Man Accused Of Following Half-Naked Venice Woman Onto Roof Is Charged

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A man accused of breaking into a woman's house in Venice and following her onto the roof as she tried to escape has been charged in the case.

Christian Hicks, 29, pleaded not guilty Friday to a felony count of first-degree burglary with a person present, according to City News Service.

A passerby's photo of Melora Rivera cowering under a second-story ledge, frantically calling police as the intruder loomed above her has gone viral.

Officers soon surrounded the house on Wednesday and arrested Hicks, described by neighbors as a homeless person often seen in the area.

A criminal complaint filed by Los Angeles County prosecutors alleges that Hicks was convicted in 2008 of carrying an unregistered loaded handgun and in 2011 of corporal injury to a spouse, cohabitant or child's parent.