A 17-year-old Federal Way High School student charged as an adult in the stabbing of a fellow student pleaded not guilty to first-degree assault at an arraignment hearing Thursday morning.
The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office charged Kailebh Hallock with first-degree assault on Oct. 6 in connection with an altercation at the school on Oct. 3 that sent a 16-year-old male to the hospital with a stab wound to the abdomen.
According charging documents, a school resource officer responded to a report of a stabbing near the school’s cafeteria at about 11 a.m.
He saw a group of students gathered at the top of staircase who pointed to Hallock and yelled “That’s him!”
The officer pursued Hallock and chased him across Pacific Highway South, where he detained him.
Another officer arrived and found a folding knife in Hallock’s pocket, according to court documents.
Hallock, a junior at Federal Way High School, told officers the altercation began when he made a remark to the victim, who is also a junior, about having a sexual relationship with the victim’s girlfriend.
Hallock said the victim punched him in the face multiple times, giving him a bloody nose.
Police noted that Hallock had abrasions on his right cheek and left eyebrow and dried blood under his nose.
Hallock told police he left the hallway after the victim punched him and went outside, where his friend told him he should stab the victim.
According to the documents, Hallock re-entered the school with a knife he took from his backpack, and without provocation, stabbed the victim once in the left side. The victim was taken to Harborview Medical Center with a stab wound to the left chest/abdomen area and underwent surgery.
The day after the stabbing, the victim’s girlfriend told police that Hallock had approached the victim in the hallway and made a comment about his relationship with her. When the victim confronted Hallock about what he said, Hallock tried to hit the victim, and he defended himself by punching Hallock, court documents state.
Video surveillance footage was consistent with the victim’s girlfriend’s account, but the footage did not show whether Hallock tried to first punch the victim, according to the court documents.
As of Thursday, Hallock remained in custody at the King County Regional Justice Center in Kent on $350,000 bond.
“The defendant shared with law enforcement detailed and violent fantasies that he has been experiencing lately,” according to charging documents. “These are highly concerning to say the least. It appears the defendant may be suffering some kind of a mental break in light of these disclosures and is either unwilling or unable to control his behavior.”
If convicted, Hallock could face a sentence ranging from nine years and nine months to 12 years and three months in prison.
A case setting hearing is scheduled for Nov. 1.
