By Julie Manganis
SALEM — A Salem District Court judge is threatening to release a man charged with sexually assaulting two teenage girls unless prosecutors have either obtained an indictment against him or are ready for a probable-cause hearing in three weeks.
Gary Blanchet, 40, of 21 Essex St., Salem, who is known on the streets of Salem as "The Wind," has been held on $10,000 cash bail since his arrest last month on rape and indecent assault and battery charges.
Blanchet, who once walked the streets wearing a black top hat adorned with screws and other objects, a black coat and black makeup, is charged with luring two girls to the Salem Willows, where he sexually assaulted them. The girls said Blanchet and his female friend, who has been charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor, invited them to smoke marijuana.
Yesterday, prosecutors asked to delay a scheduled probable-cause hearing because they are still investigating the case, which they expect to present to a grand jury. That would obviate the need for a probable-cause hearing.
But Blanchet's lawyer, Rebecca Whitehill, argued that it was unfair for a judge to keep Blanchet locked up because prosecutors haven't prepared for a probable-cause hearing.
"They've done nothing," Whitehill said. "Why should he have to sit in jail on $10,000 bail? It's not right."
Prosecutor Colleen Cashman argued that, if anything, the case has grown stronger, with two new witnesses, including a concession stand operator who said one of the girls approached him, distraught, after the alleged incident.
Whitehill argued that at least one of the girls actively sought out marijuana and pointed to her MySpace page, in which she described her "likes" as "weed, liquor and sex."
Judge Robert Cornetta said he would consider granting Whitehill's request if Blanchet is not indicted or prosecutors are still not ready for a probable-cause-hearing by Dec. 11.
But then, in an unusual request, Whitehill asked the judge to issue a gag order barring Cashman or any other member of the district attorney's staff from telling the girl that Whitehill had obtained a copy of her MySpace page.
Whitehill said she plans to use the page to impeach the girl's credibility and doesn't want the girl to know, in case she decides to take down the material.
Cashman, the prosecutor, called the request "just ridiculous."
Cornetta looked around the courtroom, where several court employees, Blanchet's girlfriend and a newspaper reporter were seated. He told Whitehill, "The horse is out of the barn.
"It's on the record, and it's been disclosed in open court," Cornetta said. "I don't think I can do that."
