This booking photograph taken Friday, March 10, 2017, provided by the Jackson County Sheriff's Department, in Scottsboro, Ala., shows 19-year-old Mekenzie Leigh Guffey, who was charged with rape and other offenses after allegedly getting pregnant by a 14-year-old boy. Police said she was arrested after seeking help through a social worker. (Jackson County Sheriff's Department via AP) (The Associated Press)
HOLLYWOOD, Ala. – Police in Alabama have charged a 19-year-old woman with rape and other offenses after she allegedly got pregnant by a 14-year-old boy and sought government assistance.
Records show Mekenzie Leigh Guffey was arrested last week in the northeastern Alabama town of Hollywood. She's now free on bail.
Police say a social worker told them about the relationship between Guffey and the boy after Guffey sought help through a Medicaid program that assists area women.
Guffey's distraught grandmother described the young woman's childhood as a nightmare, with both her parents abusing drugs and in frequent trouble. But police said that doesn't justify having sex with a juvenile.
A court-appointed lawyer declined to comment on the charges but says he will provide the strongest-possible defense.
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