Man Stabbed Out Of Self Defense

DESERT HOT SPRINGS -A 23-year-old man who Desert Hot Springs police suspect of being a drug dealer was stabbed in December by one of three people he tried to rob, a sergeant said today.

Kevin Bryant was stabbed in the neck Dec. 29, but witnesses were hesitant to come forward out of fear of Bryant, Sgt. Dan Bressler said.

Police described Bryant as a homeless drug dealer suspected in several robberies around town.

On the day he was stabbed, Bryant had been threatening people who owed him for drugs, and he pulled a knife on two women and a man, Bressler said.

One of the women gave Bryant $20, but he demanded more, Bressler said.

The man tried to disarm Bryant, but ended up stabbing him in the neck, Bressler said. Bryant was taken to a hospital to be treated, then booked on a felony warrant charging him with assault with a deadly weapon, the sergeant said.