ROGERSVILLE — The Hawkins County grand jury said this week there will be no criminal charges in a June 10 stabbing at The Cades apartments that left one man in critical condition for more than a month.
The grand jury issued “no true bills” on presentments of two counts of aggravated assault against Douglas Wayne Smith, 54, 2300 E. Main St., Apt. 101, Rogersville; and one count of aggravated assault against Joshua Curtis Spriggs, 27, 404 Market St., Rogersville.
Witnesses told police that Spriggs, the stabbing victim, was the aggressor in the altercation with Smith.
Alcohol and drug use is believed to have fueled the confrontation leading to the stabbing, police said.
The Rogersville Police Department was called to a stabbing complaint on June 10 around 4 a.m. at The Cades, 2300 E. Main St., where they reportedly found Spriggs lying in the grass beside the roadway suffering a cut to his abdomen with part of his intestines hanging out.
Spriggs told police he had gotten into an argument about his girlfriend with Smith over “the other male giving her drugs and trying to take advantage of her.” Police said Smith wasn’t charged with any drug-related activity.
Smith and the girlfriend told police they were both attacked by Spriggs.
Smith stated he was in his apartment with Spriggs and the girlfriend when the argument occurred.
RPD Detective Joey Maddox said Smith observed Spriggs “strike (the girlfriend) several times, and at that point he told Spriggs he had to leave.”
Spriggs then reportedly gathered some belongings and started to leave, but suddenly dropped his belongings at the doorway, picked up a chair, and swung it at Smith.
“Smith stated he ducked to the left and stuck Spriggs in the gut with a knife he had in his hand,” Maddox wrote in his report.
Maddox said in his report that when he interviewed the girlfriend she gave an identical account of the circumstances leading to the stabbing.
Maddox added that he observed a knot on the girlfriend’s head and swelling to her jaw, which was attributed to the victim beating her in the kitchen.
Neither Smith nor Spriggs had been formally charged related to this incident prior to the grand jury decision.