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CHURCHTON, Md. (AP) — A man accused of stabbing a woman with a syringe at a Maryland grocery store will be tested for blood-borne viruses after authorities found syringes in his car filled with semen.
District Court Judge John P. McKenna ordered Thomas Byron Stemen, 51, to be tested for HIV and “any other identified causative agents of AIDS" and hepatitis C, the Captial Gazette reported.
A Feb. 18 video from a grocery store in Churchton shows a man following a woman into the cart area and bumping into her. The woman is then seen looking down at her leg as she backs out of the store. The man appears to follow her outside.
Stemen was arrested on Feb. 25 after Anne Arundel County police received a tip. Stemen was charged with first- and second-degree assault and reckless endangerment.
Authorities said Stemen stabbed the woman in the buttocks with the syringe and attempted to do the same to two others. The woman wasn't identified but police said she received medical treatment. She told news outlets she was put on preventative medications for 30 days.
Assistant State’s Attorney Jason Miller requested the blood test stating the victim may have been exposed to HIV or hepatitis C.
Stemen's attorney Assistant Public Defender Mary Jo Livingston asked McKenna to reject the blood test request stating Stemen's medical privacy rights would be violated. McKeena said Health Officer Dr. Nilesh Kalyanaraman will have to inform Stemen and the victims of the results. He said the order wouldn't disclose private medical information.
Livingston declined to comment on Stemen's behalf.
Anne Arundel County spokeswoman Sgt. Jacklyn Davis said tests are pending to determine whether the bodily fluid in the syringes belongs to Stemen.
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