WATERBURY, Connecticut — The woman accused of holding her stepson captive for decades pleaded not guilty in court Friday.
Kimberly Sullivan appeared in court in Waterbury as part of proceedings that began on Wednesday.
Sullivan opted for a jury trial.
The judge decided she will be outfitted with a GPS tracking bracelet, but will not be subject to house arrest.
Sullivan, 56, is facing charges of kidnapping, felony assault, cruelty to persons, and other offenses for allegedly confining her son in a room for two decades.
Last month, he deliberately set a fire to draw first responders and was rescued.
Body camera footage shows the now 32-year-old being carried by a firefighter.
The man, who police have not named, was 5-feet-9-inches tall and weighed only 69 pounds.
He said he had been locked in a small room with no heat or air conditioning for most of every day since he was about 11 years old.
In 2005, Waterbury Police and Children’s Services conducted a welfare check after the victim, then 11 years old, had ceased attending school. Despite their visit, no alarming signs were initially noticed. However, further investigation revealed that the victim had resorted to asking classmates for food and rummaging through garbage to find something to eat.
The victim shared that he had been allowed only brief periods out of his confinement to handle chores over the years. The living conditions reportedly deteriorated further after his father’s passing the previous year.
The victim’s biological mother says she never stopped searching for her son.
Heather Tessman, the victim’s half-sister, said police have not allowed her or her mother, who gave up custody of her son when he was an infant, to visit him as he recovers at an undisclosed location, because of the ongoing investigation.
His biological mother, Tracy Vallerand, said she hasn’t seen her son since he was 6 months old when she gave up custody, which she said she thought at the time was in his best interest.
Sullivan’s next court date is set for April 22nd.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
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