A man who fatally stabbed another man in El Cajon two years ago was sentenced Wednesday to nearly 18 years in state prison.
Daniel Perez, 32, pleaded guilty in El Cajon Superior Court to voluntary manslaughter and other charges stemming from the stabbing of 54-year-old Oceanside resident Patrick Heard.
Heard was stabbed in the throat just before 11:30 p.m Aug. 22, 2021, and afterward he sought help and collapsed near an apartment complex on Graves Avenue, according to El Cajon police. Heard was taken to a hospital, where he died.
Police said the stabbing happened after a “brief altercation” between the men, who did not know one another. Perez was arrested a few weeks later for the killing.
At Perez’s sentencing hearing, he apologized to Heard’s family members in attendance.
What prompted the deadly confrontation was not disclosed, but Perez said, “I had other things going on in my life at that time. My reaction, I think, that night was because of those other things. I wish I could go back and not react the way I did. I am truly sorry for your loss.”
