A 22-year-old Kansas City, Mo., man has pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree murder in connection with a March 2014 stabbing at the Lawrence Community Shelter.

In the spring of 2014 Christopher J. McKay, then 21, was both a volunteer in the kitchen of the Lawrence Community Shelter, 3655 North 1360 Road, and a guest of the facility, the Douglas County District Attorney’s Office said in a release.

On the afternoon of March 13, McKay took a steak knife from the shelter’s kitchen and slashed the throat of Robert Shaner, then 46, a shelter staff member and former guest.

Christopher J. McKay

In an attempt to defend himself, Shaner also suffered cuts to his left hand.

Shelter staff and guests separated the two men and were able to hold McKay down until police arrived on the scene.

Shaner required emergency surgery due to his injuries.

Several weeks after the incident Shaner told the Journal-World he felt lucky to be alive and expressed his support for the shelter, where he stayed for a time after serving a prison sentence for drug convictions.

Shaner did say, however, he did not plan to return to work at the shelter due to post-traumatic stress and extreme anxiety caused by the ordeal.

“I can’t bear to go look in the kitchen or the dining room,” Shaner said in late March 2014.

At the time of the stabbing, Shaner said he was living outside the shelter.

McKay was arrested and charged with attempted first-degree murder. He pleaded guilty Tuesday.

McKay faces between 12 and 54 years in prison, depending on the findings of his pre-sentence investigation, the release said. He is scheduled for a status hearing at 9 a.m. on Feb. 12.