RESEDA : Teen-Ager Pleads Not Guilty in Attack on Neighbor
A Reseda teen-ager pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges that he tried to kill his elderly neighbor by beating, robbing and stabbing her, then handcuffing her to a sink.
Eric Andrew Serin, now 18, was earlier ruled unfit to stand trial as a juvenile. He was 17 when he allegedly attacked Edith Aline Rose, 74, in her home Dec. 29.
Serin entered his plea in Van Nuys Municipal Court to charges of first-degree attempted murder, robbery and burglary.
Judge Leland B. Harris scheduled a May 15 preliminary hearing for Serin, who is being held in lieu of $650,000 bail.
Deputy Dist. Atty. Robert Cohen said a neighbor went to Rose’s Strathern Street home because he was concerned that she was not answering her phone. The neighbor found Rose semiconscious and bleeding.
Police believe Rose let in her attacker because she recognized him as a neighborhood resident, although she apparently did not personally know the teen-ager.
Serin was identified by Rose and arrested shortly after the attack.
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