Defendant in Oakdale knife attack chooses prison over a trial

A teenager who hid in an Oakdale man's house and attacked him at the front door admitted his guilt Thursday and agreed to spend at least six years in prison.

Anthony Joseph Nasseff, 18, quietly admitted to a ferocious assault on Terry Meggitt, his friend's father, during a plea hearing in Washington County District Court.

Nasseff and Meggitt's son, Daniel Paul Meggitt, were charged in a bizarre August plot that involved beating, or even killing Terry Meggitt over a dispute involving a bicycle. They planned to rob him at his residence on Helena Avenue, steal two of his cars, and flee to North Dakota, according to court documents.

Nasseff pleaded guilty to an amended charge of felony first-degree assault. The county could decide to drop Nasseff's related charge of first-degree premeditated attempted murder at his May 21 sentencing hearing.

A jury trial scheduled to begin next week was canceled.

The pale and slender Nasseff, held in jail since the Aug. 25 attack, took the stand at Judge Mary Hannon's direction to answer questions about his mental health. He was treated in a hospital for depression three years ago, he said, and appeared in court under the influence of Prozac, a mood-stabilizing prescription drug.

Hannon asked Nasseff if he felt different using the drug.

Nasseff, citing his willingness to cooperate, requested a temporary release from jail but Hannon said he would remain in custody given the seriousness of his crime. Nasseff agreed to serve 10 years in prison but "good time" and credit for jail time served should reduce that to about six years, said his attorney, Sean Linnan.

Terry Meggitt didn't attend the hearing. However, prosecutor Heather Pipenhagen told Hannon that he agreed with the new charge.

Meggitt, 52, was cut in the head, face, chest and arm and has permanent loss of function in his right hand from fending off Nasseff's blows, Pipenhagen said in court.

Linnan said in an interview later Thursday that there was no proof that Nasseff had intended to kill Terry Meggitt. "He took responsibility for something he actually did," Linnan said, referring to the newer assault charge. "Yes, he used this big knife but for the majority of the struggle he used the handle."

According to court documents, Daniel Meggitt and Nasseff had met at a friend's house and planned the attack. Nasseff, dressed in a black ski mask and camouflage clothing, hid in Meggitt's house and when Meggitt returned from work, Nasseff attacked him.

His trial is scheduled for May.