By Bonnie Culverhouse

A man found guilty by a Claiborne Parish jury is scheduled to stand trial on similar charges in Webster Parish next month.

A jury found Christopher Lee Coliston, 43, guilty of 1 count of Third Degree Rape, 2 counts of Sexual Battery, 1 count of Attempted Sexual Battery, and 3 counts of Indecent Behavior with a Juvenile in November.

Det. Sgt. Shane Griffith said the Minden Police received the case in the spring of 2022. Coliston was indicted in 26th Judicial District Court for first degree rape and molestation of a juvenile under the age of 13.

“It was a joint investigation with Claiborne Parish Sheriff’s Office and us – myself and Jay Perry,” Griffith said, adding that in 1997, Coliston was convicted for raping a six-year-old girl. “He was 17 at the time, which meant he was tried as an adult.”

Formal sentencing in Claiborne Parish was scheduled for December 5 has yet to take place.

Webster Prosecutor Hugo Holland said he does not believe Coliston will go to trial in Webster.

“He was convicted in another jurisdiction and must be sentenced to mandatory life in prison,” Holland said. “There’s very little point in us moving forward with anything here in Webster Parish now.”

This information has been provided by a law enforcement agency as public information. Persons named as suspects in a criminal investigation, or arrested and charged with a crime, have not been convicted of any criminal offense and are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.