Crime & Safety
Man Arrested in Spring Valley, Accused of Fatally Stabbing Stepfather
Paramedics took the wounded man – identified as Ervin Harris, 40 – to Scripps Mercy Hospital, where he died a short time later. The suspect, Thomas Guss, was taken into custody a short time later.
A 24-year-old man was in custody Wednesday on suspicion of fatally stabbing his stepfather during a fight at a Spring Valley home, authorities said.
Deputies received a report of a domestic disturbance at 8696 Taylor St. just before 10 p.m. Tuesday, according to a San Diego County sheriff's spokeswoman. Once there, they learned a stepfather and son had fought and the stepfather was stabbed, she said.
Paramedics took the wounded man—identified as Irvin Harris, Jr., 40—to Scripps Mercy Hospital, where he died a short time later, sheriff's homicide Lt. Glenn Giannantonio said.
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The son, Thomas Guss III, fled before deputies arrived, the spokeswoman said.
Guss was later arrested on suspicion of murder near the scene of the stabbing, Lt. Kevin Menzies said without elaboration.
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He is being charged with one count of first-degree murder and is not eligible for bail. Guss has an arraignment scheduled for Friday, April 19 at the El Cajon Superior Courthouse.
—City News Service contributed to this story.
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