Davis residents reflect on deadly stabbing spree one year ago: ‘I don’t think it’s a distant memory’
Leaves gently swayed above Compassion Corner in tune to peaceful chords played Saturday by an accordionist just across the street at Davis Farmers Market.
UC Davis students and their parents hurried by, not stopping at the corner featuring the Compassion Bench created to honor 50-year-old David Breaux. Some residents glanced at the memorial on 3rd and C streets — where Breaux stood for a decade and asked residents about their definition of compassion — but continued on their way.
But, occasionally, a person stepped aside from the crowd to gaze at the soft red rock inlaid with handmade tiles. They sat quietly in the sun as sadness crept over their faces. Breaux was killed one year ago Saturday amid a series of stabbings called by the city as one of the most tragic moments in its history
“I always was so busy with my life, I didn’t take time to really get to know him,” said Aelric Kofoid, 33, who sat to honor Breaux. “And, if I could redo things, I would. You never know when someone’s just going to go.”
Breaux’s sister, Maria Breaux, swapped stories with the father of Karim Abou Najm, another stabbing victim, on Saturday at Compassion Corner. She recalled David Breaux’s warm, loving nature and his humor.
“My definition (of compassion) has become closer to David’s,” Maria said in a phone interview, “just recognizing unconditional love.”
Abou Najm, a UC Davis student one month away from graduating, was walking home April 29, 2023, when he was killed near Sycamore Park. Kimberlee Guillory, the third and final victim, was repeatedly stabbed two days after Abou Najm’s death while sleeping at a homeless encampment.
Fresh and wilted flowers adorned a Sycamore Park memorial honoring Abou Najm, 20, on Saturday. Birds twittered and flitted through towering trees as bicyclists pedaled nearby.
The family of Najm is scheduled to speak Monday while unveiling a bench for him in the park and renaming the bike path.
Longtime resident Janet Goldsmith walked her two dogs through the heavily shaded area. She squeezed her eyes shut and pressed a hand to her mouth when asked to reflect over the past year and Najm’s death.
“I didn’t know him. I don’t know the family,” Goldsmith said. “But, I can’t imagine the pain that it must have caused them.”
Suspect Carlos Reales Dominguez, a former UC Davis student, has pleaded not guilty to murder and attempted murder. His trial could begin in June.
No one answered the door at a home Reales Dominguez once lived in with roommates. Neighbor Talia Mickelsen remembers biking home from campus last year and encountering a horde of FBI personnel and police entering the home.
“It didn’t really feel real,” she said.
The city of Davis rarely has homicides. Last year’s slayings accounted for all of them, one more than in 2022 for a city that had zero homicides in 2021, according to records collected by The Sacramento Bee.
Students remain cautious one year after experiencing fear in the stabbings’ aftermath, Mickelsen said.
“I don’t think it’s a distant memory,” the 21-year-old UC Davis senior said. “It definitely is stained in some people’s memories.”
Kari Peterson, David Breaux’s friend, said he would encourage thoughts of compassion for Reales Dominguez and others. She’s very thankful for knowing Breaux in the past decade.
“As time has worn on, pain seems to have given way to a commitment to lead with compassion, kindness and love,” Peterson said. “To somehow be gentler. (Breaux’s death) sort of serves as a reminder of that commitment.”
