ROCKVILLE, MD — An attorney for Catherine Hoggle, the 30-year-old schizophrenic mother of two missing children, argued in court Thursday that charges against her should be dropped. Hoggle was the last person to see the siblings in September 2014 and has refused to say what became of them, only that Sarah, now 6, and son Jacob, now 5, are safe with someone.

Hoggle faces misdemeanor charges of neglect, obstruction and hindering in the case. Until she can face trial, a Montgomery County judge will not allow her to be interrogated about the fate of the children. Hoggle's doctors at Clifton T. Perkins Hospital, the state psychiatric hospital where she's been in treatment for almost three years, have repeatedly said she can't assist in her own defense, and at her July 6 status hearing the judge ruled she remained incompetent to stand trial. Prosectors with Montgomery County State's Attorney's Office have suggested Hoggle is malingering and said they're building a murder case against her. Troy Turner, the missing children's father and Hoggle's longtime partner, has maintained that Catherine is acting a part so she can avoid trial on charges linked to the children's disappearance. On social media Turner has said that Catherine tried at least eight times last year to escape from her maximum security facility, either by tying bedsheets together or taking a security card from staffers.

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A Sept. 15 hearing was scheduled to argue attorney David Felsen's motion that charges be dismissed against Hoggle. He said in court Thursday that Maryland law requires that charges unless a defendant is charged with a felony or a crime of violence, misdemeanor charges must be dismissed after three years, WTOP reports. The last of the three misdemeanors Hoggle faceswas filed Sept. 15, 2014. Turner and other family members and friends were in court Thursday, in an effort to get "justice for my children." He told Montgomery Community Media that prosecutors may file more charges against Hoggle. "They feel like they have a good case for a no body homicide," Turner said. "My main concern is bringing my kids home. If they are dead… they need to come home."

The Montgomery County State's Attorney's Office has not commented on how it will proceed in the case.

Next week brings the three-year anniversary of the disappearance of Sarah and Jacob on Sept. 7 and 8 from their Clarksburg home. Although he is not sure how he will spend those days, Turner said there has been talk of a balloon release and maybe a memorial service.