Inset: Joseph Niemiec (Hall County Jail). Background: The 4200 block of 21st Street in Racine, Wisconsin, where Niemiec allegedly stabbed his father in the neck (Google Maps).
An 18-year-old Wisconsin man asked his father for a hug before he stabbed him in the neck with a knife and tried to chase him down to do it again, cops say.
Joseph Niemiec stands accused of first-degree attempted homicide, the Racine Police Department said.
Officers responded around 1 a.m. Aug. 12 to the 4200 block of 21st Street for a report of a stabbing. When officers arrived, they found Niemiec's father suffering from a stab wound. Niemiec had fled the scene.
According to an arrest affidavit posted by local Fox affiliate WITI, the father was "covered in blood and holding pressure on his neck." The father, who was still alert, told cops he heard a noise coming from the back door. He said he thought it may be an intruder but realized it was his son.
Once inside, Niemiec allegedly asked his father if they could talk. They sat in the kitchen where Niemiec said he was having a "rough go at life" and had attempted suicide multiple times and didn't know what to do, cops wrote. Niemiec apparently went to use the bathroom, and when he returned, asked his dad for a hug.
"As they went to hug Joseph quickly presented a knife and stabbed [the victim] in the neck," the affidavit stated.
The victim said he "felt a punch to his throat and immediately placed his hand over it as he stumbled backwards," cops said.
Niemiec allegedly came at his dad a second time, but the victim disarmed him and pushed him away. The victim ran away with his son in pursuit, cops said.
The victim tossed the knife in a trash can and ran to a neighbor's house to call 911. Niemiec allegedly fled in a Chevrolet Malibu.
Troopers with the Nebraska State Patrol spotted the Malibu about 10 hours later on Interstate 80 near the Alda interchange. It was about 650 miles away from the crime scene. Niemiec was arrested and taken to the Hall County Jail where he remains, pending extradition.
His mug shot shows him smirking for the camera.
Cops say the victim is expected to make a full recovery.