Palm Springs Stabbing Suspect Pleads Not Guilty

A Twentynine Palms man pleaded not guilty today to stabbing a man during a fight outside a Palm Springs tavern.

Jason Thomas Boland, 22, is charged with felony assault with a deadly weapon, along with a sentencing-enhancement of intent to cause great bodily injury. He was arrested early Sunday on suspicion of stabbing a 21-year-old Desert Hot Springs man at the Coconut Bar and Grill on North Palm Canyon Drive, according to Palm Springs police.

The man was taken a hospital for treatment for lacerations on the left side of his abdomen and the back of his upper arm, Palm Springs police spokeswoman Rhonda Long said. Police declined to identify the alleged victim, who was named only as “John Doe” in the criminal complaint.

Long said Boland got into an argument with the victim and his wife outside the bar around 1:40 a.m.

“The victim’s friend came out and said, `Leave my friend’s wife alone,’ ” she said.

The three men began shoving and punching each other, and Boland stabbed the victim with a knife, she said.

Long said the victim’s friend told police he did not notice that the victim had been stabbed or that Boland had a knife at the time.

Officers found Boland around 2 a.m. Sunday at the La Plaza Shopping Center, where he was identified as the stabbing suspect and arrested without incident, according to police.

Boland was being held at the Riverside County jail in Indio in lieu of $50,000 bail. He is due back in court Sept. 12 for a felony settlement conference.