A New Jersey man accused of having killed his live-in girlfriend's 3-year-old daughter has rejected a proposed plea deal that would have carried a 40-year sentence.

NJ.com reports that an attorney for 23-year-old Travis Graham told a judge in Camden last week that his client wanted to go to trial after prosecutors rejected his 15-year counter-offer.

Authorities say Graham was arrested in a string of armed robberies and made statements contradicting earlier remarks about the March 2017 death of Charlette Dawkins.

Prosecutors say he initially said he heard the child fall down a flight of stairs but later said he struck her in the forehead, knocking her down the stairs.

The state's offer was a 25-year term in the child's death and a consecutive 15-year robbery sentence.