Davis stabber committed to state hospital after being found legally insane

Legal proceedings are expected to continue in the case of Carlos Reales Dominguez, as he's already served over the maximum time for involuntary manslaughter convictions.WOODLAND, Calif. (CN) — The mother of Karim Abou Najm, one of two men fatally stabbed three years ago in a California college town, had planned to take her son to get his first car.That trip would have occurred the day after his death in April 2023. The last day of his life, Najm declined his mother’s offer of juice over breakfast. The 20-year-old said he had coffee instead. He then left his Davis, California, home on his bicycle.“’Thank you, mama.’ Those were his last words to me,” Nadine Yehya said Wednesday, delivering her victim impact statement in Yolo County Superior Court. “My eyes didn’t get the chance to bless him as he left.”Yolo County prosecutors had sought murder convictions against Carlos Reales Dominguez for the deaths of Najm and David Breaux, 50, and an attempted murder conviction for the stabbing of Kimberlee Guillory. A jury last year acquitted Dominguez, 23, on first-degree murder charges. Last month, another jury acquitted him of second-degree murder and attempted murder, but convicted him on two counts of involuntary manslaughter.Dominguez’s public defender had argued his client suffered from schizophrenia, thinking he was attacking “shadow shapeshifters.” Doctors testified that he suffered from the mental illness at the time of the stabbings.Dominguez’s plea of not guilty by reason of insanity and evidence heard during trial led Superior Court Judge Sam McAdam to find Dominguez legally insane at the time of the stabbings.It set the stage for Wednesday’s hearing, which included the victim impact statements and McAdam’s commitment order that sent Dominguez to a state hospital for a minimum of 180 days. More legal proceedings that could extend that commitment are expected.Najm’s mother described her son as gifted, acing his college classes and already prepping to have a tech job before graduation. He practiced jiu jitsu, dated, spent time with his friends and made time for his family. As a child, he’d challenge people to chess, play tennis and take guitar lessons.“Our minds start playing tricks on us,” Yehya said. “I could almost see Karim there and I’d flinch. I very much miss his laughs that would penetrate our thin walls.”Majdi Abou Najm, his father, said his son loved to read. He’d debate people on any topic. The father said it pained him after the death to close Najm’s bank account and business.“His last words were, ‘Dear God, somebody please help me,’” Majdi Abou Najm said. “Do you know my feelings on Father’s Day? How about his birthday?“I’m sorry I wasn’t in the park instead of you,” he added.Annemaria Breaux, the sister of David Breaux, told the judge that her brother was known as “the compassion guy.” He often questioned the meaning of compassion.“What is compassion to me?” she said. “Compassion is learning somebody’s story.”Breaux said the trial taught her Dominguez’s story — about human smugglers taking him into the United States as a child and the trauma he suffered from it.She and her brother also experienced trauma. Their mother had schizophrenia. It helped forge a strong bond between the siblings.“I say this for me and David: I forgive Carlos Reales Dominguez,” she said. “I hope he’ll be OK.”Pivoting to the legal order committing Dominguez to a state hospital for treatment, McAdam noted that Dominguez already has served over the maximum sentence allowed for involuntary manslaughter. However, the law requires a minimum commitment of 180 days.The Yolo County District Attorney’s Office has filed a petition seeking a two-year extension of that commitment. Hutchinson emphasized those petitions could occur indefinitely, which potentially could keep Dominguez in a state hospital for life.Dominguez has a right to a trial on the prosecution’s petition, currently set to occur no later than April 12. McAdam noted that a trial isn’t certain, as both sides could agree to extend Dominguez’s time in the state hospital.“The defendant has not been fully restored to sanity,” the judge said.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads