AUGUSTA — Two women — one from Augusta and one from Waterville — pleaded guilty Thursday to criminal charges in separate cases involving knife attacks.
Tracy L. Fleischer, 35, pleaded guilty to aggravated assault that occurred March 4, 2016, when she stabbed her husband in the abdomen in front of her 13-year-old daughter at their North Pearl Street home in Augusta.
Augusta police investigating the stabbing said Fleischer bought a large kitchen knife and stabbed her husband with it when he came home from work that day and then stabbed him again as she drove him to the hospital Friday afternoon. An affidavit filed with the court indicates Fleischer was upset about what she had seen on his Instagram account.
She is to be sentenced at a later date. Fleischer, who has no prior criminal record and is represented by attorney Kevin Sullivan, still has a charge of elevated aggravated assault pending against her stemming from the same incident.
She was indicted on charges of elevated aggravated assault against a family or household member as well as a lesser charge of aggravated assault against a family or household member in connection with the stabbing that allegedly began in their North Pearl Street home. Fleischer discarded the knife from the vehicle as she drove to MaineGeneral Medical Center in Augusta. The victim required surgery to repair his wounds.
Although Fleischer remains jailed, Justice Robert Mullen agreed to change her bail conditions to permit her to have contact with her two younger children. They were not home when the stabbing occurred. Conditions of bail prohibit Fleischer’s contact with the victim and the 13-year-old.
The charge of elevated aggravated assault carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison; aggravated assault has a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
Meanwhile, Ashley L. Boivin, 33, stabbed a neighbor in the stomach on July 19, 2016, after an argument outside her Moor Street apartment in Waterville. Mullen sentenced her Thursday to an initial four years in prison and suspended the remainder of the eight-year sentence. He also imposed three years of probation.
Assistant District Attorney Francis Griffin said the victim required surgery to repair the injury to his small intestine.
Griffin said the man, who was 21 at the time, had been playing basketball with a friend when Boivin arrived and an argument ensued. Griffin said that if the case had gone to trial, the victim would have testified that he believed he was punched and he punched Boivin back.
“He looked down and saw Boivin pull a knife out,” Griffin said.
Boivin admitted to the stabbing the next day when she was interviewed by police. She also told them she did not know why she had done it.
Conditions of Boivin’s probation prohibit her from contact with the victim and from possessing dangerous weapons, including knives. Boivin, who had no prior criminal record, also was represented by attorney Sullivan.
The pleas on Thursday were made in separate hearings at the Capital Judicial Center in Augusta.
Betty Adams — 621-5631
Twitter: @betadams
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