(Stillwater, Okla.) — An Oklahoma State University student accused of throwing half of a pair of scissors at a friend – who began bleeding badly in his stabbed right thigh — has been ordered to appear before a Payne County judge on Nov. 5 on a charge of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.
If convicted of the felony, Seth David Byrd, 18, of Stillwater, could be incarcerated for one to 10 years and fined as much as $10,000, court records show. Byrd remains free on $10,000 bond.
Asked twice if he wanted to pursue a criminal charge against his friend, the victim said that he did, Stillwater Police Sgt. Jeremy Rager wrote in an affidavit.
“It had been reported that the suspect and victim were friends and they had gotten into an argument and the suspect threw a half of a pair of scissors at the victim,” the affidavit alleged.
Stillwater police were sent to the victim’s apartment in the 200 block of N. Duncan at 9:47 p.m. on Sept. 17, the affidavit said.
When the victim opened the door, “I noticed a pretty substantial amount of blood running down the length of his leg,” while the victim was holding boxer shorts covered in blood against his right thigh, the Stillwater police sergeant wrote in his affidavit.
“There was a trail of blood drops and smears on the floor leading from the bedroom to the front door and living room area,” the affidavit said.
After the victim removed the boxers from his leg where he was applying pressure, “I noticed a small puncture wound that had pretty much stopped bleeding,” the Stillwater police sergeant wrote in his affidavit.
The victim said “he and Seth were talking to each other of ethnic issues,” the affidavit said. The victim, who said he was of German descent and his friend had some Native American descent, “thought they were just having a friendly banter between themselves over each other’s ethic differences,” the affidavit alleged.
The victim said “he made an off-colored statement about Seth’s tribal descent,” the affidavit said. The victim said “he and Seth have friendly banter between themselves about their ethnic differences regularly,” the affidavit said.
The victim said “he must have unintentionally offended Seth because Seth threw a half of a pair of scissors at him,” which stabbed him in the upper right thigh, the affidavit alleged.
The victim said “he told Seth to get out of his house and Seth did so; he believed Seth to be walking west toward Oklahoma State University to his dorm room,” the affidavit alleged.
When another Stillwater police officer located the victim’s alleged assailant near the intersection of Miller and West Street, “Seth provided a nearly identical story about what had happened,” the affidavit said. “Seth allegedly tried to assist (the victim) with getting the bleeding to stop,” but was told to leave, according to the affidavit.
The blade on the half of a pair of scissors had something that appeared to be blood, the affidavit said.
The victim was transported by LifeNet ambulance to the Stillwater Medical Center emergency room, the affidavit said.
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