WOODLAND, Calif. (CN) — Carlos Dominguez, who faces murder and attempted murder charges arising from the stabbings of three people last year in Davis, California, is heading to trial after a judge found probable cause in the case Tuesday.
Superior Court Judge Samuel McAdam issued his ruling on the second and final day of Dominguez’s preliminary hearing. Attorneys in the case agreed on Tuesday that DNA evidence links Dominguez to the crimes.
Dominguez, 22, faces two counts of murder in connection with the late April 2023 stabbing deaths of David Henry Breaux, 50, and Karim Abou Najm, 20. He faces an attempted murder charge in the May 1 stabbing of Kimberlee Guillory. He’s pleaded not guilty.
The former University of California-Davis student remained held without bond on Tuesday.
Prosecutors have a lower threshold to meet during preliminary hearings and must only prove probable cause, not the higher burden of guilty beyond a reasonable doubt that they will have to meet at trial.
“The prosecution has met this burden here,” McAdam said. “The defendant is linked to three stabbings with a knife.”
At the start of Tuesday’s hearing, attorneys in the case agreed to a series of DNA test results.
They concurred that there was strong evidence that a knife found in Dominguez’s possession during his arrest had his, Najm and Guillory’s DNA on it.
The testing also strongly supported that a sweatshirt of Dominguez’s contained Najm’s DNA.
A DNA analysis of a knife sheath found near Breaux’s body linked Dominguez to the scene. Additionally, a fingerprint taken from a water bottle in the area where the suspect fled Najm’s stabbing matched Dominguez.
On Monday, the first day of the hearing, Davis police officers testified about the stabbings and evidence they found.
A passerby spotted Dominguez on May 3 and followed him, as he appeared suspicious and matched a description of the stabbing suspect, Officer Keirith Briesenick said Tuesday.
He alerted police, who spoke with Dominguez at Pine Lane and Colby Drive in Davis, a block from the park where Najm was stabbed.
Detective Stephen Ramos and another officer interviewed Dominguez. Ramos testified Tuesday that Dominguez eventually said he stabbed Breaux 40 times.
“He denied it up until that point,” the detective said.
Reading from a transcript of the interview, Deputy Public Defender Dan Hutchinson, who represents Dominguez, pointed out that his client said little during the seven-hour interview. Dominguez also changed his answers.
“Most of his answers are, ‘Yeah,’ ‘no’ or ‘I’m not sure,’” Hutchinson said. “He continued to say he didn’t stab anybody.”
In his closing arguments, Deputy District Attorney Matt De Moura noted that the knife sheath found near Breaux's body with Dominguez’s DNA on it was the same brand as the knife found on the suspect.
Additionally, De Moura told the judge that a man saw the stabbing suspect during the attack on Najm and gave a description of him that matched Dominguez. A water bottle and bicycle were found close to that scene.
“That bike contains Mr. Najm’s blood and the water bottle has Mr. Dominguez’s blood on it,” the prosecutor said.
The stabbings show that calculated decisions by the suspect preceded the attacks, De Moura said.
“His flight shows the consciousness of guilt,” he added about the Najm attack.
Hutchinson opted against giving an argument.
Dominguez’s case has taken a series of legal turns since his May arrest. Prosecutors opposed a doctor’s report calling his competency into question, leading to a jury trial on that issue last summer. They dropped their opposition after a week of testimony about Dominguez’s deteriorating physical and mental state, and a psychologist said he exhibited traits of someone with schizophrenia.
Dominguez went to a state hospital, where his competency was restored months later.
He’s next set to appear in court on March 13 for his arraignment.
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