Trenton police and fire departments spent almost $6,000 in overtime searching for Norvell after her boyfriend’s mother told police she was “concerned” for the girl’s safety.
Today, Norvell was in Butler County Juvenile Court where Magistrate Patricia Wilkerson placed her under house arrest and told her not to have contact with others involved in the case.
The girl was in tears after the hearing.
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Latisha Flory-Williams, Norvell’s maternal aunt, attended the hearing today with the teen’s biological mother.
“You have done nothing wrong,” Flory-Williams said to her niece after the hearing. She said she plans to take custody of the teen, who will turn 18 in a few months.
MORE: Teen told school she couldn’t live with guardian
Norvell was told at a young age that her mother and that side of the family had died in a car crash, Flory-Williams said.
“She is not a bad kid,” Flory-Williams said.
Norvell had been living with her maternal aunt, Nina Norvell Berry, before running away.
Police have not said why the teen ran away, but records obtained by this news outlet show Trenton police and Butler County Children Services were called to the home of Nina Norvell Berry more than 30 times.
On Wednesday, Robert Bryant, 47, of Middletown pleaded guilty to obstructing justice and attempted interference of custody. His wife, Lucinda Bryant, 47, pleaded guilty to obstructing justice and attempted interference of custody.
The Bryants were charged after Norvell was found hiding in their home. Today, Robert Bryant was also in juvenile court to voice his support of the teen.
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