Murder Trial Begins for Man Accused of Rancho Penasquitos Woman’s Killing

Opening statements were delivered Monday in the murder trial of a man accused of fatally beating a woman inside her Rancho Peñasquitos condominium, a death that sparked criticism of San Diego police’s response to the residence on the night before the victim was found dead.

Parrish Juan Chambers Jr., 46, is accused in the death of Nahal Connie Dadkhah, whose body was discovered on the morning of June 15, 2022, inside her Twin Trails Drive home.

Prosecutors allege Chambers broke into the residence the previous night by smashing through a sliding glass door, then killed Dadkhah, 45.

Dadkhah’s neighbors called 911 on the night of June 14 to report the disturbance and had called police in the past regarding other interactions between Chambers and Dadkhah, some of which were allegedly violent.

Officers responded to the condo on June 14, but ultimately did not enter the residence and left the scene.

In a news release announcing Chambers’ arrest, the police department said officers went to the condo on a report of a disturbance there involving Chambers, but left after being unable to confirm a crime had occurred or being able to make contact with Chambers or anyone else inside.

Dadkhah’s family sued the city over the officers’ actions. In court filings, attorneys for the city argued that officers did not want to enter the home without a warrant and possibly violate Dadkhah’s Fourth Amendment rights.

A federal judge dismissed the suit earlier this month, but left Dadkhah’s family the option to file an amended complaint.

In his opening statement during Chambers’ criminal trial, Deputy District Attorney Martin Doyle acknowledged law enforcement shortcomings.

“I wish I could tell you that the San Diego Police Department did a good investigation in this case. They did not,” Doyle told the jury. “In fact, many of the witnesses who ordinarily would be allied witnesses with me will be evasive and uncooperative. They screwed up and they know it. They failed Connie Dadkhah on June 14 of 2022, just like they had failed her on those prior occasions.”

On the morning of June 15, Chambers told one of Dadkhah’s neighbors that Dadkhah wasn’t breathing and asked him to call 911.

Responding paramedics found Dadkhah nude and deceased on a couch inside the home.

Doyle told jurors that Dadkhah died of blunt force trauma to the head and sustained over 50 contusions, lacerations and abrasions.

“It was not a quick death, nor a gentle one,” Doyle said.

The connection between Chambers and Dadkhah is disputed.

Chambers’ defense attorney, Abram Genser, told jurors in his opening statement that the pair were in a three-year dating relationship that “they both valued,” but was “toxic.”

Doyle said jurors might hear evidence of an apparent romantic relationship, but said their relationship was described as platonic at other times and ultimately, “I don’t think we’ll ever truly know the nature of the relationship between Connie Dadkhah and the defendant.”

Doyle outlined other altercations between the pair, including prior occasions in which he said Chambers struck or pushed Dadkhah.

In November of 2021, Dadkhah called police, telling a dispatcher that Chambers was trying to take her car. In a 911 recording played in court, Dadkhah can be heard screaming repeatedly and a male voice in the background, which prosecutors say is Chambers’, says, “I’ll beat your ass” and “I’ll (expletive) you up.”

Doyle said, “And we know seven months later, the defendant followed through on those threats.”

Genser told the jury that Chambers and Dadkhah were both abusive during their relationship and used drugs together.

He said that on the night of June 14, Chambers and Dadkhah were at her condo using methamphetamine and at some point Chambers left the residence to purchase alcohol.

When Chambers returned to the home, he was “incredibly intoxicated,” Genser said, with a blood-alcohol-level of over .30.

Genser said Chambers has no memory of anything that occurred on the night of June 14.

The attorney said his client did not intend to harm Dadkhah, “somebody he loved,” but said that due to his level of intoxication, “He didn’t know what he was doing and he did something that he will regret for the rest of his life.”

Though the attorney acknowledged that “an altercation” occurred, he said Dadkhah’s injuries were survivable, but were exacerbated by her excessive drug use.

Chambers remains in custody without bail. His trial is expected to last approximately two weeks.

— City News Service