PART 11
Dahlia eventually accepted a plea agreement with the state. She pleaded guilty to child neglect and agreed to testify fully against her parents, her brothers, Chief May, and the corrupt doctors.
She received a suspended sentence, mandatory psychiatric counseling, and a strict permanent restraining order.
During the trial, Dahlia detailed the decades of domestic violence, the bribes paid to local police, and the systematic cover-ups run by her father. The federal prosecutor played Paige’s video on a large screen in the courtroom.
No one in the courtroom could look away as Anna tried to protect her face with her tiny hands, while Dahlia slowly pulled the curtain shut in the background.
Luke kept his head down, while Reid shouted curses at the prosecutor until bailiffs removed him from the room. Ellis Higgins looked at his team of lawyers, but for the first time, none of them had an answer for him.
The legal trials lasted for over a year, but the Higgins empire collapsed within weeks. Federal regulators froze all assets of the Ridge Credit Union and canceled dozens of fraudulent foreclosure contracts, allowing local families to reclaim their stolen homes.
The lumber mill was placed under federal administration, and the workers formed their very first independent safety committee. The clinic was permanently closed, and Chief May was sentenced to federal prison for bribery.
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Ellis Higgins was sentenced to thirty years in prison for financial fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy. When the judge read the sentence, Ellis did not ask about his children or his granddaughter.
“What will happen to my land?” Ellis asked his lawyer.
