Kennewick Grandmother Kidnapper Faces 14-Year Prison Term

Billy J. Underwood will likely face a lengthy prison term for his role in the shocking kidnapping of an elderly Kennewick grandmother, as prosecutors say the crime was especially cruel.

Underwood, 15, was tried as an adult because of the nature of the crime. He helped co-defendants Dyllan K. Martin and 14-year-old KateLynn Kenfield subdue and tie up 86-year-old Hazel Abel of Kennewick. She is Underwood's great-grandmother.

Court records show they waited until dark to approach her home. They unscrewed the porch light so she could not identify them, then threw dirt in her face when she answered the door. After being gagged and blindfolded she was thrown in the trunk of her car, and driven six hours to Oregon where she escaped in a Walmart parking lot with her dog.

The three were captured shortly thereafter. Kenfield just days ago plead guilty to a variety of charges, but was tried as a juvenile because she was 14 at the time of the November incident. Officials also felt Kenfield, who was Underwood's girlfriend at the time, was perhaps coerced into helping. The three had planned to run away, and wanted Abel's car.

Underwood plead guilty to First-Degree kidnapping, burglary and theft of an automobile, with aggravating circumstances due to the cruelty of the crime, said officials. Defense attorneys said they will ask for a more standard sentence of six to eight years.  Either way, Underwood will be in juvenile rehabilitation until he turns 18, then will go to jail for the remainder of his term.