OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – The boyfriend of the 31-year-old woman shot dead by police officers during a kidnapping attempt at an Omaha Walmart talked with First Alert 6 on Wednesday about her prior struggles.
Guzman’s boyfriend Carlos declined to give First Alert 6 a last name or show his face.
He noticed something was off with her starting two weeks ago.
He says she takes a shot every three months to treat her schizophrenia, and she was due to have another one this week.
He wishes authorities had put her in a psychiatric hold when checking on her during the incidents that took place the past few days, before she grabbed the knife.
“Isn’t that what they should be doing? Cause she could be a threat to somebody else, like, hurt someone,” Carlos said. “They could’ve stopped something to prevent it. She could be here.”
Last June, Noemi Guzman was found to be suffering from schizophrenia after she was accused of setting her father’s home on fire and then breaking into a church — allegedly armed with a kitchen knife — and tearing the place apart while a priest barricaded himself in an upstairs bedroom.
She was currently following a mental health plan as a result of a court decision finding her “not responsible by reason of insanity” for the incident.
Noemi Guzman mugshot from a prior arrest(Omaha Police Department)
The psychiatrist was tasked with notifying the courts immediately if Guzman didn’t follow the treatment plan. Until what unfolded Tuesday at Walmart, there was no indication in court records that Guzman hadn’t been following the treatment.
She was scheduled for an annual review on June 12.
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Digital Director Gina Dvorak contributed to this story.
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