Dorchester man sentenced after pleading guilty for fatal 2024 stabbing

BOSTON, January 23, 2026 – A Dorchester man was sentenced to up to 17 years in state prison today after pleading guilty to manslaughter for the fatal stabbing of a 52-year-old man in 2024, Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden announced.

DAVID ADAMS, 39, of Dorchester pleaded guilty today to fatally stabbing David Abrain, of Roxbury. Judge Mary Ames sentenced Adams to 15-17 years in state prison.

Shortly after 10 p.m. on August 23, 2024, Abrain was part of a group of people congregated outside of 551 Talbot Avenue in Dorchester. Abrain and Adams engaged in a verbal altercation before Adams attacked Abrain with a knife, stabbing him. Abrain later died from his injuries.

Adams’ flight from the scene was captured on video. Adams is seen disposing of an item in a nearby storm drain. A knife was later recovered from that storm drain. Adams was identified through a combination of video and witness testimony.

Abrain’s family and friends attended the sentencing hearing. Among those who delivered impact statements were Abrain’s sister, daughter, son and cousins.

One of Abrain’s cousins said in her statement, “To know David, was to love him, he would help anybody, he would give his last.” Abrain was an ironworker and a father of four.

“Once again, we see family members and loved ones gathered in a courtroom to express their unending grief caused by terrible decision making in the heat of the moment by someone with a deadly weapon,” Hayden said.

All charged individuals are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden’s office serves the communities of Boston, Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop. Our office handles more than 20,000 cases a year. Nearly 160 assistant district attorneys practice in nine district and municipal courts, Suffolk Superior Court, the Massachusetts Appeals Court, the Boston and Chelsea Juvenile Courts and the Supreme Judicial Court. Our office employs some 300 people and offers a wide range of services and programs for anyone encountering the criminal justice system. We are committed to educating the public about our mission and services while focusing on crime prevention to keep the residents, workers and visitors of Suffolk County safe.

James Borghesani, Chief of Communications