A Sitka man is facing felony assault charges, after a bloody encounter on Back Street.
A Sitka grand jury on Thursday (6-27-19) indicted 39-year old Azureus North Stamets on one count of assault in the first degree, and one count of assault in the second degree, for allegedly assaulting another man in the head with a baseball bat.
According to court records, Stamets had an altercation with the man sometime shortly before noon on June 13, in the vicinity of 238 Back Street — which is also known as Kaagwaantaan Street.
Police first learned of the incident after receiving a call that a man was walking down Katlian Street, bleeding from the back of the head. A short time later, Sitka Community Hospital reported a male in the emergency room with injuries to his head.
Officers responded and met with the man while he was receiving treatment. They documented a 2-inch laceration on the back of the alleged victim’s head — which required six staples to close — and another laceration one-inch in length on his right temple, which required three stitches.
The man told officers that he had been struck by a baseball bat, and believed that he could have been killed.
Around this time, Stamets himself reported the incident to police dispatch, stating that he acted in self-defense. When officers arrived at his home he produced the 30-inch aluminum Rawlings Raptor little league bat, and admitted striking the alleged victim 3 to 4 times in the head after their verbal altercation escalated into a physical one.
Stamets told officers that he had intended to call for medical help, but the man left before he could do so.
Stamets was taken into custody, charged, and released on $2,500 bail. He was arraigned on felony charges in Sitka Superior Court on Thursday afternoon (6-27-19).
