PORT ANGELES — Bail for a Port Angeles man who admitted to stabbing a man in a parking lot Monday morning was set at $150,000 in Clallam County Superior Court on Tuesday.
Charges against Joseph Warren Recoy, 24, are expected to be filed Thursday in connection with the stabbing of Nicholas Johnson, 28.
He was held in the Clallam County jail Tuesday for investigation of first-degree assault.
Recoy told police he noticed a man “mean mugging” him from a vehicle in the Lincoln Street Safeway parking lot, and he approached him, according to a police report.
Recoy said Johnson held a shiny knife near his lap and threatened him and his son and that he feared for the life of his child. He told police he did not have fear for his own life.
When Recoy got out of his truck, he said the knife was gone, he told police.
That’s when Recoy jabbed Johnson in the abdomen with his knife and ran, according to the report. The stabbing was reported at 6:42 a.m.
“I’ve never had to hurt someone like that,” Recoy said, according to the report. “Honestly, I don’t feel bad that I did it. I feel bad that it had to happen.”
Witnesses told police Recoy left the parking lot in a truck, but returned before getting out and attacking Johnson.
While in Olympic Medical Center’s Emergency Room, Johnson told officers the confrontation began when Recoy boxed his vehicle in using shopping carts.
They began calling each other derogatory names prior to the attack, according to the report.
Johnson went into surgery within half an hour of arriving at OMC, police said.
When Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Michele Devlin argued for a $150,000 bail, she called Recoy a risk to the community.
“Not only did he leave, go back to a vehicle, come back to the alleged victim and stab him, he admits to it,” she said. “We have a victim in intensive care. His artery was nicked.”
Recoy fled the scene after the stabbing but witnesses helped police find him within about 20 minutes, police said.
Johnson remained in “satisfactory condition” Tuesday, according to OMC.
Police recovered a spring-assisted folding knife with about a 5.5-inch blade from a zip-up sweatshirt witnesses found near the area of the argument.
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Reporter Jesse Major can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56250, or at jmajor@peninsula dailynews.com.
