Ex-UC Davis student cleared of murder, convicted of manslaughter in stabbing spree

WOODLAND, Calif. (CN) — A California jury acquitted Carlos Reales Dominguez on second-degree murder charges Tuesday in connection with the 2023 stabbing deaths of two people, but convicted the 23-year-old former UC Davis student of involuntary manslaughter.

It was the second time a jury deliberated the fate of Dominguez, whose public defender said he suffered from untreated schizophrenia at the time. Last year, a Yolo County jury acquitted Dominguez on two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the spring 2023 slayings of David Breaux, 50, and Karim Abou Najm, 20. Jurors reached no verdict on charges of second-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter and the attempted murder of Kimberlee Guillory.

Dominguez pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.

That plea, and the jury’s Tuesday verdict, sets the stage for the second phase of the trial. Attorneys are set to return to court Wednesday afternoon to begin that phase.

The second phase will focus on whether Dominguez was legally insane at the time of the offenses, meaning he didn’t understand the act and couldn’t determine right from wrong. A verdict in that second stage will determine whether Dominguez is confined to a prison or state hospital.

Last year’s acquittal led prosecutors to return to the courtroom in May seeking convictions for second-degree murder and attempted murder. Initially, prosecutors argued the slayings were sparked by Dominguez being scorned by his girlfriend and expelled from college. This time, they said Dominguez’s heavy cannabis use inflamed his dormant mental illness, leading to the stabbings, though he could still reason.

Deputy Public Defender Dan Hutchinson lambasted that argument during his closing argument on July 15. Three medical experts determined Dominguez suffered from psychosis at the time of the slayings, Hutchinson said. He experienced delusions and hallucinations at the time.

Hutchinson said his client saw “supernatural shapeshifters, shadow people” that he attacked. Dominguez had no intent to kill a human being, an essential element for someone to be convicted of murder.

Dominguez’s public defender also sharply critiqued the prosecution and law enforcement investigators involved in the case, calling them amateurs. One investigator on the case had been demoted. Additionally, the prosecution leaned on a psychiatrist who Hutchinson said lied on the witness stand.

The theory of cannabis-induced psychosis came from no doctor, Hutchinson added. Instead, prosecutors created it in autumn last year, after the initial acquittal.

He asked that jurors acquit his client of the more serious charges and instead convict him of involuntary manslaughter.

Deputy District Attorney Alex Kian in his closing argument showed jurors video footage of Dominguez walking through a grocery store, interacting with police and sitting in a patrol vehicle — all on the day of his arrest.

Kian pointed to what he called goal-directed behavior and organized thought. Dominguez purposefully walked through the grocery store, selecting specific items. He spoke reasonably, except when officers began talking about the stabbings. And he buckled a seat belt once inside the police car.

Dominguez also exhibited rational thought during the slayings, Kian said.

Dominguez fled on a bicycle after stabbing Najm, as a nearby resident approached with a flashlight. Dominguez may claim he had no memory of the stabbings, but failing to remember doesn’t mean a lack of intent, the prosecutor said.

The stabbings in April and May 2023 set the college town of Davis on edge. Breaux was discovered dead on April 27, 2023, in Central Park. Najm died April 29, 2023, in Sycamore Park. Guillory, who survived, suffered multiple stab wounds on May 1, 2023, at a homeless encampment.

Dominguez was arrested two days later after a man, thinking he resembled a suspect description, followed him and contacted police. Officers said they found a knife in a bag Dominguez was carrying.

The question of whether Dominguez was competent to stand trial soon emerged. Prosecutors argued he was, pushing the issue to a trial on that issue alone. However, after a week of testimony, they agreed Dominguez wasn’t competent.

Dominguez spent months in a state hospital to have his competency restored. The criminal proceedings against him resumed in 2024, followed by his first trial the following year.