4 family members plead not guilty in abduction and abuse of a malnourished Iowa teen
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Four members of a rural Iowa family have pleaded not guilty in the abduction and abuse of an 18-year-old relative who had allegedly showed up at a hospital so badly beaten that his brain was bleeding and so malnourished that he weighed just 70 pounds (32 kilograms), according to court documents.
Gary Graham Jr., 44; Danielle Graham, 42; Aaron Williams, 20; and a 16-year-old girl, all from Zearing, Iowa, were charged with first-degree kidnapping and willful injury last month. Each have submitted a written plea, the last of which — for Gary Graham Jr. — was filed Monday.
The teen girl is charged as an adult, but The Associated Press is not naming her because of her age. Her attorney filed a request that her case be transferred to juvenile court, court records show. She is being held at a juvenile detention center; the other three are in a county jail.