The mother and stepfather accused of beating their 10-year-old daughter to death in their Maine home have pleaded not guilty to murder charges on Monday.
Sharon Carillo and her husband Julio Carillo appeared in court following their indictment by a grand jury for depraved indifference murder in the February death of Marissa Kennedy in Stockton Springs.
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According to Newscenter Maine, Julio Carillo's new lawyer, Derrick Banda, told reporters after Monday's hearing there will be some "real surprises" in the case.
According to court documents, the parents admitted to beating Kennedy for months, striking her with their fists, a belt and a metal mop until she could barely walk. When the daughter began slurring her speech, the mother allegedly accused the girl of faking her injuries, and beat her more.
Meanwhile, the lawyer for Sharon Carillo reportedly has continued his efforts to have two state prosecutors removed from the case after a judge tossed out records that the state attorney general's prosecutors illegally obtained from a school his client attended in New York that included information about her mental or emotional health.
The two suspects are being held in a regional jail. If the case goes to trial, opening arguments are not expected for about six months.
