Authorities in southern Kentucky have arrested a man after they say he attacked two people with a machete.

40-year-old James Fields now faces several charges, including two counts of attempted murder.

Fields talked to NEWSFIRST Tuesday afternoon from the Whitley County Detention Center.

"It was all an accident, and its been blown way out of proportion," claims Fields.

He says he jokingly threatened his brother, his brother's girlfriend, and his own girlfriend with the machete during a drunken argument over the weekend.

"I grabbed up the machete and I said, you all stop, stop arguing already," Fields said.

But his brother, Adam Anderson, says he wasn't laughing.

"I didn't know what he was doing, so I went towards him, trying to take the machete away from him," said Anderson.

That's when Anderson suffered a cut to his nose, before falling to his knees and blacking out.

"I was like oh my God. I said, Adam, are you okay? Please talk to me," said Fields.

In the process, Anderson's girlfriend Sandra Shelton was also cut in the arm when she tried to take the machete from Fields.

"It just went too far, way too far and got out of hand,' Shelton said.

Both Shelton and Anderson say they've forgiven Fields and call the incident an accident. However the Whitley County Sheriff's Department sees it differently.

"No, this wasn't an accident," said Whitley County Sheriff Colan Harrell. "When someone injures two people with a machete, that's not an accident."

Anderson says his brother is a diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic, who needs treatment, not jail time.

"This attempted murder charge is absolutely ridiculous," Anderson said.

Fields, remains in the Whitley County Jail without bond. He's scheduled to be in court next week.