Cedar Rapids woman faces attempted murder charge after stabbing

CEDAR RAPIDS — A Cedar Rapids woman waved a kitchen knife at a man, stabbing him several times, before leading police on a chase to get away, authorities said Monday.

Latoya Taylor, 40, faces charges of attempted murder; operating while intoxicated; eluding; willful injury causing bodily injury; and driving while barred. She also was cited for traffic violations, including for reckless driving, failure to obey traffic control devices, improper use of lanes, failure to maintain control and leaving the scene of an accident.

Police were called to the 1500 block of Washington Ave. SE about 6 p.m. Sunday for a report of a stabbing, according to Cedar Rapids police.

Officers found Willey Davis, 63, of Cedar Rapids, suffering from multiple stab wounds, including one to his neck, which was bleeding when police arrived, according to a criminal complaint.

A witness to the stabbing told police Taylor was the aggressor and that she had swung a kitchen knife at Davis, saying “I’m going to kill you,” according to the complaint. The court record did not say what relationship the two had.

Davis was taken to a hospital for treatment. Officials believed his injuries are not life threatening, a city public safety news release said.

When police arrived at the scene, they saw Taylor driving away in her mother’s vehicle. Officers turned on their emergency lights and sirens to initiate a traffic stop, but Taylor led them on a chase, during which she ran a stoplight and a stop sign and drove more than 25 mph over the speed limit, according to the criminal complaint.

Stop sticks — meant to puncture tires — were deployed near the Cedar Rapids Police Department to end the chase and Taylor was taken into custody. She failed field sobriety tests, and a breath test administered after she was booked into the Linn County Jail registered at .216, over twice the legal driving limit, the complaint states.

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