A Niles man who attempted to stab another man in the parking lot of the Berrien County Courthouse in Niles will spend at least one year behind bars.

Forest Woodson, Jr., 50, was sentenced Thursday to a minimum of 12 months in the Michigan Department of Corrections during a hearing at the Niles courthouse, just a few hundred feet away from where the offense occurred.

Woodson pleaded guilty earlier to one count of attempted assault with a dangerous weapon.

The incident occurred Feb. 6 in the courthouse parking lot where Woodson and the victim were sitting together in a vehicle.

The two began arguing and Woodson attempted to stab the victim in the chest with what Judge Dennis Wiley described as a 10- to 12-inch knife.

The victim was able to block the attack and keep the knife from doing any major damage, although he received cuts on his hands.

“You are lucky you didn’t seriously injure or possibly kill (the victim),” Wiley said.

Courthouse security was able to intervene and break up the situation before any more damage was done.

Wiley said Woodson put the entire courthouse at risk because the Berrien County Sheriff’s Deputy who normally mans the entry to the courthouse had to leave his post to respond to the attack.

Woodson apologized for his actions and said he never intended to injure the victim.