PHOENIX (AZFamily) — A man will spend more than two decades in prison after being convicted of stabbing another man to death in central Phoenix over a year ago.
The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office announced that Damian Mitchell, 48, was sentenced to 25 years for the murder of Reminisce Biddle, 29.
On Dec. 29, 2024, Biddle walked into a Safeway near 5th Avenue and Osborn Road and told workers he had been stabbed and needed help. Biddle collapsed and was rushed to the hospital, where he died.
A witness told authorities that the stabbing actually happened behind an abandoned building near 7th Avenue and Osborn Road, just a few blocks away from Safeway. Authorities say the two men passed by each other and “exchanged words.”
Mitchell followed Biddle behind the abandoned building, where he stabbed Biddle once in his chest. Court documents state the witness saw Biddle holding his chest and riding off on his bike, seeking help.
The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office announced that Damian Mitchell, 48, was sentenced to 25 years for the murder of Reminisce Biddle, 29.(Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry/Citizen)
Surveillance video from Safeway showed Mitchell walking into the store and purchasing a small paring knife and a can opener just before the deadly stabbing.
Since Mitchell used his debit card to pay, authorities were able to track the information and identify him as the suspect in the murder.
Court documents state Mitchell changed his story multiple times while being interviewed by police. He said that he initially gave the knife to another person to cut up food, and that person was the one to stab Biddle.
Mitchell then claimed that the knife was in his bag when someone took it out and stabbed Biddle. Mitchell said he asked for the knife back, saw blood on it, and threw it away in an unknown parking lot.
However, surveillance video and the witness statements disproved Mitchell’s claims. Investigators say the clothes that Mitchell was wearing matched the description given by the witness and the one seen on surveillance video. In addition, the knife Mitchell bought matched Biddle’s wounds.
A jury convicted Mitchell of one count of second-degree murder.
“This defendant chose to turn a brief encounter into a moment of violence, taking Reminisce’s life and leaving his family and loved ones with irreparable loss,” Mitchell said in a statement. “I’m thankful to prosecutor Bernita Clark for getting justice for Reminisce and his family, and ensuring his killer is held accountable.”
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