Judge grants custody to slain dentist's brother

FARGO, N.D. (AP) — A judge has awarded custody of the 3-year-old daughter of a slain Fargo dentist to her uncle and his wife.

The attorney for Roy Gattuso, of Gretna, La., said Gattuso and his wife were granted temporary emergency custody of Kennedy Gattuso. Attorney DeAnn Pladson said Tuesday's ruling was only one step in a long process.

The child's father, Philip Gattuso, was found beaten to death in his south Fargo home last month. His wife, Valerie, had died in March after an extended illness.

The Gattusos went to court to gain custody of the child after her maternal grandfather, Gene Kirkpatrick of Jones, Okla., was charged with hiring his handyman to kill Philip Gattuso, allegedly because Kirkpatrick did not agree with the way his granddaughter was being raised.

Michael Nakvinda of Oklahoma City has been charged with murder in Gattuso's death.