COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) – A man who was charged in connection with a May 16, 2018 road rage incident in Coldwater that led to the stabbing of two men entered into a plea agreement Monday in Branch County Circuit Court.
22-year-old Javonta Lamont Tyson of Coldwater, who lived in Fort Wayne at the time of the incident, entered a no contest plea to a felony charge of assault with a weapon. In exchange for the plea, charges of assault with intent to murder and assault with intent to do great bodily harm less than murder will be dismissed.
Tyson is scheduled to be sentenced October 22, 2018.
The plea agreement comes after defense attorney Benjamin Jewell said during the preliminary exam in the case that his client at that time declined an offer to plea to lesser charges.
39-year-old Eric Kanouse was stabbed in the side during first incident at the intersection of U.S. 12 and Sprague after he honked at a SUV in front of him, which was driven by Tyson’s girl friend, when she did not immediately pull away from a green light.
Kanouse said he followed Tyson’s vehicle so he could get a license plate number. The pursuit went to Michigan and Hull where 47-year-old Steven Holt was stabbed in the knee. Tyson was later arrested on M-86 about a mile west of Coldwater.
During his testimony, Kanouse said he felt fear for his children while Tyson told WOOD-TV he was protecting himself.
