EVERETT — An Arlington man is looking at a long stretch behind bars if he’s convicted of stabbing a good Samaritan who tried to shoo him away from a neighbor’s condo in Everett last month.
Jesse Averhart has been convicted of a dozen felonies since 1997. Just last year, prosecutors urged a judge to send him away for nearly five years for a bunch of property crimes, including identity theft.
Averhart, however, persuaded the judge to allow him an alternative sentence for offenders with drug addictions. He wrote a letter to the judge, explaining how his addiction had cost him everything.
“I need help finding my way back to reality. I wish to prove to my family, society and myself I can once again be the real Jesse,” he wrote.
Averhart was sentenced to two years in prison and two years under the supervision of the state Department of Corrections. He was ordered to get help for his addiction.
It seems Averhart hasn’t found his way to clean, yet.
Now he’s charged with first-degree assault and illegal drug possession. He is facing up to 20 years in prison if convicted, Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Toni Montgomery wrote in court papers.
Averhart reportedly was spotted on Sept. 26 trying to break out a window at a condominium in the 12700 block of Admiralty Way. A man who was out walking his dog confronted the stranger. The defendant spun a story about being there to visit a friend.
The dog walker didn’t buy the man’s excuse and yelled for another neighbor to call 911. Averhart attempted to flee but the other man grabbed his arm. That’s when Averhart allegedly pulled a knife, stabbing the man in the chest. Averhart ran from the scene.
Snohomish County sheriff’s deputies found the victim outside the condos. He was covered in blood. He was treated and released.
Deputies were provided a description of the man’s attacker. Bystanders said the suspect shed the tank top he was wearing and they had noticed a “very large tattoo” on his back.
A sheriff’s deputy and his canine partner started tracking from the scene. A King County sheriff’s helicopter crew also joined the search. Several people called 911 to report a shirtless man running through the area.
The deputy and his dog were giving chase. Meanwhile, the helicopter crew reported seeing a man lying down on the roof of an abandoned building on Highway 99.
Averhart eventually surrendered. He had multiple cuts on his chest that seemed consistent with climbing over a barbed wire fence or plowing through blackberry bushes.
The defendant was booked into the Snohomish County Jail. A corrections deputy allegedly found a small plastic bag of methamphetamine in Averhart’s pants.
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463; hefley@heraldnet.com.
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