PITTSBURGH — A beautician accused of disguising a runaway girl so the teen could live with an older man was sentenced Wednesday to up to 23 months in jail, but insisted to the end that she did not knowingly take part in a crime.

Judith Sokol, 59, was taken from the courtroom in handcuffs after Allegheny County Judge John Zottola sentenced her to six to 23 months in jail.

Sokol did not speak to the media after the hearing. Her 29-year-old son, Brandon, said, "I'm very upset. It's absurd."

In February 1996, the then-14-year-old Kach ran away from home to live with Thomas Hose, a former school security guard who was 39 at the time. In March 2006, Kach went to police with her story, telling them Hose had threatened to kill her and used psychological tactics to prevent her from leaving his home for a decade.

Police said that Hose initially kept Kach in the beautician's home for a few days until he could sneak the teenager into his parents' house. Hose pleaded guilty to an array of sexual and child welfare offenses and was sentenced to five to 15 years in prison.

Sokol, who said she suffers from severe memory loss as well as other medical problems, told the judge Wednesday she did not recall cutting or dyeing Kach's hair. She said she worked in a beauty parlor, and Kach could have been one of many customers.

"I would never dye a young girl's hair to change her identity. That's just not in my nature," Sokol said. She added that she also did not remember the girl sleeping in her bedroom with Hose.

But Zottola was skeptical, questioning the inconsistencies in Sokol's presentencing testimony — when she denied dyeing Kach's hair — and the initial information she gave to police, in which she admitted she helped disguise the girl.