Despite being accused of felony neglect, Michael Barnett and his then-wife Kristine argued that Natalia was a fully grown adult and not a child, and that she also threatened members of the family.

On October 27, 2022, three years after he and Kristine were arrested, Michael was found not guilty of all four neglect counts he was up against, however the news received less attention than the initial accusations.

Natalia Grace Barnett was accused of pretending to be a young child when in reality she is in her 30s…that is according to the Barnetts who are the girl’s adoptive parents.

For those unfamiliar with the story, Fox News reports,

A Ukrainian female adopted by an Indiana couple – and later abandoned by them after they claimed to have learned she lied about her age and was actually a 22- or even a 33-year-old woman – says the bizarre allegations against her aren’t true.

Natalia Barnett, an orphan with dwarfism, opened up about the accusations in an interview with Dr. Phil. Her story drew attention nationwide when her adoptive parents, Kristine Barnett, 45, and Michael Barnett, 43, were each charged with two counts of neglect of a dependent stemming from their move to Canada in 2013 — without Natalia, according to investigators.

The Barnetts, who are now divorced, adopted Natalia in 2010 and a doctor determined she was estimated to be around 8 years old. Natalia told the Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Department in September 2014 that she came to the U.S. “through an adoption” in 2008 from her native Ukraine and that the Barnetts adopted her two years later.

So, what is the truth? Is she a kid or is she an adult? To be perfectly honest, I really don’t know. It wasn’t discussed during the trial. This truly is a bizarre case and her age may never truly be revealed, but she knows how old she is. If I were to make a guess though…I would say that she is probably the older age rather than the younger.