I can’t call her and say he’s out!!” The judge looked him straight in the eye and said, “You are in denial of the things you’ve done. I’m denying your request.” Then the judge went on to tell him when he does get out he wants to be informed immediately so that additional restrictions can be placed on him!!! PHEW!!! Finally some small steps forward!!
Chelsea: 1/17/19: Almost a year had gone by since my last court date and the last time I saw my dad. I knew giving my testimony in court was something I needed to do no matter how hard it was. While we were waiting for our case to be called my brother walked into the courtroom. He sat with my dad’s sister. My heart sank. When I was called to the stand I was a nervous wreck. I cried when they asked my name. I sobbed when they asked my birthdate. I was so nervous that I couldn’t remember my birthday!! I looked straight at the judge and told him I was scared, I told him about the threats against me by my dad, and I told him the things I had witnessed. My dad laughed, his sister shook her head, and my brother cried. I told the judge I knew my dad was a good man but he wasn’t making good decisions. I wanted him to get help and I wanted him to get better. I heard him sobbing.
Roxanne: 3/7/19: I got a call from my advocate from Faith House asking if I’d like to be part of a brand new group of survivors, Voices of Acadiana. What a positive and forceful group of women to be involved with!!! I decided to make a difference and become part of this incredible group of survivors!
Chelsea: 4/5/19: I knew the day was coming. He wasn’t going to be in jail forever. This was the day he got out. My mom called me at work to let me know he had plead guilty to all the charges and had been released. I didn’t know what he was going to do but I hoped for the best. He got eight years probation and was again on a monitoring device. On 4/21/19 I got a phone call from a family friend saying my dad had fallen from a ladder and broken both of his arms. He was taken in for surgery the next morning and I felt helpless. I was so sad that I couldn’t be there for him but I knew that he had done this to himself. I knew I couldn’t blame myself for getting a restraining order. It was his fault! I was so upset that whole week but I had to move forward.
Roxanne: 5/18/19: My home is constantly monitored by an alarm system as well as cameras. While I was at a Voices meeting, my ex’s truck passed in front of my friends home, a restricted zone!! I contacted his probation officer as well as the monitoring company. He was not in the truck. Someone else was. Just another form of intimidation. Just another way to get around the law!! GRRRR!!!
Chelsea: 7/19/19: This whole process has been an emotional roller coaster. After meeting with other survivors and talking about how I felt I decided to go into therapy. I am participating in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy for treatment of my PTSD from my traumatic childhood . We talk about traumatic events and do eye movements to help my brain reprocess those events. It helps take the anxiety out of the traumatic experiences. It works! I feel like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders.
Roxanne: 8/18/19: He is attempting to Facebook friend my family, friends, and even threatened his nephew!!! He is also somehow following the Voices of Acadiana page. How can someone that is a CONVICTED felon with 7 FELONIES AND 15 MISDEMEANORS still be allowed to do all of this???? Things in the system have got to change!!! I’m going to make sure I make a difference!! His monitoring device comes off in October and Chelsea and I are terrified! But through therapy and safety measures that we’ve put into place, we will live as normal a life as possible.
We are here for one mission, one reason and that is to end the generational cycle of domestic violence! Voices of Acadiana and Faith House have helped us use our voices. We, Chelsea LeBlanc and Roxanne Martin, are breaking the cycle. We WILL end the family curse of domestic violence. Our family wants nothing more than for Chelsea and her dad to have a healthy, happy relationship. But first change must come. We have used our voices. We will continue to use our voices. We will not let anyone control, manipulate, threaten, or hurt us. Break the silence and save lives!
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