CEDAR CITY — A 45-year-old man has been arrested and charged with aggravated assault following a stabbing incident at an apartment in the Fiddler’s Canyon area of Cedar City on Friday night.
Steven Daniel Harris was booked into Iron County Jail shortly before 1:30 a.m. early Saturday.
As previously reported, at approximately 6 p.m. Friday, police were called to an apartment complex at 199 E. Canyon Commercial Avenue on a report of a stabbing injury. The first officer to respond found a man inside the apartment who had lost a “substantial” amount of blood; he was subsequently taken to Cedar City Hospital for treatment of his wounds, police said.
According to the probable cause statement filed in support of Harris’s arrest, police found the injured man had sustained two stab wounds, namely “an apparent sharp force injury in his lower left chest as well as another apparent sharp force injury in his right leg on the inside of his leg near his knee.”
“Officers also saw a large amount of blood and blood drops on the floor in the bathroom and a hallway leading to the kitchen as well as on the kitchen floor by the kitchen sink,” the affidavit states.
Harris, who had fled the scene in his car, was later located and questioned by police. According to court records, the altercation took place inside the apartment of the injured man, where Harris had gone over for a visit. The affidavit states the two men have known each other for some time.
When Harris arrived, the other man reportedly spit at his car and went inside his apartment, allegedly angering Harris.
According to the affidavit, the victim told police that when Harris came into the bathroom to confront him, he had a pocket knife in one hand and a pair of scissors in the other.
Both men were injured during the ensuing scuffle, the statement notes, with Harris sustaining a cut on his hand near his thumb.
During his interview with police, Harris allegedly claimed that the other man had also been armed with a knife, which the other man denied.
The man allegedly attacked told police that the cut on Harris’s hand most likely happened during the fight, as he was trying to get the scissors and the pocket knife away from Harris, according to the affidavit.
Harris also reportedly told police that he didn’t intend to stab the other man, saying that he pressed his knife against the other man in order for him to feel the tip of the knife and back away.
The probable cause statement also says that Harris told police that as he drove away from the apartment, “he threw his pocket knife out of the car window because he didn’t know if he was allowed to have it because he has a prior felony conviction on his record.”
Both men were treated at the hospital and were later released.
Charging documents state that Harris is facing one count of aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury, a second-degree felony, and one count of possession of a dangerous weapon by a restricted person, a third-degree felony.
Utah court records indicate Harris’ criminal history includes multiple cases dating back to 2003. His most recent conviction involved a 2021 felony drug distribution charge that was subsequently reduced to a misdemeanor after he successfully graduated from mental health court in August of 2023.
The affidavit filed on Saturday notes that Harris told police he has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
“He also stated that he had recently changed his prescription two days ago and he does not like his new prescription,” the affidavit states.
This report is based on statements from court documents and law enforcement officials and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.
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