Ashley E. Worley, 61, of Hillsboro has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for stabbing a Festus man with a knife at a tavern in Festus, according to court records.
Worley pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree assault and one count of armed criminal action, both felonies, and on Aug. 29, Jefferson County Div. 5 Circuit Judge Victor J. Melenbrink sentenced him to 10 years for each offense. However, the sentences are to be served concurrently, or at the same time, court papers show.
In December 2016, Worley got into an argument with a Festus man who was 55 at the time, outside the Smokehouse Tavern, 1200 American Legion Drive. After the argument, the two men went into the tavern, with the Festus man going to the bar and Worley to the bathroom, a probable-cause statement said.
When Worley emerged from the bathroom, he said something to the Festus man and then stabbed him on the left side of the neck with a small folding knife, causing a “small gouge,” the report said.
“Evidently, (the suspect) had an argument with a Festus resident that escalated over something that happened 30 years ago,” Festus Police Chief Tim Lewis told the Leader at the time.
The victim was taken to Mercy Hospital Jefferson in Crystal City and then was transferred to a hospital in St. Louis, where he was treated and released, Lewis said.
Worley told police he acted in self-defense. He also said, “Wish I would have killed him,” according to the report.
A woman who was at the bar during the incident told authorities Worley was the persistent aggressor, the report said.
Jefferson County assistant prosecuting attorney Steve W. Jerrell handled the case.
Worley previously pleaded guilty to felony DWI from a July 2008 incident in Jefferson County and to a felony drug possession charge tied to a January 2009 incident in Jefferson County, court documents said.
Worley currently is in the Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center in Bonne Terre.