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Police: Woman stabs man during assault at Franklin Township motel

State police said a woman stabbed a Butler man in the neck in self-defense after he held her against her will inside a Franklin Township motel room early Saturday, May 13.

Robert L. Miller, 50, was charged Saturday with misdemeanors simple assault, false imprisonment, terroristic threats and use and possession of drug paraphernalia.

The woman involved in the stabbing has not been charged. The affidavit indicates that officers believe she responded with force “as a last resort to preserve her own life.”

Both parties were transported for injuries.

Police said they responded to the Longhorn Corral in Franklin Township at 12:49 a.m. for a domestic incident in which a male was stabbed.

When they arrived, Miller was on an outdoor bench, bleeding from the right side of his neck, left forearm and right hand.

He was flown to UPMC Presbyterian Hospital in Pittsburgh, while the woman was taken by ambulance to Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh for injuries to her head and a hand laceration.

Police said a large amount of blood was found throughout the motel room, in addition to drug paraphernalia and a folding knife covered in blood. A steak knife also was involved in the incident, according to police reports.

The woman told police that she and Miller had smoked crack cocaine prior to the alleged assault. Miller started hallucinating, police said, telling the woman that four men were outside the room.

Police said the woman told officers Miller accused her of cheating and lacing the crack cocaine. Miller told police that he and the woman had purchased crack cocaine and heroin, and Miller believed the woman had switched the drugs and was poisoning him.

In an interview with police, the woman said Miller smashed her head into the wall and a window and punched her.

Police said Miller possessed a folding knife and told the woman he was going to kill her if she didn’t “make the guys leave.” At one point, the woman said Miller stabbed the knife into the wall, cutting his hand.

Miller also locked the motel room door and blocked it by sitting in a chair, saying “I’m not letting you out of here, you’re not leaving here alive” while holding a steak knife, police said.

According to the affidavit, Miller pushed the woman onto the bed and covered her nose and mouth. The woman said she grabbed the folding knife from the bed, then Miller yanked her by her hair and smashed her face against the window.

Police said Miller held the steak knife to the woman’s throat and said he would stab her on the count of three. As he counted, police said the woman took the folding knife and stabbed him in the throat.

Miller threw the woman on the ground after being stabbed and punched her, police said. She told officers she tried to stab him in the side to stop him and escaped into the bathroom and called 911.

Police said the woman was convinced that Miller would have killed her.

Miller said in his interview with police that he did stand in front of the locked motel room door with a folding knife, but did not threaten the woman. He reiterated that he thought men were outside the room, police said.

Police said Miller related that he threw the woman to the ground before she stabbed him. He also admitted to hitting her “a couple of times” following the incident.

A preliminary hearing for Miller has not been scheduled.

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