A Seward man’s case has been transferred to the Kenai Courthouse after troopers say he bit the tip off another man’s finger in August.

Clark Lane, 45, was charged with assault in the first degree after troopers responded to the Seward Hospital and determined he had bitten off the tip of Richard Dayton’s middle finger on Aug. 19. He was indicted by a grand jury on one count of assault in the second degree on Sept. 2 in Seward.

Lane plead not guilty during his arraignment in Kenai Superior Criminal Court on Tuesday. According to an Alaska State Trooper dispatch, troopers met Dayton at the hospital after the incident and learned that he and Lane had gotten into a fight on a sandbar in Seward. The tip of Dayton’s middle finger up to his first knuckle had been bitten off, and doctors were not able to reattach it, according to court documents.

Dayton told troopers the fight started over a cell phone.

“We were all hanging out on the river bar visiting,” he is reported telling troopers in an affidavit. “Lane came over to me and started to get in my face about the cell phone. We started to wrestle around.”

Dayton told troopers that Lane had bitten him three times, and was attempting to bite both his finger and his genitals, according to the affidavit.

When interviewed later at his home, Lane told troopers Dayton had placed him in a chokehold during the fight, as well as had his finger in Lane’s mouth.

“I was starting to fade,” the affidavit reads. “I started to bite through the first layer of his finger thinking he would let go. Dayton did not let go so I continued to bite his finger.”

If convicted of the charge, Lane faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. His trial call is set for Sept. 30.

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