Authorities say the woman accused of stabbing a young boy at a Central Omaha Walmart had a documented history of violent incidents but remained in the community without restrictions.
Police identified the suspect as Noemi Guzman, who had previously been acquitted by reason of insanity in February 2025 for stabbing her father and attempting to set him on fire in March 2024. Following that case, the court ordered a mental health evaluation and allowed her to remain free as long as she completed annual reviews.
Officials confirmed Guzman was not under any bond conditions that would have prevented her from entering public places, including retail stores.
“She was not under any bond restrictions that would prevent her from, say, going into a Walmart,” said Nissa Jones, criminal division lead for the Douglas County Attorney’s Office.
An investigation into the latest incident is ongoing, with prosecutors gathering evidence.
In addition to the attack on her father, Guzman was also involved in a separate incident at St. Frances Cabrini Catholic Church in Omaha’s Little Italy neighborhood. She broke into the church rectory, prompting Father Damian Zuerlein to barricade himself inside and call 911.
“Yeah, it’s not something a 68-year-old normally does is crawl out of the window. Go down a ladder,” Zuerlein said.
He later showed the damage inside the rectory, where broken glass and other destruction remain from the incident.
“Between the chemicals that SWAT used, and what she did, we pretty much lost everything in that rectory,” Zuerlein said.
Court records also show multiple protective orders had been filed against Guzman over the years, including by neighbors in 2018 and her stepmother in 2024.
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