Prosecutor: Student stabbed Salem State professor 20-30 times

A Salem State University professor is recovering after being stabbed multiple times by a student inside a campus building.

A school spokeswoman said police responded to Meier Hall around 5:15 p.m. Wednesday, where the professor was found in the hallway outside the men’s restroom.

Police said English professor Pierre Walker, 58, had been stabbed in the neck. Salem State says the weapon used was an ‘aluminum sculpting instrument.’

Walker was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. He is expected to be okay.

The suspect has been identified as Stephen Chastain, 24, a senior Biology student from Amesbury.

Chastain ran away and was caught about a block away after witness followed him and called police. 

The professor does not know the student, and police are calling this a random act.

The school said students and staff were notified via text message about what happened and that there was no threat to the public.

Chastain appeared in Salem District Court Thursday for arraignment on charges of attempted murder, mayhem, assault with a dangerous weapon, strangulation or suffocation, and assault and batter. 

He was ordered to undergo a mental health evaluation at Bridgewater State Hospital.

According to prosecutors, Chastain attacked Walker in a bathroom, strangled him until he passed out and then stabbed him 20-30 times.

(Copyright (c) 2015 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)