Calif. couple accused of abducting Jaycee Dugard seek permission to visit each other in jail

Couple accused of abducting Dugard seek visits

SAN FRANCISCO — A defense lawyer says a couple accused of abducting a girl more than 18 years ago and confining her to the backyard of their California home are seeking permission to visit each other in the jail.

Phillip and Nancy Garrido, of Antioch, have pleaded not guilty to kidnapping Jaycee Dugard when she was 11, raping her and confining her and the daughters she bore by Phillip Garrido.

Nancy Garrido’s court-appointed attorney on Thursday told The Associated Press that he and Phillip Garrido’s public defender have filed the visitation requests in El Dorado Superior Court.

Stephen Tapson says he and Deputy Public Defender Susan Gellman also are seeking to compel prosecutors to tell them where Dugard is living. They want to speak with her while preparing defenses for the Garridos.

The El Dorado District Attorney’s office and a Dugard’s family spokeswoman declined to comment.