IDAHO FALLS -- A 19-year-old Idaho Falls man has pleaded guilty to stabbing another man to death during a Christmas Day fight in Ammon.
Joseph Manuel Chavez pleaded guilty Wednesday to second-degree murder in the Dec. 25, 2011 death of 20-year-old Buck Garner of Idaho Falls. Garner was stabbed twice in the heart.
Chavez said Wednesday he was being attacked by Garner and retaliated by jabbing him with a knife.
Bonneville County sheriff's officials have said Garner was stabbed as he tried to be a peacekeeper after seven men arrived at a residence looking for a fight.
Under the plea agreement, both sides will recommend a 10-year fixed and 15-year indeterminate sentence when Chavez is sentenced on Oct. 9.
