A 25-year-old Hilo man accused of the St. Patrick’s Day stabbing of another 25-year-old man in downtown Hilo will receive a mental examination.
Hilo District Judge Harry Freitas on Wednesday ordered the examination by three mental health professionals for Donovan Sieb.
A hearing is scheduled on the doctors’ reports at 1:30 p.m. April 24.
Sieb is charged with second-degree attempted murder and first-degree assault for the Saturday night stabbing that left Joseph Red House Cook of Hilo hospitalized at The Queen’s Medical Center in Honolulu.
The stabbing occurred at about 8:40 p.m. on the sidewalk of Keawe Street just north of Haili Street near Spencer Health and Fitness Center, police said.
According to a court document, two witnesses told police Sieb ran after Cook and started a physical altercation. The witnesses said Sieb slashed Cook’s neck, causing Cook to grasp his throat while blood covered his shirt. Sieb allegedly dropped a knife that was later recovered by police.
Security personnel from nearby Hilo Town Tavern detained Sieb until police arrived, and a tavern employee helped a firefighter apply pressure to Cook’s wound until an ambulance could take him to Hilo Medical Center.
Emergency room physician Dr. Anna Cedar treated Cook and determined he suffered a laceration to his throat with arterial and vein punctures.
Deputy Prosecutor Christopher Rothfus said during Sieb’s initial court appearance Monday that Sieb recently was released from a mental health group home and that he posed “a significant danger to this community, if he were released.”
Sieb remains in Hawaii Community Correctional Center in lieu of $275,000 bail.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.