A couple from Northern California has pleaded not guilty to the deaths of two young children and the abuse of a third. The children were found inside a storage unit last year.
In a report by CBS, Tami Huntsman, a 39-year-old woman, and her unidentified 17-year-old boyfriend were accused of abusing to death a six-year-old boy and a three-year-old girl. They are charged with first-degree murder. The bodies were said to be stuffed in a plastic bin then stored them in a rented storage unit in Redding, California.
The sister of the two children, a nine-year-old girl, was also said to be abused by the couple. They have been charged with abuse for starving the girl who was found with broken bones in the back. The girl was found inside an SUV that was parked in Quincy, California, KRCR News reported. She was hospitalized for several days after and is expected to recover from her injuries. They were all in the custody of Huntsman and her boyfriend in Salinas, California.
Officials believe that the two children were killed by Huntsman after they sustained physical abuse and neglect. ABC News reported that the findings were made when a welfare check request was done. That was when the nine-year-old girl was found and the couple was arrested on December 11.
Two days after the arrest, the partner of Hunstman told investigators about the two bodies stored in Redding. A coroner working on the case believes that the two children died around Thanksgiving festivities.
If the two are convicted of the charges, Huntsman could face death penalty. As for the 17-year-old, he is too young to face capital punishment although he has been charged as an adult. His possible punishment is still unclear though.
The attorney of Huntsman, Kay Duffy, declined to comment as well as the teenager's representative, Jeremy Dzubay.
