Man accused of stabbing woman heads off trial with guilty plea

A man accused of stabbing a woman during an altercation in Weiser in June avoided a jury trial scheduled for Sept. 18 by changing his plea to guilty in Third District Court.

 Joshua W. Lincoln, 27, was charged with felony aggravated battery after he stabbed a female acquaintance on the sidewalk along U.S. Highway 95 near East Commercial Street on June 6. The assault was witnessed by two Idaho State Police detectives who happened to be driving by at the time. 

 Lincoln pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in front of Judge Susan Wiebe and a jury trial was set. He switched his plea to guilty at a status conference on Sept. 14. 

 The ISP detectives stopped their unmarked police vehicle and came to the aid of the woman, who was laying on the sidewalk. The detectives saw a knife in Lincoln’s hand and ordered him to drop the weapon. He threw the knife into the roadway while the detectives held him at gunpoint and called 911 for backup and an ambulance, court records state.

 Paramedics arrived and transported the injured woman to Weiser Memorial Hospital. The woman, who detectives determined was an acquaintance of the suspect, was later airlifted to a Boise hospital, officials said. The woman survived the injuries.

 Lincoln remains in the county jail on $500,000 bond until he is sentenced on Nov. 20.