Deadly Detroit stabbing raises concerns for women's safety in the city

Name: Detroit deadly stabbing raises fears about violence against women
Uploaded: 2026-09-22T18:13:47-04:00
Duration: 2 min 51 s
Description: Many in Detroit have seen a lot of people stopping by, paying their respects and taking pictures of this memorial for Wix right outside of Chipotle where she worked. Her story hit home for many, including a woman who had a disturbing encounter in the same area.

Detroit deadly stabbing raises fears about violence against women

Many in Detroit have seen a lot of people stopping by, paying their respects and taking pictures of this memorial for Wix right outside of Chipotle where she worked. Her story hit home for many, including a woman who had a disturbing encounter in the same area.

DETROIT (FOX 2) - The stabbing death of 34-year-old Jaquoya Wix, who was on break while working at Chipotle, raised many concerns in the community, including violence against women.

Is it on the rise?

Local perspective:

"I was walking outside Checker Bar. I had a man walking toward me and I got an uncomfortable feeling. I fled into the 7-Eleven store across the street. I looked back and saw that he had his pants undone and he had a knife in his hand," said resident Nicole Booker.

"It’s not uncommon, unfortunately, especially down here, where we do have a lot of folks who are unhoused, and we have a lot of bars, a lot of nightlife down here, so unfortunately, it’s happening a lot more," said Director of Crisis and Education Services at Avalon Lakema Covington. "We have served over 2,000 survivors in our last year, and unfortunately we are seeing a lot of incidents with exposure, with just a lot of sexual violence against women and most of the folks are unknown to them."

FOX 2 was told that number also includes physical violence against women. Officials at Avalon Healing Center say the blame is solely on the perpetrator, not the victim.

Some tips to stay safe

What they're saying:

"If you are out and you see someone approaching you, get other people’s attention so that you can have someone support you in that moment," said Covington. "Get as far away so that you can get as far away from that person. Be careful being alone, being on your phone, just making sure that you’re keeping your head on a swivel, so to speak."

What you can do:

If you or someone you know needs help, you can reach out to the Avalon Healing Center at 313-964-9701.

If you see something, say something and call the police.