Parents plead guilty in kidnapped bride case

PROVO — The tabloid-esque case of the parents who were accused of kidnapping their daughter to stop her from marrying a man they didn't like came to an end Wednesday when the Monticello couple pleaded guilty to reduced charges.

Lemuel and Julia Redd pleaded guilty to a class A misdemeanor of custodial interference. Julia Redd also had to agree to undergo a mental-health evaluation.

The Redds also are required to pay $2,000 to Perry Myers, their daughter Julianna's now-husband, the cost of a meal that was missed on the eve of the original wedding date.

The couple will not serve jail time because 4th District Court Judge James Taylor said the couple's time would best be spent in therapy.

"This is a tragedy and it clearly involves, in my view, mental illness. Mr. Redd and Mrs. Redd, you have done things that are not rational. I hope you have figured out you cannot have a family structure with adult children unless you are willing to accept and appreciate their choices."

During the hearing Wednesday, Julianna Redd Myers, who married Perry Myers just days after her parents returned her to Provo, spoke briefly to the judge, expressing her frustration that the case had taken so long to be adjudicated. However, she said she is grateful her parents decided to enter a guilty plea and take responsibility for their actions.

After the 9 a.m. hearing Lemuel Redd said he wants to reconcile with his daughter.

"We certainly hope things can heal. That's what we want," he said. "We hope things can heal so we can be a family again."

By court order, the Redds still cannot contact their daughter unless she initiates it.

The deal comes two days after a hearing in 4th District Court in which attorneys arranged last-minute trial details for the Redds.

The Redds each faced one count each of kidnapping, a second-degree felony.

The deal cancels their four-day trial set to begin Monday with jury selection from a pool of 200 potential jurors.

Attorneys wanted such a large jury pool because of the intense media scrutiny the case generated.

Both sides have appeared on television, giving drastically different accounts of what happened on the road from Provo to Grand Junction, Colo.

Julianna contends that last August her parents drove her against her will to Colorado, all the while trying to convince her not to marry Perry Myers and telling her that she was disobedient and evil if she didn't listen to her parents.

The Redds say they were acting out of love because they saw warning signs in Perry Myers and were trying one last time to talk to their daughter and ask her to reconsider.

The parents arrived in Grand Junction spent the night in a pre-booked hotel then brought Julianna back the next day.

Julianna and Perry Myers have since had a child, a baby girl.

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