D.A. Asks Limit to Witnesses in ‘Rebirth’ Case
Clients of two therapists charged after a 10-year-old girl who was wrapped in a blanket suffocated during a psychotherapy session should not be allowed to testify as character witnesses at the March 29 trial of the accused, prosecutors urged Thursday.
Jefferson County District Judge Jane Tidball said she would rule on the matter if it comes up at the trial of Connell Watkins, 53, and Julie Ponder, 40. The women are charged with felony reckless child abuse resulting in the death of Candace Newmaker after she underwent “rebirthing” therapy at Watkins’ clinic.
Prosecutors allege the girl suffocated after being wrapped in a flannel blanket surrounded by pillows and forced to work her way through the tightly wound cover to simulate birth.
According to court documents, the girl’s adoptive mother, Jeane Newmaker, paid Watkins $7,000.
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