Michael and Kristine Barnettbelieved they were adopting a 6-year-old girl. But soon, they became suspicious of her age, leading to a bombshell claim: that Natalia, who has a form of dwarfism called spondyloepiphyseal, was merely posing as a child — and was really an adult woman with sinister intentions.
The strange case is the subject of a new docuseries,The Curious Case of Natalia Grace, debuting across three consecutive nights on ID beginning Monday, May 29, airing nightly from 9-11 p.m. ET/PT. (A trailer for the show is below.)
The docuseries features exclusive interviews with the Barnetts as well as members of Natalia’s adoptive family, as well as never-before-seen footage.
Natalia Grace.
Michael Barnett toldGoodMorningAmericathat doctors allegedly treating Natalia told them “this person is a sociopath. This person is a con artist. You are all in danger.”
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The following year, the couple moved with their three sons to Canada without her, leaving her alone in an apartment in Lafayette.
The Barnetts, who later divorced, were charged with neglect of a dependent. Prosecutors couldn’t charge the couple with neglect of a child because of Natalie’s court-ordered age change.
Natalia testified during Michael’s trial saying that she didn’t want to live in Lafayette.
“I wanted to be with the Barnetts,” she said, theLafayetteJournal&Courierreported. “I wanted to live with them.”
Michael was found not guilty of three counts of neglect and conspiracy to commit neglect of a dependent in 2022, theAssociated Pressreported.
In March, charges against Kristina were dropped, according toWTHR.
The Curious Case of Natalia Graceairs across three consecutive nights on ID beginning Monday, May 29, airing nightly from 9-11 p.m. ET/PT.
source: people.com
