Accused Stabber of 2-Year-Old in Stroller Was Previously Accused of Stabbing Two Young Boys – Was on Street After Judge Ruled He Was No Threat

A man who has been charged with stabbing a 2-year-old Wednesday has spent more than a quarter of a century riding the legal system’s merry-go-round.

According to WJAR-TV, accused suspect Nelson Blanco was first arrested in 2000, and since that time there he has built up a long list of charges for assaults, domestic violence, drugs, possession of stolen motor vehicle parts, and breaking and entering.

His record is also replete with reports that found he was not competent to stand trial, but it was just fine and dandy to turn him loose on the streets.

For example, a July court order wrote that Blanco was “not likely to imperil the peace and safety of the community or himself at this time.”

Blanco was allowed to remain free by Superior Court Judge Brian Stern, who was appointed by Republican Rhode Island Gov. Donald Carcieri.

That came despite psychiatric evaluations saying he was “paranoid” and “out of touch with reality.”

One doctor wrote that Blanco could “become overly violent.” Doctors concluded he was at “moderate risk of creating a likelihood of serious harm to others.”

But there he was Wednesday, on the streets of Providence, Rhode Island, where a woman and her 2-year-old daughter were waiting to meet a school bus when they were approached by Blanco, according to WPRI-TV.

Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez said Blanco made insulting comments at the woman, who crossed the street but kept waiting for her children to get off a school bus.

“The suspect approached the mother again and then started insulting the mother before attacking the child with a knife. The mother also reported that the suspect grabbed her during the incident and that witnesses who were present at the scene intervened, after which the suspect fled the area,” Perez said.

The girl was stabbed in the face.

Blanco fled, broke into a house to hide in its cellar, and locked himself in. Police followed and arrested him.

Blanco faces two counts of assault with intent to commit murder, assault with a deadly weapon, breaking and entering into the dwelling of someone over the age of 60, possession of a knife while committing a crime of violence, and possession of a knife with a blade longer than three inches.

“I cannot misstate how heartbreaking this incident is,” Perez said, according to the Boston Globe. “Our thoughts are with this child and the child’s family as they face this unimaginable situation.”

He said the attack “is horrific, is unimaginable, and it’s unfortunate.”

All of which was old news to Andy Lopez and Dave Belony, who were 6 years old and 7 years old, respectively, when they were stabbed in Lopez’s backyard in 2003, according to Fox News.

“It’s frustrating for us, not only because of what happened to us, but because it has happened to others,” Lopez said. “He was given a chance 23 years ago, and 23 years later, he did the same thing

“We want justice for the victims,” Belony said. “What is it going to take for him to be held accountable for his actions?”

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