2013 comes to close with Dothan stabbing, arrest

Last year did not end well for a pair of Dothan men. One was reportedly stabbed in the shoulder with a knife and the other was arrested and charged with felony first-degree assault.

The Dothan Eagle reported on New Year’s Eve that the arrest was made Monday night.

A Dothan police department spokesperson said in a statement that a man, 50 years old, of Palmetto Drive, was charged with the assault. The encounter between the two men reportedly happened in the 1100 block of North Cherry Street.

The pair was arguing, the police spokesperson said, when the defendant allegedly attacked the other man with a kitchen knife.

The stabbed man, reportedly from 45 to 50 years old, had the knife stuck in his right front shoulder. He was later listed in critical condition at Southeast Alabama Medical Center.

The Eagle did not report on the subject in dispute when the alleged assault took place.

However, it did note that the defendant had been transported to Houston County Jail.

If the man is convicted on the felony assault charge, he faces anywhere from two to 20 years in state prison.

In similar circumstances, defendants will often decline to speak to prosecutors or investigators until they have had a conversation about the allegations, evidence and possible penalties with an experienced criminal defense attorney.

An experienced lawyer understands not only Alabama criminal law, but also defense strategies that protect a defendant’s rights and freedoms and expose weaknesses in the evidence or prosecutor’s case.

Source: Dothan Eagle, “Dothan police charge man in kitchen knife stabbing,” Dec. 31, 2013