LI Man Charged In Violent Thanksgiving Home Invasion Pleads Not Guilty

COLD SPRING HARBOR, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A man accused of breaking into a Long Island home on Thanksgiving and assaulting an 85-year-old woman is being held on $2 million bond after pleading not guilty in court on Tuesday.

Police said Jeffrey Rice, 45, of Huntington, slipped into the home through an unlocked side door, grabbed a kitchen knife and headed upstairs where he entered the bedroom of a 7-year-old girl. The child's 85-year-old aunt was also in the room at the time, WCBS 880's Sophia Hall reported.

That's when police said Rice assaulted the 85-year-old woman.

"He went towards her first, hitting the aunt with his fist, and causing significant bruising and swelling," Assistant District Attorney Maria Troulakis said.

The homeowners and other visiting relatives heard screams and confronted Rice.

"The husband started hitting the defendant with a baseball bat," Troulakis said. "The husband was able to get the defendant out of his house, and told the defendant to wait for police, and the defendant did sit and wait."

The elderly aunt was taken to Huntington Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Rice's attorney said his client has been hospitalized for mental illness a number of times.

According to the Suffolk County District Attorney's office, Rice previously served four years in prison in for slashing a security guard after attempting to steal video games from a supermarket in Miller Place in 2003.

If convicted, Rice could face up to 25 years in prison.