BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KNX) — The adoptive parents of two Kern County boys reported missing two years ago pleaded not guilty Thursday in connection with their deaths.
Orrin West, 4, and Orson West, 3, were reported missing from their family’s backyard in the northern Antelope Valley town of California City on Dec. 21, 2020. Police undertook a massive search to find them, which ultimately proved fruitless.
Prosecutors now believe Trezell West, 35, and Jacqueline West, 32, killed the boys three months before they were reported missing, based on “crucial information” that came to light during the investigation, according to Kern County District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer.
Bodies of Orrin and Orson have yet to be recovered.
The Wests entered pleas in Bakersfield court to two counts of second-degree murder, two felony counts of willful cruelty to a child, and a misdemeanor charge of making a false report of an emergency.
Both Wests were ordered held without bail, with the judge characterizing them a “significant and substantial risk to public safety.”
The couple has four other children, two of which are also adopted. All four are in protective custody.
The Wests’ trial is set for May 23. The pair could face 30 years in prison if convicted.
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