Murder Defendant Killed in Calif. Courtroom After Attacking Judge
By Tracie Cone and Garance Burke
The Associated Press
Originally published by Law.com, March 5, 2009
A man on trial for killing his girlfriend was shot to death inside a Stockton, Calif., courtroom Wednesday after he attacked the judge presiding over his murder trial with a cutting tool.
A Lodi police detective attending the trial fatally shot 28-year-old David Paradiso after he left the stand and began attacking San Joaquin County Superior Court Judge Cinda Fox, said Dave Conecny, a spokesman for the sheriff's department.
Paradiso was being cross-examined at about 2 p.m. when his mother left her place in the audience and walked out of the courtroom upset, apparently at something her son said. Fox called a recess, and as jurors filed out, Paradiso left the stand and approached the judge from behind "with an unknown cutting instrument," Conecny said.
Witnesses reported seeing Paradiso lift her and begin punching and possibly stabbing her when shots rang out.
Lodi Police Det. Eric Bradley, an eight-year veteran on the force, was the lead detective in the case against Paradiso. He has been placed on administrative leave while the shooting is being investigated, said city spokesman Jeff Hood.
Fox was sitting up with a bandage on her left arm while being carried out of the courthouse on a stretcher. She told reporters, "I'm OK," before being taken to a hospital.
The courthouse went on immediate lockdown after the fracas, but people have since been allowed to leave the building, said county spokeswoman Karen McConnell.
Paradiso was on trial for allegedly stabbing his girlfriend in the neck in his mother's car in 2006.
Paradiso's attorney Charles Pacheco did not immediately return a call seeking comment.
Conecny said he did not know how Paradiso obtained a weapon but expected to know more Thursday, after a multi-agency team interviews witnesses. He said at least two bailiffs were on duty in the courtroom at the time of the attack.
"Obviously bailiffs need more training," said Bonnie Russell, spokeswoman for the group USAJudges.com, whose members advocate for courtroom transparency. "It's deplorable that another judge has been attacked."
© Copyright 2009 The Associated Press
| ||||
