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State v. Combs9/25/2002
r had run away and that she was unaware a hearing had been scheduled. Joseph further claimed that, although he had spoken with her on the phone and seen her during church services, he had no knowledge of her whereabouts at that time. At trial, David Tipton corroborated McCauley's testimony, stating that Joseph Combs had testified that he did not know where Esther Combs was and that he had not seen her in at least a couple of weeks. Tipton also testified that Joseph was under oath when he made the above statements. Richard Edward Ladd, Chancellor of the Second Judicial District, presided at the hearing and similarly testified that Joseph Combs had denied having any knowledge of Esther's whereabouts and that he was under oath when he did so.
On October 3, 1997, the entire Combs family drove Esther to the home of Sonja Caroline Meadows. Meadows testified that they were waiting for her when she arrived home after work at approximately 5:00 p.m. that afternoon. At Joseph Combs' request, Meadows had agreed to drive Esther to a Waffle House restaurant on the interstate near Spartanburg, South Carolina. Meadows testified that the trip "had something to do with [Esther] appearing in court that day." Esther brought with her some clothes, stuffed in plastic grocery bags, and a cellular telephone given to her by Joseph Combs. They left at approximately 5:30 p.m. Esther was in "bad shape" during the drive. She cried frequently and spoke to Joseph numerous times on the telephone.
At approximately midnight, Meadows arrived at the Waffle House restaurant and met Douglas Carpenter, a personal friend of the Combs family and a pastor at the Palmettoland Baptist Church near Charleston, South Carolina. Carpenter testified at trial that he had offered to keep Esther with him and his family for a while "to give her some relief from the pressure cooker." Via the media, Carpenter was aware that Joseph Combs was being investigated and that the whole family was under a great deal of stress. Initially, Joseph declined Carpenter's offer. Later, Joseph accepted. Carpenter said he had little knowledge of the court proceedings involving the Combs family; he knew that Esther was involved in some form or fashion, but he was uncertain to what extent.
Esther stayed with the Carpenter family for approximately four or five weeks. Carpenter testified that, during this time, there is no question that Joseph or Evangeline Combs knew of Esther's whereabouts. Esther spoke with one or both of them at least once a day by telephone. Carpenter said that Esther occasionally cried, usually at night, and they did their best to console her, but most of the time she "did real well." Esther accompanied the Carpenter family on shopping trips and attended church youth functions with Donna, Douglas Carpenter's daughter of similar age. The two girls became good friends. On cross-examination, Carpenter stated that his family did not restrict Esther in any way during her visit. She appeared to feel very comfortable living with them and behaved like a "normal teenager." Occasionally, she would say that she missed her parents and wanted to go home. She never indicated that she had been abused at home or that she was fearful of returning there. On redirect, Carpenter admitted that he had observed scars on Esther's body, but paid little attention to them because they had "always been there." He noticed that Esther walked with a limp, but testified that she did not appear clumsy or fall a lot. In fact, he saw her fall only once.
The Carpenter family had plans to visit Israel on November 12, 1997. Esther suggested to them that she stay with her aunt and uncle, Susan and Roger Combs (Joseph Combs' brother and sister-in-law) when they le
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