Crane

FACTS

On January 16, 2013, Crane was studying at a computer in a general educational development (GED) class at the High Desert State Prison in Lassen County. Crane was attempting to obtain a GED certificate for a parole board hearing. Defendant Joseph Clay Dolihite approached Crane from behind and stabbed him in the neck with a pencil. The pencil broke off in Crane’s neck on the second thrust. Dolihite then began punching

2. Crane in the head and back. The instructor sounded an alarm and correctional officers responded. When interviewed by correctional officers, Dolihite stated he and Crane had been arguing over the use of a computer and he waited for Crane to get busy, grabbed a pencil out of his pocket, and tried to put it through Crane’s neck. Dolihite also told the officers that Crane likes to run his mouth and Dolihite wanted to see how good a pencil would look going through his throat, so he gave it a try. When asked if he was trying to kill Crane, Dolihite stated that he did not expect the pencil to break. Crane was taken to the prison’s emergency clinic, examined by medical staff, and treated for the stab wounds, one of which was close to his jugular vein. Crane was…