Louisiana Foster Father Sentenced to Over 300 Years for Child Abuse

BATON ROUGE (KPEL) - A Louisiana foster father was found guilty of sexual battery and molestation of a juvenile on Monday.

Get our free mobile app

Michael Hadden has been abusing children under his care as far back as 2022, and he was finally found guilty on ten counts, including sexual battery, molestation of a juvenile, and aggravated crimes against nature, according to WBRZ.

Many of Hadden's victims were autistic children and teens. Prosecutors say Hadden has been targeting children with special needs for at least three years.

The WBRZ Investigative Unit confirmed that at least one child had been temporarily removed after abuse complaints but was returned to Hadden's care.

District Attorney Hillar Moore III commented on the verdict, saying, "Our courageous victims were some of the most vulnerable in society, and we are pleased with the verdict, which was the just verdict, not only for our survivors of these heinous acts but also for our community."

WBRZ reported that Hadden did take the stand and spoke for over an hour about his 'good deeds'.

Jamie Byrd, a teacher of one of the victims, recalls the victim missing several days of school and when she asked about his absence he said he was being 'punished from school.' and was taken to a 'creepy house' where Hadden would go into his room.

To ease the victim's nerves in court, they played his favorite Jelly Roll song, where he told prosecutors he was 'mad' and that his foster father had 'hurt him'.

This is a developing story, and the KPEL News Team is working to provide additional coverage for Acadiana. Updates will be shared as they become available, so download the KPEL News app via Google Play or in the App Store and subscribe to breaking news alerts to get the latest information sent directly to your mobile device.

You can also use the KPEL app to submit a news tip, share a traffic update, or chat directly with our on-air team.

Be sure to bookmark our latest site, wearelafayette.net, where we provide more local news coverage as well as lifestyle and community features.

To report errors, omissions, or other concerns regarding the content above, send emails to news@kpel965.com.