Mark Sanchez Charged with Felony and Facing Prison Time After Stabbing Incident

NEED TO KNOW

• Mark Sanchez has been charged with a felony in connection with his role in a fight with a 69-year-old truck driver over the weekend
• The two men were "fighting over a parking spot," according to authorities
• The older man pepper-sprayed and stabbed Sanchez, and said that he believed the former NFL quarterback was "trying to kill" him, according to news outlets

Fox Sports analyst and former NFL quarterback Mark Sanchez has been charged with a felony in connection with his role in a violent fight over the weekend in Indianapolis and could face prison time, authorities said.

Sanchez, 38, initially faced three misdemeanor charges — battery with injury, unlawful entry of a motor vehicle and public intoxication — and was arrested at an area hospital where he was being treated for stab wounds, hours after an altercation with a 69-year-old truck driver in an a downtown alley.

The battery charge was upgraded to a felony on Monday, Indianapolis police chief Chris Bailey said.

“I don’t care who you are. I don’t care what you do for a living. I don’t care where you live,” Bailey told reporters on Monday, Oct. 6. “If you come into our city, commit violence, we will use all the tools that are at our disposal to hold you accountable.”

In court documents obtained by TMZ and theIndianapolis Star, the truck driver — who also went to the hospital with serious injuries — said he stabbed Sanchez in self-defense.

The stabbing occurred shortly before 12:30 a.m. after Sanchez approached the door of a box truck and began talking to the driver in an alley between the Westin and Marriott hotels, the outlets reported, citing surveillance footage.

The video then showed the driver walking backwards away from the former quarterback, who followed him, the Indy Star reported. According to the newspaper, police reported, "Sanchez is seen running after [the man] and the video shows Mr. Sanchez grabbing and throwing [the man] towards the wall of the Westin.”

A witness said that the men were using their phones to record each other, the newspaper reported, citing court documents.

In the documents, the truck driver said that he thought the former quarterback was “trying to kill him” and that he pepper-sprayed Sanchez, but that the commentator just wiped it away.

Marion County prosecutor Ryan Mears said the men were “fighting about a parking spot” during Monday’s news conference.

Sanchez was in town to call Sunday's Colts game against the Las Vegas Raiders. 

Sanchez’s initial hearing is set for Tuesday, Oct. 7 at 8:30 a.m., according to WXIN-TV.

Read the original article on People