On Thursday morning, a Lubbock County Court at Law said that attorneys representing the parents of Holli Jeffcoat’s younger sibling arrived before their scheduled hearing and signed off on a protective order.
The protective order bars a family member of Holli Jeffcoat from accessing Holli Jeffcoat’s younger sibling. Holli’s sibling had been placed in foster care by Children’s Protective Services on February 10 – the day Holli was found dead.
Holli was an 18-year-old who attended Lorenzo High School. Her family members and educators described her as special needs.
She was found dead at her home in Lubbock County, and the Sheriff’s Department said that whoever committed the crime started a fire to conceal the evidence. Court records obtained by EverythingLubbock.com show that Holli’s younger sister was in the home when the homicide took place and when the fire was started.
The affidavit connected to the protective order stated that Holli’s sister was the one who found Holli murdered in her bedroom. Holli had been stabbed multiple times.
It was previously reported that Holli told someone at school she was pregnant. The affidavit solidified the claim – saying said that Holli’s mother confirmed that Holli was, in fact, pregnant.
The family member barred from accessing Holli’s sister in the protective order was the same family member cited as a potential suspect of sexual abuse in other court documents relating to Holli. EverythingLubbock.com has chosen not to release the name of this family member until charges are filed.
The protective order was filed on allegations that the family member had harmed other members of his household, had abused a child of the family, and that the violence was expected to continue without the presence of a protective order.
Under this protective order the family member is prohibited from committing violence against, communicating with, going near the residence or whereabouts of, or engaging in any conduct directed at Holli’s younger sibling.
The affidavit also stated that CPS had been involved with Holli’s sibling’s family since January 29, 2016 due to allegations that the family member had been sexually abusing Holli and her sibling.
As reported previously, the affidavit adds that in January, Holli accused a family member of sexually abusing her and getting her pregnant. However, the affidavit stated that there is information showing that Holli’s mother continued to allow this family member to access Holli up until the time that she was killed. That family member is the same family member barred from contacting Holli’s sibling by Thursday’s protective order.
As of Thursday, a spokesman with the Department of Family and Protective Services said that Holli’s sibling remains in foster care and is receiving therapy. The affidavit added that during that therapy, Holli’s younger sibling has expressed fear to her therapist of the family member whom she now has a protective order against.
The court document stated that Holli’s sibling is in “imminent danger” from this family member.
Steven Garcia, who works with Legal Services for Women’s Protective Services in Lubbock, explained that especially for children who have protective orders against family members, providing those children with counseling and a safe environment is a top priority.
“In our work we’ve seen, a lot of times, if you file charges or if you file a protective order, sometimes that abusive person will retaliate or the abuse will get worse,” Garcia said. “A lot of times when that separation starts, that’s when our clients are in the most danger.”
Garcia added that protective orders provide an important deterrent for perpetrators for violence. He said that victims, especially children, have trouble communicating abuse they may be experiencing.
“As we know at the shelter, it’s hard for our victims to speak out freely when they are in fear or when they’re still in the same vicinity or control of that abuser,” he said. “So it’s very important, especially with kids that the system does look out for their well being.”
Garcia explained that he couldn’t comment directly on Holli Jeffcoat’s case or her family, only that her case raises a lot of questions.
The Lubbock County Sheriff’s Office said Thursday that their office continues to investigate evidence in this case but that no arrests have been made yet.
“They gotta do what they gotta do, I know the Sheriff’s Office is doing everything they can. I understand it’s gonna take a while so we’re just being patient and getting as much sleep as we can, because we don’t get a lot of sleep,” said Ronny Lemmond, Holli’s uncle. Ronny came to the Lubbock County Courthouse Thursday in hopes of watching the hearing for the protective order.
He said the last time he saw Holli was on New Years, he described her as a happy-go-lucky girl.
“We want to let people know how beautiful of a person Holli was and we want to take everybody through this thing with us, and let them know exactly what kind of person it takes to do something so evil to someone like that,” Lemmond said.
Lemmond encourages community members to join the Justice For Holli Facebook page he helped to launch.