Conflicting Stories in Alabama “Run To Death” Trial

GADSDEN, Ala. (AP) – Trial witnesses say a woman charged with running her granddaughter to death gave differing stories about what happened before the child’s collapse.

One witness testified Tuesday that 49-year-old Joyce Hardin Garrard once claimed 9-year-old Savannah Hardin had a seizure indoors, but another time said the girl fell outdoors on stairs.

Another witness says the woman claimed she and the girl collided while racing toward a door.

Alabama county prosecutors say the woman made the girl run for hours as punishment for a lie about candy, leading to the child’s collapse and eventual death.

Defense attorneys are raising questions about the girl’s cause of death, and they say the woman didn’t mean to harm her granddaughter.

Garrard is charged with capital murder and could get the death penalty if convicted.