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Kidnapping suspect to make Wis. court appearance

By: Associated Press//February 19, 2014//

Kidnapping suspect to make Wis. court appearance

By: Associated Press//February 19, 2014//

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Kristen Smith, charged with kidnapping her half sister’s newborn from Wisconsin, arrives for a hearing Friday, Feb. 14, 2014 in Tipton, Iowa. At the hearing, Smith waived the right to challenge her extradition on a warrant from Texas charging her with tampering with government records. That means Texas authorities now have the ability to transport her to face that charge, but that isn’t expected to happen immediately as the judge ordered Smith to remain jailed in Tipton on $50,000 bond, citing the seriousness of the charges. (AP Photo/Ryan J. Foley)
Kristen Smith, charged with kidnapping her half sister’s newborn from Wisconsin, arrives for a hearing Friday in Tipton, Iowa. (AP Photo/Ryan J. Foley)

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — The woman charged with kidnapping a Wisconsin newborn and leaving him behind an Iowa gas station is scheduled to make her initial federal court appearance Friday.

A spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Madison says authorities will transfer Kristen Smith to Wisconsin from Iowa sometime before then.

A grand jury is meeting in Madison on Wednesday, but it’s unclear whether Smith’s case is being heard.

The FBI has filed a complaint accusing Smith in the Feb. 6 kidnapping of newborn Kayden Powell. Smith’s been jailed in Iowa since her arrest, hours after the baby went missing.

Investigators say Smith took Kayden from a Wisconsin home where her half sister was staying, and left him in West Branch, Iowa, in freezing temperatures. He was found alive 29 hours later.

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