Ex-Lovers Point Fingers At One Another As Stabbing Case Opens

SALEM, MA -- Who stabbed a 35-year-old homeless man in Bamboo Alley last June? Prosecutors say it was Jamie Bent, 29, of Salem, and so does Nicole Cameron, 35, of Salem. Ben't lawyers, meanwhile, say Cameron stabbed the man after used a vulgarity in reference to her.

The victim has been no helping in sorting it out, as he has only told police "I'm not a snitch." Now it's up to a Salem Superior Court jury to figure out what happened, as Bent's trial on attempted murder and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon charges opened Friday.

Police arrested and charged both Bent and Cameron after the attack, according to the Salem News. The two had also been charged with civil rights violations, but those charges are not being pursued. The charges against Cameron were dropped when she agreed to testify against Bent. Prosecutors plan to show the jury surveillance video of the attack from the Peabody Essex Museum, but the images are grainy.

"There's no disputing he got stabbed," John Morris, a lawyer for Bent, said during his opening statement. "But who stabbed him? And why did they stab him?"

Prosecutors concede that Cameron participated in the fight that ensued after the homeless man made his disparaging comment and even kicked the victim several times in the head. But in her opening statement, prosecutor Lindsay Nasson said she left before the victim was stabbed.

For more on this story, see the Salem News. Subscribe to Salem Patch for more local news and real-time alerts.

Patch file photo.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).