Elizabeth Siders, the Ohio mother at the center of a case in which her 16 children were found in squalor, is pregnant again, her attorney said Monday.
Attorney Thomas Stolly made the announcement during Ms. Siders’ competency hearing in a Vinton County court. He provided no details.
Ms. Siders, 34, denied being pregnant when she was booked into the county jail in June on 19 counts of child endangerment, two counts of sexual battery and two counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor. She pleaded not guilty.
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A judge ruled Monday that she is competent to stand trial on the charges. An initial evaluation found she has depression and anxiety but no documented history of mental illness.
Ms. Siders’ husband, Gary Siders Jr., who faces the same charges, is undergoing a competency evaluation with no hearing scheduled.
Mr. Stolly filed a motion seeking an evaluation of whether Ms. Siders was legally insane at the time of the alleged offenses.
The defense attorney said he believes Ms. Siders suffers from numerous mental health pathologies, adding “competency may be an issue and a clear impediment to [her] ability to assist in her own defense,” the New York Post reported.
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