Tacoma Man Stabs Wife's Affair Partner, Tells Cops He Might Kill Himself Too

A 39-year-old Tacoma man is facing first-degree attempted murder and first-degree assault charges after he allegedly grabbed a kitchen knife from his home, walked into a backyard where his wife and her sister were gathered, and stabbed his wife's affair partner multiple times while their child was present. Officers who arrived found the victim with what they considered life-threatening injuries, including stab wounds to his back and one wound in his abdomen or rib area.

According to court documents cited by the News Tribune, the confrontation unfolded after the man's wife took their child to her sister's residence on East Harrison Street. The wife told police the argument that had been building between the couple concerned her affair with her sister's roommate. She, her sister, the affair partner, and the child were all in the backyard when the man arrived carrying the knife, the outlet reports.

Court documents indicate the victim told police the man said he was going to kill him. The victim then grabbed a pickaxe in an apparent attempt to scare the man away, but the confrontation escalated into a physical attack. Officers reported that the man punched the victim in the face, kicked him between the legs and in the chest, and stabbed him an unknown number of times before fleeing after someone said they would call police.

A Bloodied Man Found Unconscious in the Street

The victim ran from the backyard to a vehicle parked in the street, according to the same court documents. Authorities later found the husband — identified in the case as the man accused of the stabbing — unconscious in the middle of the street in the 4500 block of South 11th Street on Monday, with a substantial amount of blood on his body, per the News Tribune's account.

The man reportedly told police he ran to his car after leaving the scene and hit bars along 6th Avenue while having a few drinks. He also told officers he was unsure whether he would use the knife to attack the victim again or to hurt himself, the outlet notes. Officers who searched the man's house afterward found it in complete disarray, with smashed items and objects thrown around, and located a large kitchen knife next to the bed.

Prior Altercation Preceded the Stabbing

The stabbing followed an earlier physical altercation between the man and his wife on Aug. 21, according to court documents referenced in the report. The man was booked into Pierce County Jail on Monday, according to jail records, and is scheduled for arraignment Tuesday afternoon in Pierce County Superior Court, where a judicial officer will review the probable cause affidavit and set bail conditions, a standard step for felony defendants booked through the county jail, as outlined by Pierce County.

Attempted first-degree murder is a Class A felony in Washington that can carry up to life in prison and fines as high as $50,000, according to legal guidance published by Open Washington Pressbooks. First-degree assault is also a Class A felony, carrying a standard sentencing range of 93 to 123 months for a first-time offender, per an outline from Ramirez & Cooper, Inc. Because both charges appear to stem from the same physical act against the same victim, Washington appellate case law interpreting the relevant statutes generally requires courts to merge such convictions at sentencing to avoid double jeopardy violations, according to research compiled via Justia Law.

An Isolated Attack Amid Broader Local Trends

The case comes even as citywide violence has generally been trending down. Mid-year statistics released by the Tacoma Police Department in July showed reported household crime victimization dropping from 35% in 2024 to 22% in 2026, with homicides, robberies, and aggravated assaults all declining during the first half of the year.

Pierce County, however, continues to record the region's highest domestic violence rate, at 10 crimes per 1,000 residents compared to 6 to 7 per 1,000 in neighboring King, Snohomish, and Thurston counties, according to data compiled by a Tacoma criminal defense firm. The City of Tacoma has allocated more than $1.5 million toward family violence supportive services for the 2025–2026 biennium, including victim advocacy and crisis line operations, though a KING 5 report earlier this year found that statewide funding for crime victim support programs has fallen by more than 50% since 2018, straining shelters and hotlines even as demand remains high.

Several open questions remain in the case, including the victim's updated medical condition, the bail amount to be set at Tuesday's arraignment, and whether prosecutors will add domestic violence enhancements or separate traffic charges tied to the reported hit-and-run collisions along 6th Avenue.