Not guilty plea in Florida girl's death; prosecutors to seek death penalty
TAMPA, Fla. A convicted sex offender charged in the slaying of young Florida girl has pleaded innocent. The partially clothed body of Sarah Lunde (LUHN'-dee) was found last month after a week-long search. The 13-year-old had returned home from a church trip when she went missing.
Today, an attorney for the suspect in the case (David Onstott) entered a not-guilty plea to charges of first-degree murder and attempted sexual battery.
Authorities say the suspect confessed to strangling the girl after the two got into an argument. They say he'd visited the girl's house looking for her mother, whom he had once dated.
Meanwhile, prosecutors filed court papers saying he will seek the death penalty if the defendant is convicted of first-degree murder.
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