Nanny Pleads Not Guilty in Slaying of Children

The nanny accused of stabbing to death two young children in her care pleaded not guilty today from her hospital room, reports the New York Post. Yoselyn Ortega didn't speak at the quick proceeding, during which she lay handcuffed to her bed. She has been hospitalized since the Oct. 25 killings—police say she tried to kill herself, too. The judge ordered a psychiatric evaluation and set the next hearing for Jan. 16.

"My client is profoundly mentally impaired and in need of medical attention," her attorney said in entering the plea. Ortega, 50, appeared "alert but frail," reports NBC. She reportedly had a fierce argument with the children's mother before the attacks, and friends and family say Ortega had been deteriorating mentally in recent months. (More nanny stories.)