Men Involved in Fatal Stabbing Had Criminal Pasts

The 26-year-old murder suspect in recently moved to Santa Monica from Orange County, where he attended high school with the victim and swung in and out of jail on drug-related convictions.

Ryan Tyler Bright's first stint behind bars came at the age of 18, when he pleaded guilty in 2004 to one count of battery. Two years later, he completed a rehabilitation program at Orange Coast Community College after he was arrested on suspicion of alcohol possession while underage, according to court documents.

In subsequent years—until his arrest this week—Bright was ordered to serve time in jail and on probation for a series of drug convictions, including being under the influence and possession, court documents said.

Bright attended Laguna Beach High School with Jensen Gray, 27, the man he's suspected of killing during a party at a pricey apartment complex a block from the .

Police found Gray lying on the floor of the apartment's living room before sunrise Wednesday with multiple stab wounds. Officers detained Bright about a block away on Fifth Street, one of a number of party-goers investigators initially took into custody.

As of Thursday morning, the District Attorney had not pressed charges against Bright. Bright is scheduled to be arraigned Friday morning in Los Angeles. He is being held in lieu of $1 million bail.

Jail was a rotating door for Gray, too.

His most serious charge was for assault with a deadly weapon other than a fire arm. He pleaded guilty in December 2005 and was sentenced to 45 days in jail. Other convictions included five counts of possession of a controlled substance in five separate incidents between 2007 and 2010.

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