TROY – Five days after winning an appeal allowing for a public defender, a stepmother accused of child abuse and trading a child for a monkey hired to private attorneys to represent it.

According to court records, Joseph Flees II and Daniel Juengel filed paperwork with the Lincoln County Associate Court Tuesday to represent Deutsch.

The two attorneys work with Frank and Juengel Law Firm in Clayton.

Thursday morning, April 17, Associate Court Judge Michael Jacobs ruled Deutsch did demonstrate enough of a financial need to qualify for a public defender. Upon her arrest April 6, Deutsch requested a public defender but was initially denied due to not meeting their financial guidelines.

In an initial hearing before Judge Jacobs, a representative from the public defender’s office cited real estate records listing Deutsch as the deed holder on a 2,900-square foot home that sits on more than 16 acres, with multiple mobile homes located throughout the property as well.

Law enforcement arrested Deutsch at her rural Winfield home April 6 on the felony abuse charges alleging she physically and mentally abused a 16-year-old girl she fostered.

Deutsch has also been accused of trading the girl to a woman in Texas for a monkey.

Texas officials placed the girl in protective custody, who then detailed the years of abuse she claims Deutsch subjected her to, resulting in the charges.

While Jacobs granted Deutsch’s request for a public defender, he previously ruled against her bond reduction. Consequently, she remains in custody on a $250,000 cash-only bond in the Lincoln County jail.

She is scheduled to appear Tuesday, May 13 for a preliminary hearing at 2 p.m.