Boy dies after parents tie him to tree

MACCLESFIELD, N.C., June 13 (UPI) -- A 13-year-old boy in North Carolina died after he was tied to a tree overnight for disobeying his parents, police said Friday.

The boy's father, Brice Brian McMillan, 41, and stepmother, Sandra Elizabeth McMillan, 36, of Macclesfield, N.C., were charged with first-degree murder and felony child abuse, the Raleigh (N.C.) News & Observer reported.

The parents were being held without bail in the Edgecombe County Detention Center, the newspaper said.

Authorities said rescue workers found the boy Thursday afternoon.

Brice McMillan told police the boy -- whose name had not been disclosed -- had been disobedient Tuesday, so he was tied to a tree in the family's yard overnight.

Then he misbehaved again Wednesday, his father said, and was again tied to the tree with plastic ties, Edgecombe Sheriff James Knight said.

Authorities removed two other children from the home, the newspaper said. The McMillans were set to appear in court Monday.