NEWPORT — A man told the police his wife attempted to stab him in the chest with a steak knife, but he escaped with superficial wounds.

The police charged Caroline J. Paiva, 37, of 8 Caswell Ave., with domestic felony assault after an officer found her injured husband, Joseph, outside their house on Wednesday.

Joseph Paiva, carrying a pillowcase with some clothing on Caswell Avenue, flagged down police officers who were responding to the report of a disturbance, said Lt. Michael Brennan. The husband said that when he had returned home earlier, his wife hit him and then stabbed him twice.

Paramedics treated the minor chest wounds, Brennan said. Paiva did not go to the hospital.