A Newton pair charged in the attempted murder of a local man has pleaded not guilty and are set to stand trial this spring.
Nigel W. Graves, 33, and Lisa L. McConnell, 32, are charged in the Dec. 3 incident in which police say a Newton man was found with multiple stab wounds.
According to Newton Police, officers were called to 126 E. Fifth St. S. at about 7 p.m. where officers found Scott Auten suffering from stab wounds. He was transported to Skiff Medical Center for his injuries, where he was treated and later released.
Graves and McConnell were arrested a shortly after the incident — one had the knife on their person and the other admitted they were both at the victim’s residence and an altercation occurred.
The two were initially charged with attempted murder, a Class B felony and willful injury, a Class C felony. The Jasper County Attorney’s office later filed a first-degree robbery charge, a Class B felony, on both suspects, for allegedly conspiring to commit a robbery against the victim.
Graves, who is being held without bond at the Jasper County Jail, has submitted two letters to the judge assigned to the case. In those letters Graves claims he is mentally ill and is seeking mental health treatment rather than prison time.
McConnell has requested a bond reduction, which was rejected, and remains in the Jasper County Jail on a $80,000 bond.
A jury trial is scheduled for Graves and McConnell for April 8.
If convicted of all the crimes, they each face up to 60 years in prison.
Contact Abigail Pelzer at
641-792-3121 ext. 6530 or
apelzer@newtondailynews.com