THIBODAUX, La. — A woman accused of setting her own daughter on fire and ignoring her life-threatening condition that included being sexually abused and shot by the mother's fiancé pleaded not guilty on all counts in her arraignment Monday.
LaTonya Harris entered the pleas to the counts of second-degree cruelty to a child, domestic abuse battery and child endangerment.
Her next pre-trial hearing is set for late September.
The fiancé, Terrence Washington, is currently in jail in Texas and no formal request has been made to extradite him to Louisiana as he currently faces numerous charges in Texas.
Harris and Washington were taken into custody after getting in a car crash in Baytown, Texas in April. When deputies arrived at the accident scene, they found the 15-year-old girl suffering from multiple gunshot wounds and with third and fourth-degree burns to 30 percent of her body.
In a crime that stunned and sickened investigators, it is alleged that Harris used flammable liquid and a lighter to burn her daughter after finding out about the sexual assault. That incident happened in February and until the crash in April, those wounds went untreated by medical professionals.
The Department of Children and Family Services said the teen "sustained gunshot wounds to her chest, left lower cheek area, and near her eye. The child lost her left eye due to the gunshot wound to the face."
The Department of Child and Family Services said the latest incidents of abuse were not the first concerning the family.
In April 2013, it found a "valid case of physical abuse with the mother as the perpetrator, concerning the child. The family was referred for outside services as a result of the April 2013 investigation."
In April 2014, it found another 'valid case of physical abuse with the mother as the perpetrator, concerning the child. The child was placed in Foster Care for a short period of time as a result of the April 2014 investigation. The family received In-home services once the child returned home following the removal in April 2014."