Relative charged in slaying of Linda Guzman

GUSTINE –Mourning community members last week remembered Linda Guzman as sweet and caring, an outgoing woman who always wore a broad smile and whose gestures of kindness touched many lives around her during her nearly 30 years in Gustine.

Violence claimed her life last Wednesday morning when Guzman, 49, was fatally stabbed in the family’s long-time Sycamore Avenue home. Police said her 6-year-old granddaughter witnessed the attack.

Investigators believe Linda Guzman’s brother-in-law, 52-year-old Alfonso Guzman, who also lived at 359 Sycamore, stabbed her during the course of an argument.

Police and emergency crews responding to the 10:08 a.m. 9-1-1 call arrived to find Linda Guzman collapsed on a lawn across the street from her home. Despite her wounds, Calderon said, she had managed to flee the home to seek help from neighbors.

Paramedics worked unsuccessfully to save her life, and she was pronounced dead a short time after their arrival.

Calderon said Alfonso Guzman, who also goes by the name Alfonso Terraza, was arrested inside the Guzman home.

The young granddaughter was reportedly unharmed.

Police recovered several knives at the scene and were attempting to determine if any were used in the stabbing, according to the police chief.

Nobody in the neighborhood reported hearing a disturbance Wednesday morning.

Gustine police were assisted at the scene by investigators from the Merced County Sheriff’s Department.

Alfonso Guzman was booked into Merced County Jail and faces murder charges. He entered a plea of not guilty Friday.

Authorities do not know the cause of the argument, Calderon said, and Alfonso Guzman was not talking to investigators.

The slaying shocked the normally quiet, close-knit neighborhood, where the Guzman family had lived for 25 years or more, according to neighbors.

“She was always smiling and always happy,” said long-time neighbor Marie Rosemire. “She cared about everybody in town.”

Linda Guzman was a mother of three and grandmother of three. When the Guzman children were growing up, the family home in the 300 block of Sycamore was a gathering spot.

“All the kids were welcome there,” Rosemire recalled. “There were always friends over, a lot of activities and fun.”

Linda Guzman would deliver a plate of hot tamales to the door every Christmas morning, she added, and the two families shared a common interest in fishing and boating. “We give each other fishing reports,” Rosemire remarked. “We’ve known them forever. I love this family.”

Linda Guzman also coached youth baseball for many years.

“She and her husband Andy always went out of the way for the kids on their team,” said Cindy Martin, whose son was a classmate with one of the Guzman children. “She had a big heart.”

Many in the community also knew Linda Guzman through her work at Richard’s Market, where she was employed for 25 years.

The store closed last Wednesday when the staff learned of the tragedy.

“She was well liked by everybody,” said owner Brad Hensley. “She had a lot of friends at the store, and she was also very family oriented.”

Linda Guzman typically worked the morning shift, he said, and had many regular customers. “You couldn’t work here that long and not know everybody,” he remarked.

With her outgoing attitude, Hensley added, she made friends quickly and to her nobody was a stranger.

“People would go into Richard’s and Linda would ask about their family,” Rosemire commented. “She was the kind of person who would ask because she really cared.”

Alfonso Guzman was also a familiar figure in the area, neighbors said, and would sometimes do odd jobs and yard work around the neighborhood.

Calderon said Alfonso Guzman had had previous contacts with law enforcement.

A funeral mass for Linda Guzman will be held today (Thursday). See A2 for complete obituary details.