KALISPELL, Mont. - A man accused of killing a two-year-old boy appeared in Flathead County District Court today.

Brandon Lee Walter Newberry, 21, pleaded not guilty to a charge of deliberate homicide.

There wasn't an empty seat in the courtroom today and after Newberry entered his not guilty plea relatives of little Forrest Groschelle Juntunen started crying.

Newberry was arrested after his girlfriend's son died from what officials say were obvious signs of child abuse.

Autopsy results indicated the young boy died from a laceration in his intestines, which caused his bowels to poison his blood.

The boy's mother told deputies that Newberry had been watching Forrest while she worked. She said he had been vomiting since Feb. 12.

On Monday, District Judge Ted Lympus granted a defense request for a gag order preventing prosecutors and law enforcement officers from talking about the case.

On Wednesday, Flathead County authorities said the tires on a Jeep belonging to Newberry had been slashed and the vehicle spray-painted.

The trial has been scheduled for April 27.

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