A 22-year-old man accused of fatally stabbing his live-in girlfriend's 2-year-old daughter and wounding her pregnant mother pleaded not guilty Thursday to a count of murder and two counts of attempted murder.
Lataz Gray attacked his girlfriend and the woman's daughter with a knife May 2 at a home in the 3500 block of Arlington Avenue. police said. The girl died at a hospital, but her mother -- believed to be about five months pregnant at the time -- survived the attack.
Police said Gray, arrested May 3, was not the toddler's father. He was arrested hours after the attack at a hospital, where he was seeking treatment for cuts to his hand, police said.
Phillip Gray, the suspect's father, convinced his son to turn himself in, police said.
The home in which the attack occurred is apparently owned by the suspect's father, who lives nearby. Residents told police that Gray had lived there with the victims for a few months.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Sergio C. Tapia II ordered Gray to be held in lieu of $4.5 million bail while awaiting his next court appearance June 21, when a date is scheduled to be set for a hearing to determine if there is enough evidence to require him to stand trial.
