Police said a 39-year-old woman’s children helped stop a man from attacking their mother with a kitchen knife.

The victim still suffered a “deep laceration” to her face allegedly from her husband, John J. Jones, who is being held in the Montgomery County Jail, according to police and jail records.

Dayton officers responded to the West Norman Avenue apartment around 3 a.m.

The victim told police she and her husband had recently reconciled and were out drinking at a local bar, according to the report.

When they came home, Jones allegedly became enraged about an affair the victim had months earlier and attacked her in front of her three children, according to the report.

The man allegedly got on top of the victim and slashed her with a kitchen knife, and police said that’s when the children jumped on Jones and started punching him.

The mother was able to get away and went to a neighbor’s to call 911 while the suspect fled.

Police picked him up walking near Catalpa Drive and booked him in jail on suspicion of domestic violence and aggravated assault.

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Members of the conversion crew take a break as the main scoreboard is lowered to the floor to be worked on as the arena gets ready for the next concert at State Farm Arena, Thursday, October 2, 2025, in Atlanta. The crew was working on creating a stage for the Friday, Oct. 3 Maxwell concert. (Jason Getz/AJC)

Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com