Testimony in the hearing to decide which jurisdiction will hear the case is expected to take three weeks.
The grandmother of a teen charged with killing his parents and siblings in Fall City took the stand Wednesday afternoon in a hearing to determine whether the boy will be tried in adult court.
Kathryn Ogden, the mother of murder victim Sarah Humiston, spent several hours recounting her experiences with her daughter’s family in the months and years leading up to the killings.
A day earlier, defense attorneys raised new allegations about religious extremism and abuse in the home.
Prosecutor Jason Brookhyser questioned Ogden about whether she had seen evidence of abuse cited by the defense — such as withholding food and religious indoctrination that taught that psychologists were “of the devil.”
Ogden answered that she had not seen anything like that but did say the parents were quite strict. In recounting an interview with a forensic psychologist, Ogden said she had been asked whether her daughter, Sarah, showed affection to her children.
“As I recall, he asked very specific questions: ‘Did you ever see Sarah hug her kids or tell them that she loved them?’” Ogden said. “I had to think about that for a long time because I couldn’t recall if she ever said she loved them.”
Ogden said the family had lived with her for some time and that she had considered calling child protective services because of her concerns about the family.
Defense attorney Kristen Gestaut pressed Ogden about physical abuse, specifically the use of a wooden spatula to hit the children.
“For example, if a child couldn’t remember spelling words, they would get spanked for it?” Gestaut asked.
“That’s pretty broad. That would not happen with a spelling word — it wouldn’t be like ‘a spelling word.’ My perception of that would be if there were a number of them,” Ogden replied.
When asked about her grandson, who is accused of carrying out the murders, she told the court, “He seems mature to me, articulate. He reached out in conversation with all types of people.”
Testimony in the hearing to decide which jurisdiction will hear the case is expected to take three weeks. The decision will ultimately be made by Judge Veronica Galván, who has overseen the case from the start.
