MONROE, N.C. -- A North Carolina man has pleaded guilty to handcuffing an 11-year-old boy by his ankle to a porch with a dead chicken around his neck as punishment.
Dorian Harper pleaded guilty Wednesday to three felonies, including child abuse, assault and maiming.
The 58-year-old Harper pleaded just as his trial was sent to begin. Jurors were seated Tuesday, and opening statements had been set for Wednesday. It wasn't clear when he'd be sentenced.
Harper rejected prosecutors' plea deal Monday, saying he wanted the trial to go on.
Harper and his girlfriend, 58-year-old Wanda Larson, were arrested after a sheriff's deputy found the boy in November 2013. Larson was the boy's guardian and a Department of Social Services supervisor in Union County.
Larson faces similar charges. She has pleaded not guilty.
