BANGOR, Maine — A Charleston man charged in connection with the stabbing of a Glenburn man Thursday night at a kennel remained Tuesday at the Penobscot County Jail unable to post $10,000 cash bail or $25,000 in surety.
Jesse Merritt, 25, made his first court appearance Monday afternoon at the Penobscot Judicial Center.
He is charged with one count of aggravated assault, a Class B crime. Merritt was not asked to enter a plea because he has not yet been indicted by a grand jury.
The Penobscot County grand jury next convenes Wednesday.
Merritt is scheduled to appear before a judge again on Aug. 10.
The 38-year-old victim, who is not being named by the Bangor Daily News, suffered a “significant puncture wound through [his] lower jaw/cheek area that continued to the back of [his] throat on the inside of his mouth,” according to the affidavit.
Information about the victim’s condition was not available late Tuesday afternoon.
The incident that led to Merritt being charged took place in a grassy area in a dog kennel — not in a dog cage as originally stated in a news release issued by the Maine Department of Public Safety. Police were called to the scene about 8:30 p.m. Thursday.
Both men were having drinks Thursday night at a home in Glenburn, the affidavit said, and they got into an argument about pit bulls.
Merritt allegedly left the house and went to 170 Page Road, where the kennel, which is not owned by the victim, is located.
The affidavit does not state whether Merritt admitted or denied stabbing the victim, but he denied having a knife. Merritt did admit that the two men punched each other.
Merritt was arrested at the home of a family member on Berry Pit Road.
A knife was not recovered from the scene of the stabbing or Merritt’s car, the affidavit said.
If convicted, Merritt faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $20,000.