Grieving family members struggled with their emotions Thursday morning as a burly ex-convict accused of strangling his ex-girlfriend and her four children made his initial court appearance in Oklahoma.
An automatic not guilty plea was entered on behalf of Joshua Steven Durcho, 25, who was arrested in Texas on Tuesday night. He is being held without bail and prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty if he is convicted.
Durcho is accused of strangling 25-year-old Summer Garas and her four children in their apartment in El Reno, a town of about 16,000 about 25 miles west of downtown Oklahoma City. The bodies were found Monday.
James Franklin, a step-grandfather of the slain children, said emotions were raw, and it hurt to hear the judge mention the victims' names.
"Every time you hear a name, it drives an arrow deeper in the heart," he said after the hearing.
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