Hawkins pleads not guilty to assault charge in Thanksgiving beating

MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) - The teenager accused in the brutal beating of Mallory Owens on Thanksgiving, Travis Hawkins, Jr., entered a plea of not guilty during a Monday arraignment.

Hawkins is charged with second-degree assault because authorities said he attacked Mallory Owens on Thanksgiving, brutally beating her. She spent days recovering at USA medical center.

After entering a plea of not guilty, Defense Attorney Jim Byrd said the truth will come out in court.

Byrd said, "That's why we have court, and we'll have people under oath testifying as to exactly what happened, and hopefully they'll tell the truth."

In the weeks since the incident, we've heard conflicting reports over why exactly this alleged beating occurred.

Here's what we do know: on Thanksgiving Day, Mallory Owens was horribly beaten and 18-year-old Travis Hawkins, Jr. was arrested and charged with second-degree assault.

The reasons for the beating are not clear, however. At first, Owens' mother claimed Hawkins attacked Owens because of her sexual orientation (Owens is in a relationship with Hawkins' sister, Ally.)

Then, the story changed.

Ally Hawkins said the beating was because she and Owens were involved with drugs and prostitution.

Owens’ grandmother, Jeannine Moye said, "Mallory is confused. Mallory has some problems, she needs some help. She is being controlled by Ally because she feels like she loves her."

FOX10 reached out to Owens for a comment, but she has not returned our call.

District Attorney Ashley Rich says whatever the reason, at the end of the day, Hawkins should be prosecuted.

Rich said, "It's a crime. It's a criminal offense and he needs to be punished for it. And we need to see it through all the way to Circuit Court and he needs to be accountable for his criminal actions."

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The District Attorney said second-degree assault conviction carries a punishment of up to 10 years in prison.

Hawkins is due for a preliminary hearing on Jan. 22.