Police have identified a Carson City man who suffered a serious head injury from being punched Thursday afternoon outside a Lee Street apartment complex.
Rick Tunison, 49, is in stable condition after being flown to a Reno hospital from Lone Mountain Cemetery adjacent to the complex.
According to Detective Dave Legros, Tunison was drunk in the 400 block of Lee Street about 6 p.m. Thursday when he got into a dispute with Robert Henry, 39.
Henry allegedly said that Tunison was "running his mouth," and Henry told him to shut up.
"Robert Henry stated the subject then approached him in an aggressive manner at which time he punched him one time with an upper-cut type punch," Legros wrote in the arrest report.
The punch knocked Tunison onto his back and his head struck a parking block, cracking his skull and causing a considerable amount of blood loss.
Legros said Henry "freaked" and left the scene on foot. He was stopped just more than an hour later at Winnie Lane and Carson Street where he was found to be wearing a different shirt than the one described by witnesses.
"Robert Henry stated that having done prison time, he was not going to wait for the victim to hit him first, that's why he struck the victim," Legros said.
Henry was booked into jail on suspicion of felony battery with substantial bodily harm and is being held on $30,000 bail.
Tunison's identity was not learned until Friday morning when police also learned he had a misdemeanor warrant for failing to appear in court on a DUI charge.
• Contact reporter F.T. Norton at ftnorton@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1213.