California stabbing survivor shares frustration after not guilty verdict in attempted murder case

By Maricela De La Cruz

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    YOLO, California (KCRA) — Kimberlee Ramona Guillory, a survivor of a stabbing attack in Davis, voiced her disappointment after a jury found Carlos Dominguez not guilty of attempted murder on Tuesday.

“I’m disappointed, I’m really disappointed. I mean, that was the most traumatic thing I’ve ever been through, and my daughter, she’s had to go through it. It’s just not fair. I don’t understand what the jurors were thinking,” Guillory said.

The case focused on whether Dominguez’s actions were crimes, given his mental health. Jurors considered arguments about whether his marijuana use worsened his schizophrenia and influenced his behavior.

“I’m very disappointed, and it’s almost like my life didn’t matter and neither did theirs,” Guillory said.

The jury did find Dominguez guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the deaths of David Breaux and Karim Abou Najm. However, Guillory remains skeptical about the role of his mental state in the attacks.

“If he was so mentally unstable, how come when the police officer asked him his name, he gave him all three – first, middle, and last – fake, but he didn’t know what he was doing? He was too mentally just distraught? I don’t buy it,” Guillory said.

Three years after the attack, Guillory said the incident continues to impact her daily life.

“He did a pretty good job of chopping the inside of me because when he came down with the knife, he cut the tent and it went straight into me,” she said.

Guillory added that she still experiences daily pain, and while her injuries have healed, she continues to live in fear.

“I’m not homeless anymore, thank goodness. But other than that, I live in fear every day, and I don’t think it’s ever going to stop,” she said.

In a statement to KCRA 3 News, Karim Abou Najm’s parents said they “feel betrayed and deeply disappointed by the justice system.”

David Breaux’s sister, Maria Breaux said she is relieved the trial is over and hopes “the overriding lesson from this tragedy is the importance of early intervention for severe mental illness and of treating every human being with compassion.”

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