No. 5 Story of the Year: MH Man Charged with Stabbing Former Friend's Grandfather

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As the end of the year approaches, Patch recaps the biggest stories of 2012—both in terms of pageviews and impact on the Mendota Heights community. The original article posted on Aug. 28, 2012.

Other Story of the Year posts:
• No. 6 Story of the Year: MH Man with Alleged White Supremacist Connections Indicted on Drug Charges
• No. 7 Story of the Year: Tornado Touches Down in Mendota Heights• No. 8 Story of the Year: BC2 Artisan Bakery Rises Again in Mendota Heights
• No. 9 Story of the Year: Mendota Heights Deer Hunter Finds 8-Foot Marijuana Plants in Valley Park
• No. 10 Story of the Year: Dodge Nature Center Says Goodbye to Bald Eagle

ORIGINAL ARTICLE: Two men, one from Mendota Heights and one from St. Louis Park, are charged with assaulting a St. Louis Park man, cutting him with a knife after he told them to stay away from his grandson.

Austin Christian Grove, 19, of St. Louis Park, and Shane Thomas Crocker, 19, of Mendota Heights are each charged with second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon—a felony with a maximum penalty of seven years in prison and a $14,000 fine.

According to the criminal complaints, signed by St. Louis Park Police Detective Matthew Reilly, police were called to a home in the 7900 block of West 26th Street just after 1 a.m. Aug. 22 to investigate an assault.

Officers spoke to the victim, who had suffered deep cuts on his arms. He told police that he lives in the area with his grandson, who used to be friends with both Grove and Crocker.

The victim said his grandson told him that the two men had come to their home earlier and had damaged a window screen. The victim said he found Grove and Crocker on West 26th Street and confronted them, telling them to stay away from his home and his grandson.

Grove and Crocker punched the victim and knocked him to the ground, then Crocker pulled out a knife and slashed at the victim’s arms, cutting him repeatedly, according to the complaints.

The victim went home and called police, who found a trail of blood from the location where the assault occurred to the victim’s home.

Both Grove and Crocker claimed that the victim had attacked them and that they had acted in self-defense, the complaints say. Crocker claimed that the victim grabbed him and pulled him into the street, and said he pulled a knife to defend himself, according to the complaints.

A witness told police that he saw the victim approach Grove and Crocker and yell at them, then saw the two men assault the victim, punching and kicking him. The witness said he heard the men yell, “You wanna (expletive) with us?” and “Don’t mess with us.”

Both suspects have been released on bond. Omnibus hearings in their cases are scheduled Sept. 10 for Grove and Sept. 13 for Crocker, both in Hennepin County District Court.