WOODLAND, CA – The trial of Carlos Reales Dominguez officially began Monday with opening arguments from both sides. Dominguez is accused of murdering David Breaux and Karim Abou Najm and injuring Kimberlee Guillory, who survived. He also faces sentence enhancements for the use of a deadly weapon. This article covers the morning’s opening statements—based on live footage from ABC 10—and the afternoon evidentiary phase from in-person court coverage.
Dominguez’s attorney, Deputy Public Defender Daniel Hutchinson, and Deputy District Attorneys Matt DeMoura and Frits Van Der Hoek presented markedly different narratives to Judge Samuel T. McAdam and the jury about Dominguez’s state of mind during the stabbings.
“December 5, 2022—Carlos Reales Dominguez is a student at UC Davis, and he is struggling,” said DDA Van Der Hoek, as seen in ABC 10 courtroom footage. “He’s not doing well in school, his girlfriend broke up with him months prior, he no longer has a job, his roommates are asking about rent—and on December 5, he has finals.” According to ABC 10, Van Der Hoek continued, “We know he’s not spending all his time studying, because he goes on Amazon and searches for ‘combat knife’ and ‘hunting knife.’”
At the time of the attacks, Dominguez was a sophomore at UC Davis. He had been struggling academically, leading to academic probation and eventual expulsion in winter 2023, DDA Van Der Hoek explained.
Van Der Hoek’s presentation included preliminary evidence such as screenshots from Dominguez’s phone, his class schedule, location history, and cell phone battery usage—data that he argued showed premeditation. According to ABC 10, the battery and location data indicated Dominguez had powered off his phone before the first and second stabbings, thereby eliminating real-time tracking.
Van Der Hoek also described the wounds sustained by Breaux and Abou Najm, which he said were concentrated around vital organs like the heart—emphasizing that the attacks were intentional and meant to kill.
He presented stills from police body camera footage showing the arrest, claiming Dominguez gave a false name, address, and birthday, and was carrying the knife allegedly used in the attacks in a grocery bag.
“The defendant not only stabbed David Breaux, not only did he stab Karim, not only did he stab Kimberlee—but for each of those, he did so willfully, deliberately, and with premeditation,” Van Der Hoek said, as recorded by ABC 10. “And I’ll ask you to find him guilty.”
DPD Hutchinson offered a contrasting account, arguing that the attacks were the result of Dominguez’s untreated schizophrenia.
“The circumstances that led to the tragic events of April and May 2023 will be very much in dispute,” Hutchinson said in court, according to ABC 10. “What is not in dispute is that Carlos Reales Dominguez committed the physical acts that caused the deaths of David Breaux and Karim Abou Najm and injured Kimberlee Guillory.”
In the ABC 10 footage, Hutchinson emphasized that Dominguez was not in his right mind at the time of the attacks and described his mental condition as a “severe and debilitating mental disease.”
Hutchinson outlined Dominguez’s previously high-functioning life: an honor roll student, four-sport athlete, football team captain, and caretaker for his siblings. He made many friends in his first year at UC Davis—but then, Hutchinson said, “he got sick.”
After his freshman year, those close to Dominguez reportedly observed deteriorating hygiene, social withdrawal, and erratic behavior. By early 2023, Hutchinson argued, Dominguez was experiencing florid psychosis—hallucinating and behaving in ways consistent with schizophrenia.
According to the defense’s opening, Dominguez believed he was being stalked by “shapeshifting, supernatural beings” he referred to as “shadowy figures.” He began wandering Davis late at night, detached from reality, Hutchinson said.
In response to some of the prosecution’s claims, Hutchinson argued that Dominguez’s false statements to police stemmed from confusion, not deception, consistent with schizophrenia. He also refuted prosecution claims that there was no victim DNA in Dominguez’s home, asserting that there was—and that Dominguez made no attempt to clean the scene.
In the afternoon, the prosecution began calling witnesses. DDA DeMoura’s first witness was Maria Breaux, sister of David Breaux. She described David’s background: a Stanford education, various jobs, and his path to becoming known as Davis’s “compassion guy.” The siblings stayed in contact via messaging platforms until February 2023. Maria testified that she learned of his death on April 29 and later visited his memorial at Compassion Corner.
The prosecution then called Aidan Reynolds, a UC Davis undergraduate researcher, and his colleague Ian Haliburton, a graduate student. On the morning of April 27, the two had been tracking a bird for a research project in Central Park when they discovered Breaux’s body. Believing he was likely deceased, they called for a wellness check.
“We were following this particular bird into Central Park,” Haliburton testified. “I noticed someone that wasn’t moving… it was apparent something was wrong.”
The prosecution then called several law enforcement officers, including Davis Police Sgt. Antonia Dias, West Sacramento Police Sgt. Louis Cameron, and Davis Police Detective Alex Torres.
Detective Torres presented evidence found at the crime scene where Breaux was killed. This included crime scene photos, clothing, and personal belongings—many bloodstained and marked with puncture wounds. Torres also confirmed that a leather sheath recovered at the scene matched the Smith & Wesson dagger-style knife purchased by Dominguez on Amazon.
DPD Hutchinson did not cross-examine any witnesses on Monday. DDA DeMoura’s direct examination of Detective Torres is scheduled to resume when court reconvenes at 9 a.m. on May 6.
