A late-night tangle between a detentions officer and a Montezuma County Jail inmate resulted in a trip to the hospital for the officer and a felony investigation on the suspect, who allegedly bit the officer Thursday.

David Taylor, 33, of Mancos, who was originally being held on allegations of harassment and domestic violence, was reportedly in a solitary-confinement cell and had been causing problems, said Montezuma County Under-sheriff Sam Hagar.

"He had covered the monitoring camera up with a towel or blanket and they went in there, pulled it down and told him to stop doing that," Hagar said. "Of course he did it again, so they went in there to move him to another cell where he could not do that."

Hagar said Taylor was combative and three other officers went in to assist. "Basically he squared off with them and a scuffle ensued," Hagar said.

The officer was apparently attempting to get Taylor’s hands behind his back when the officer’s hand slipped and the suspect bit his left index finger.

"He (Taylor) was subdued and there was no further incident after that," Hagar said.

The officer was taken to Southwest Memorial Hospital, where he was treated and released.

Hagar said the wound was roughly a half-inch deep and could have required stitches. "The doctor felt that it would be better to leave the wound open so that it could drain," he said.

Formal charges have not been filed against Taylor yet, but he is being investigated on two counts of Class 4 felony assault on a peace officer stemming from the alleged incident, according to Montezuma County Court records.

Although Taylor’s bond was set at $20,000 for the alleged assault he won’t be able to bond out because of a 60-day hold from the pending harassment and domestic-violence case.

Taylor pleaded guilty on March 21 to the harassment charges and is scheduled for sentencing on May 22.

Formal charges in the alleged assault on the officer will likely be filed Wednesday.