Stabbed 12-year-old identified attacker

Jen Lawson

Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2004 | 11:02 a.m.

On the way to the hospital Monday, a 12-year-old boy who had a butcher knife stuck in his chest told paramedics, "James is drunk and he did this to me," police reports note.

Within six hours of that statement, Metro Police arrested James Valdez, 29, and charged him with the murder of Shiloh Edsitty's 31-year-old mother, Teresa Tilden. Valdez was also charged with attempting to murder the boy.

Edsitty, a sixth grader at Schofield Middle School, underwent surgery at University Medical Center on Monday to remove a 10-inch knife blade from his chest. Jaime Lea, spokeswoman for the Clark County School District, said students are working on a banner to take to Edsitty at the hospital.

He was in critical condition this morning, a hospital spokeswoman said.

Homicide Lt. Tom Monahan said it's "miraculous" that Edsitty survived the attack.

"It tells me that if not for the good doctors at UMC, our homicide rate would be double what it is," he said.

According to the police report about Valdez's arrest, a security guard at the Camden Tiara apartment complex saw Edsitty running from the apartment about 1:30 a.m. Monday as a knife-wielding man, later identified as Valdez, chased the boy.

Valdez spotted the security guard and chased him, then ran behind a nearby shopping center, according to the report.

Edsitty, with a knife portruding from his chest, collapsed and the security guard called 911.

Police said that while he was hiding behind Albertson's Valdez called friends and his parents and said he had stabbed Tilden and was going to kill himself.

Two friends arrived to pick Valdez up. They told police Valdez asked to be taken to a police substation, but they took him to UMC instead because he had a large cut on his hand.

The friends dropped him off and later called police, the report says, but when detectives got to the hospital, Valdez had been released. Police called his cell phone and Valdez said he was outside a nearby pharmacy.

Detectives found him sitting on a large landscape rock with a bandaged hand and wearing blood-soaked clothing. He was taken into custody about 7:30 a.m.

Valdez declined to answer questions and asked to speak to a lawyer.