PLACERVILLE, Calif., April 7 (UPI) -- The California man accused of kidnapping Jaycee Dugard and sexually enslaving her for years entered a not guilty plea Thursday.
Phillip Garrido had been expected to plead guilty, the Contra Costa Times reported.
El Dorado County District Attorney Vern Pierson said Garrido's lawyers have appealed the way the grand jury that indicted him was selected and that was the reason for the change of plea. If the defense loses on the issue, Garrido's trial will begin in August, Pierson added.
Dugard was 11 when Garrido and his wife, Nancy, allegedly abducted her as she walked to school in South Lake Tahoe, Calif. She was living in a shed on the couple's property in Antioch, Calif., with her two daughters when she was discovered in 2008.
Nancy Garrido's lawyer, Stephen Tapson, said she also wants a trial.
Garrido was ruled competent to stand trial in February.
