A Texas teenager is facing charges related to the death of her younger brother, who authorities say was tortured over a period of several days. Seventeen-year-old Kara Walker has been charged with causing serious bodily injury to a child. The arrest took place on Wednesday, over half a year after the death of her eight-year-old brother.
Walker’s boyfriend, Nolan Stallings, 18, was previously arrested on the same charges. The alleged abuse is believed to have taken place on February 10 at Stallings’ residence in Highlands, near Houston. Walker is accused of assaulting the boy with a blunt object, while Stallings is alleged to have used both his hand and unidentified blunt objects in the assault.
The authorities were alerted to the situation when the boy was brought to a local hospital with severe injuries consistent with abuse. He succumbed to his injuries a few days later. Stallings was arrested on March 4, a few weeks after the boy’s death.
Local CBS affiliate KHOU reported that Stallings claimed the boy “fell down a lot,” but theTeen Charged in Younger Brother’s Death nature of the injuries suggested otherwise, according to law enforcement officials. Stallings is currently being held in the Harris County Jail on a $1 million bond. Walker’s bond is set at $100,000, and her next court appearance is scheduled for Tuesday.
In a motion to reduce his bond, Stallings pointed out that the incident took place just nine days before his 18th birthday and that he was still a high school student at the time. However, a judge declined to lower the bond. The authorities have not yet revealed a motive for the alleged abuse or provided further details on how they believe it occurred.