4 Women Stabbed, 1 Fatally

A woman wielding a 12-inch kitchen knife terrorized a Lakewood family early Friday, stabbing a grandmother to death and wounding her two daughters and a granddaughter, authorities said.

The 22-year-old assailant, who had recently moved into the usually quiet block of Quigley Avenue, climbed through a window of the brick-front house about 3 a.m. and set upon the four women, Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies said.

Neighbors told authorities that the attacker chased two of the victims out the front door and down the street, continuing to stab them.

Awakened by the screams, the neighbors subdued the woman until deputies arrived. They said she offered no resistance.

The mayhem in the middle-class neighborhood left blood spatters on the doorstep of the house and down the block between Harvey Way and Stevely Avenue.

“There is a tremendous amount of blood inside the house,” said Lt. Larry Lincoln of the sheriff’s Homicide Division.

The names of the victims have not been released. Lincoln said that the grandmother, 58, died at a hospital Friday morning and that the wounded included an 18-year-old granddaughter.

The three surviving victims, who suffered stab wounds primarily to the chest, were hospitalized in serious but stable condition, he said.

Investigators identified the assailant as Virginia Krall, 22, who had recently moved into the area after living with her father in Long Beach.

The motive for the stabbings was unclear. Lincoln said that it appeared to be a random attack but that investigators were still questioning those involved.

William Krall, the father of the accused, said in a telephone interview that his daughter suffered from “problems.” He would not elaborate, but said they had worsened recently.

“Things just appeared to have gone from bad to worse,” he said.

He said his daughter had been living with him a few months when problems erupted between them.

She then moved in with friends in Lakewood. He said sheriff’s deputies would not let him speak to her Friday.

Property records show that the house where the stabbings occurred belongs to Yolanda Meraz, 37, and Jeanie Meraz, 58, who apparently received it as part of a 1995 divorce. Jose Luis Meraz, who turned over the title to them, could not be reached for comment.

Viviann Turner, who lives down the street in the neighborhood of two-story homes, said neighbors knew little about the women.

“They had lived there for quite a while, but they more or less stayed to themselves,” she said. “They were quiet, so I don’t think anybody really knew them.”

Others said Jeanie Meraz, the grandmother, was in poor health.

Neighbors milling around the house Friday afternoon were shocked by the scene of police cars and crime-scene tape on a street where children’s toys were parked in many lawns.

“It’s just horrendous,” said Tom Crook, 48, a 16-year resident of the street. “We’re bummed about ... because, you know, maybe we could have helped.”

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Times staff writer Doug Smith contributed to this report.