Gastonia woman says alleged abuse of autistic woman was self defense

• A woman is accused of abusing a 23-year-old autistic woman who was later found dead in her home. • The accused, Marlo Morris Wallace, claimed in court that her actions were in self-defense against the victim's aggression. • Police discovered the victim's body after Wallace crashed her car and told them a body was in her house.

A woman accused of severely abusing an autistic woman, who was later found dead, spoke in her own defense during a court appearance on Monday.

Marlo Morris Wallace, 58, who lived at a home in the 1800 block Greenbrook Trail in Gastonia, is charged with concealment of death, assault on a handicapped person, and patient abuse and neglect in the death of 23-year-old Aaliyah Michelle Fortner. The home Fortner was staying in previously operated as a licensed facil