Wisconsin woman pleads not guilty in son's neglect death

A Wisconsin woman accused of neglecting her son, causing his death and hiding his body in the trunk of her car for months has pleaded not guilty to criminal charges

Child's Body Car (Brown County Sheriff's Office)

A Wisconsin woman accused of neglecting her son causing his death and hiding his body in the trunk of her car for months has pleaded not guilty to criminal charges.

Sagal Hussein faces nine charges in Brown County, including chronic neglect of a child resulting in death. A criminal complaint says 5-year-old Josias Marquez was likely dead for months before his body was found in March, WLUK-TV reported.

Court documents say the boy had been diagnosed with cerebral palsy and epilepsy, but he was not getting proper medical treatment and Hussein was not giving him his seizure medication.

According to the complaint, the investigation into the child's whereabouts began Jan. 26. A neighbor had reported seeing Hussein’s other two children outside, unsupervised.

Authorities had tried to get Hussein to tell them where her third child was. She said the boy was with his father out of state, but police were unable to confirm that.

Hussein was arrested March 30, and a search warrant was issued for her home and car. The next day, investigators found the decomposed body in a duffel bag in the trunk of her vehicle.