Weber County Sheriff’s Office deputies were dispatched at 3 a.m. to a reported psychiatric episode at The Terrace, 400 E. 5350 South, where a patient was experiencing hallucinations after allegedly consuming methamphetamine. An employee told deputies the patient, Bruce D. Byington, had refused to go to a hospital to be evaluated.

As deputies were speaking to the staff, a nurse told them Byington was in a room and had cornered another resident, holding two knives on him, an arrest affidavit said. The nurse said Byington thought the other resident was a police officer and he refused to leave the room.

Deputies said Byington was holding a folding knife in each hand and would not put them down and leave the room. According to the arrest affidavit, Byington was agitated, yelling incoherently and becoming aggressive, leading officers to shoot him with a Taser. “The Taser was ineffective, and when he was struck with the probes he jumped on top of the resident,” the affidavit said.

Byington then inflicted a “severe laceration” on the resident’s shoulder and upper back, according to the affidavit. Deputies said they Tased Byington again and had to pry the knives from his hands. They said he continued to resist, but they finally subdued him.

After being treated at a hospital, Byington was booked into the Weber County Jail on suspicion of second-degree felony aggravated assault with serious bodily injury, third-degree felony use of a dangerous weapon by a restricted person, and misdemeanor counts of interference with police, disorderly conduct, intoxication and unlawful detention.

According to state court records, Byington has a long criminal history, with charges including sexual battery, assault, theft, burglary and drug offenses.

It was not immediately known how seriously the other resident was injured. The sheriff’s office did not immediately return calls.

Colin Delahunty, nursing home administrator, declined to answer specific questions about the incident, citing resident medical privacy laws. He issued a prepared statement, which said in part, “There are currently, and consistently have been, protocols and guidelines in place which are designed to keep our resident community as safe as possible while receiving care at The Terrace. We take our resident care obligations very seriously, and are dedicated to doing the right thing.”