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Dominique Isaac Harris and the parking lot where he murdered Michael Pickens (Bucks County DA’s Office and WPVI screenshot)
A 31-year-old man in Pennsylvania will spend the rest of his life behind bars for brutally murdering his former Wendy’s co-worker, chasing him down in the restaurant parking lot and stabbing him nearly 50 times — predominantly in the head and neck — before running him over with his car multiple times.
Common Pleas Court Judge Raymond F. McHugh on Thursday ordered Philadelphia native Dominique Isaac Harris to serve a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole for the 2022 slaying of 54-year-old Michael Pickens, authorities announced.
A Bucks County jury in April convicted Harris of first-degree murder and possession of an instrument of crime following a four-day trial.
According to a press release from the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office, jurors were shown witness testimony and other evidence, including surveillance footage capturing Harris’ vicious attack on 54-year-old Michael Pickens, who was a former co-worker at a Wendy’s restaurant in Bensalem.
Before the sentencing, Pickens’ mother and stepfather appeared before Judge McHugh to read a victim impact statement. They described Pickens as a compassionate individual who was always ready to assist others, especially elderly neighbors.
“We love you, Michael. Not a day goes by that you are not on our minds,” said his stepfather. “In us, you will live forever.”
Judge McHugh commended the family for their peaceful and forgiving nature, as well as their impactful words.
Addressing Harris, Judge McHugh emphasized that releasing him from state prison would pose a risk of another murder in the community. Consequently, Harris was sentenced to the mandatory term of life without parole.
“What you did was ruthless, it was unnecessary, and it was criminal,” McHugh told Harris.
The gruesome murder occurred in the early morning hours of March 30, 2022, just as Pickens was finishing his shift at Wendy’s. While taking out the trash, Pickens was confronted by Harris, who had been lying in wait.
Two months prior to the parking lot confrontation, Harris had been fired from Wendy’s over a physical altercation with Pickens.
The attack lasted several minutes, during which Harris pursued Pickens down the street, eventually catching him in the parking lot of a nearby beverage store where Harris repeatedly stabbed Pickens as the unarmed man attempted to fight for his life.
“Dominique Harris was unrelenting; this was personal,” McElroy told jurors during closing arguments in April.
Following the stabbing, Harris briefly fled the scene but returned less than ten minutes later and proceeded to run over Pickens with his car two times. After the second time, Harris loaded Pickens’ body into the backseat of his vehicle and drove about two miles away before dumping his body in the area of the Cornwells Heights Train Station Park and Ride.
An autopsy revealed that Pickens had been stabbed 46 times, with more than half of the wounds concentrated in his head and neck area, including some that were so deep they punctured Pickens’ lungs.
Following the sentencing, Chief Deputy District Attorney Kristin McElroy commended the work of the Bensalem Police Department and the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office, noting that their swift action led to an arrest within 24 hours of the heinous attack on Pickens.
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