Stabbing in downtown Olympia

One man was hospitalized and another was arrested after a reported stabbing in downtown Olympia Sunday night.

Jeffrey G. Jordan, 50, was charged with second-degree assault after police said he stabbed a man in the chest with either a pair of scissors or other type of tool. The victim, an adult male, sustained injuries but survived.

According to a probable cause affidavit, police spoke with the victim at St. Peter’s Hospital. The victim said he was hanging out in a stairwell in the 1000 block of Fourth Avenue East when Jordan approached him. Jordan was agitated, the man said, and told him to leave, putting up his fists like was ready to fight. The man said he kicked at Jordan to keep him back, and a fight broke out. During the fight, Jordan stabbed the man once in the chest with what the victim described as either a pair of scissors or a screwdriver.

The victim left the area and flagged down some passers-by for help because he was injured. Jordan was arrested shortly afterward, directly across the street from the scene of the alleged stabbing.

A witness told police they saw the encounter from their apartment window. The witness said Jordan began yelling at the victim — who stood his ground, but never advanced on Jordan — and then stabbed the man with a “scissors or other cutting tool.”

Jordan spoke with officers after being arrested. Jordan said one of the property owners gave him permission to sleep there, and that he (Jordan) keeps others away. He said the alleged victim started the fight and he denied stabbing him.

Jordan asked for an attorney when police asked further questions, ending the interview. He is being held in the Thurston County Jail.