One Pleads Guilty, Two More Await Trial in Jogger Stabbing Case

One man has pleaded guilty and two others await court dates next week on charges stemming from the stabbing of a jogger on Salem Street last year.

The victim was surrounded by a group of men on St. Patrick's Day 2011 near the intersection of Salem Street and Park Street, according to police. He was hit over the head with a bottle and stabbed in what .

It took nearly a year for some of the suspects to be charged in the incident. One of the suspects, Matthew Haley of Somerville, pleaded guilty in Middlesex Superior Court in June to charges of armed assault to murder, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

He was sentenced to 3 to 4 years in state prison and 8 years probation, with conditions to have no contact with the co-defendants, victims or any witnesses in this case, according to a Middlesex County District Attorney spokesperson.

Two other suspects in the assault have charges pending. Ryan Shea of Somerville, is charged with armed assault to murder, and two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. Craig Bourque of Great Barrington is charged with armed assault to murder, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. Both have been indicted and have court dates scheduled Aug. 28, according to the district attorney's office.

Leading up to the incident, Bourque and three friends were cruising around the area celebrating St. Patrick's Day, according to the police report written by Officer Michael Pellegrino.

Bourque told investigators he was picked up on Broadway in Somerville and the men drove around the area yelling and waiving at people on the street, the report said.

They stopped on Salem Street in Medford, where the driver of the car abruptly pulled the car over, the men got out and ran toward some people on the street, according to the report.

During this confrontation, Bourque told investigators he saw another man approaching with what he thought was a "blue machete," Pellegrino wrote.

He allegedly told police he held a carving knife by his side, expecting it to scare the jogger, but that victim instead ran toward him, into the knife. Bourque allegedly stabbed the jogger in the upper torso.

Bourque was the first to face charges. He was questioned on the night of the incident, and a witness allegedly identified his red sneakers. Bourque was not arrested at the scene, but turned himself in days later after police brought charges.

Cell phone records connected Haley with Bourque, a police report said. Haley was wearing a tracking bracelet stemming from a previous arrest, and the records from the bracelet showed he was at the intersection at the time of the attack then travelled through several area backyards, the report said.

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