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Plea deals taken in case of starvation

1 min read

MERCER – A defense attorney said the mother and grandparents of a Pennsylvania boy who was so malnourished one doctor said he looked like a Holocaust survivor have pleaded guilty to not seeking timely medical attention for the boy.

The attorney for Deana Beighley said she and her daughter, Mary Rader, pleaded guilty Friday to aggravated assault. In doing so, lawyer Neil Rothschild said they acknowledged “recklessly causing serious bodily injury” to the boy, who was 7 when welfare workers took him from his home in June.

The boy’s stepgrandfather, Dennis Beighley, pleaded guilty to child endangerment. He wasn’t directly involved in the boy’s care.

Mercer County prosecutors argued the Greenville adults withheld food from the boy at his grandmother’s urging.

Sentencing is in April.

Other attorneys didn’t immediately return calls.

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