Authorities in Omaha, Nebraska, are facing renewed scrutiny following the fatal police shooting of a woman who had previously been arrested on multiple felony charges before allegedly stabbing a 3-year-old boy outside a Walmart, as reported by Fox News.

The suspect, identified as 31-year-old Noemi Guzman, was shot and killed by police on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, after officers say she slashed a young child during a confrontation in a store parking lot.

According to the Omaha Police Department, officers were called to a Walmart just after 9 a.m. following reports of a woman armed with a “kitchen knife” in the presence of a child.

Responding officers located Guzman in the parking lot, standing next to a shopping cart with the 3-year-old boy inside while she held the weapon.

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Police said officers issued multiple verbal commands for Guzman to drop the knife, but she refused. During the encounter, authorities said Guzman cut the child across his face.

Two officers then discharged their firearms, fatally striking Guzman, according to officials. The child was transported to a hospital and is expected to survive.

Investigators later said surveillance footage showed Guzman had shoplifted the knife from inside the store before confronting the child’s caretaker and forcing both the caretaker and the child outside at knifepoint.

Records indicate the incident was not Guzman’s first encounter with law enforcement.

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In 2024, she was arrested after allegedly attacking her father with a knife and attempting to set fire to his home, according to reports cited by KETV. Authorities said Guzman doused her father in a flammable liquid and cut him before fleeing.

Following that incident, Guzman allegedly entered St. Frances Cabrini Church, where she began damaging property inside the rectory while still armed.

A priest inside the church called 911 and barricaded himself in a room as the situation escalated.

“Whatever room he was in, she busted through that room just as they were extracting [him] on that ladder truck,” Lt. Jake Ritonya said at the time, according to KETV.

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“And then she was armed with a knife. So obviously it could have gone very bad.”

Authorities reported that Guzman then barricaded herself inside the church and used bear spray against responding officers.

“There was bear spray in the rectory that she sprayed at my officers when we tried to make contact,” Ritonya said.

“So we tried multiple avenues to contact her with drones and negotiators, and it just wasn't — she was in a mental health crisis.”

Guzman was taken into custody after attempting to exit through a window. Despite facing four felony charges stemming from that incident, she was later released on her own recognizance, according to WOWT.

Court records also indicate Guzman had a prior conviction in 2018 for third-degree assault.

The Omaha Police Department has not issued additional comments regarding Guzman’s prior release or how it may relate to the latest incident.

The investigation into the Walmart stabbing and officer-involved shooting remains ongoing.

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