Walla Walla County Courthouse

WALLA WALLA, Wash. — An 18-year-old Walla Walla teen had his first appearance in Walla Walla County Superior Court on Wednesday, June 3, after Walla Walla Police Department personnel arrested him for allegedly stabbing a man June 2 behind the former Kmart.

Wtnesses told police that Auston P. Clifton and three other juvenile teenagers were involved in the fight with Andrew Casey, 37.

Officers found the three teens, who said Clifton was the one who stabbed Casey.

Clifton told police he and Casey have had “several past encounters,” and when Casey arrived at the Eastgate Lions Park, Clifton told him to leave, records stated. Clifton, records say, “got tired of (the man) running his mouth so he punched him in the face and started the physical fight.”

Three others reportedly joined in the attack. Clifton said he saw his girlfriend pushed to the ground, got “mad, pulled his knife from his pocket and stabbed” the man near the ribs. Clifton’s statement corroborated witness accounts, records stated.

Casey was taken to Providence St. Mary Medical Center with a punctured liver, facial abrasions, a laceration on his head and other injuries. No further information on his condition was available.

Clifton was taken to the Walla Walla County Jail for investigation of first-degree assault. His bond was set at $15,000.

The three juveniles haven’t been arrested, but the case is being investigated, according to Walla Walla Police Sgt. Eric Knudson.