An Inglewood man pleaded not guilty Tuesday to murdering his 1-year-old daughter, whose body was found in the Los Angeles River in Long Beach.
Jayveyon Burley, 22, is charged with one count each of murder and assault on a child causing death.
According to police, Burley went to Long Beach on Dec. 4 to pick up his two children, but he had only one child — his 3-year-old son — with him when he returned home to his mother’s house in the 300 block of North Market Street in Inglewood. Authorities said his mother grew suspicious and called police, leading to a search in which the girl, Leilani Dream Burley, was found dead Dec. 5 in the Los Angeles River near the Ocean Boulevard bridge.
Burley was arrested Dec. 5 by Inglewood police and has remained behind bars since then, jail records show.
The mother of Burley’s children, Lynisha Hull, told ABC7 last month that the suspect normally picks up the children on Sunday nights and brings them back on Wednesday. She said Burley was “angry” when he picked up the children, but “he was normal.”
“He didn’t look like he was panicked at the time at all,” she told the station.
“My daughter was murdered by her father,” Hull said. “He threw her off the bridge.”
In a statement released shortly after the case was filed last month, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón said, “My heart goes out to the surviving family members and everyone who knew this innocent baby girl. While we know there is nothing we can do to heal this extraordinary trauma, we will hold this person accountable for his callous actions.”
Burley is due back in a Long Beach courtroom Feb. 16.
