While there is another diary that claims Ted Haggard admitted to some of what is claimed against him, there is some dispute about the veracity of this report. What is not disputed is
the following report from local station that broke the story:
a voice expert has verified two of the voicemails and on them Haggard requests Mike Jones to buy him some crystal meth:
The voice mails for from a man who calls himself "Art."
It should be noted Haggard's middle name is Arthur.
The first voice message, left on August 4 at 2:18 p.m., says:
"Hi Mike, this is Art. Hey, I was just calling to see if we could get any more. Either $100 or $200 supply. And I could pick it up really anytime I could get it tomorrow or we could wait till next week sometime and so I also wanted to get your address.
I could send you some money for inventory but that's probably not working, so if you have it then go ahead and get what you can and I may buzz up there later today, but I doubt your schedule would allow that unless you have some in the house. Okay, I'll check in with you later. Thanks a lot, bye."
The second voice message, left on August 4 at 5:10 p.m., says:
"Hi Mike, this is Art, I am here in Denver and sorry that I missed you. But as I said, if you want to go ahead and get the stuff, then that would be great. And I'll get it sometime next week or the week after or whenever. I will call though you early next week to see what's most convenient for you. Okay? Thanks a lot, bye."
Jones claims Art is referring to methamphetamine in the messages.
9NEWS had a nationally known voice recognition expert, Richard Sanders, listen to the voice mails to determine if it is Haggard. Sanders has previously worked on such high profile cases as the Oklahoma City bombing trial, the Columbine High School shootings, the JonBenet Ramsey murder investigation, and the Kobe Bryant case.
"This certainly sounds like the same person," said Sanders, after listening to the voice mails.
In his final report, Sanders found that of 12 single words that were the same on both recordings, nine of those words were perfect matches. He also found that the entire phrase, "I don't know," was also a precise match.
Sanders makes his decision by comparing the resonance of the voice, the play of one's tongue and the inflection of vowel sounds.
"If we can find enough words and phrases that match then it's generally accepted by courts that that's the same person," he said.
The fact that the voicemails came out a bit later, after the original story, is understandable. In the first wave of stories, Mike Jones said he had to consult a lawyer before releasing the voicemails. Obviously, he wanted to check whether he could be prosecuted for having helped distributed illegal drugs. I guess he won't be charged or he's willing to deal with the consequences.
Anyway, for those who have been wary to believe this story, I think this evidence is pretty damning.
Update [2006-11-3 5:51:56 by John Campanelli]: Here is a video of the local news station report that includes the voicemails, so you could make up your own mind. Sounds a lot like Haggard.
Update [2006-11-3 6:0:51 by John Campanelli]: Joelrama points to a this story from a local station in which a chruch leader claims Haggard admits to some indiscretions.
In the previous diary, some have said that the voicemails only have Haggard requesting crystal meth and even then he never asks explicitly. However, Mike Jones has an ad on rentboy.com for his services as a male especort. Why in the world would Haggard be contacting him, if all he wanted was drugs? Besides, the drug part is rather damning in itself.
(As an aside, I hope I look as good as Mike Jones when i turn 49. Seems like he has a rather nice body for his age. Though it sad he's still turning tricks this late in his life. Oh, well, live and let live. I'm no one to judge.)