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Debra Paradiso began screaming after she left the San Joaquin County Courthouse on Wednesday after her son, David Paradiso, was shot and killed during his trial. Paradiso leaped to the judge's stand and attacked presiding Judge Cinda Fox. Paradiso was then shot two or three times by Lodi Detective Eric Bradley. (Brian Feulner/News-Sentinel)
Lodi murder suspect shot dead after lunging at judge with shank
Murder suspect David Paradiso was shot and killed by a Lodi detective this afternoon after he leapt from the witness stand and attacked a judge with a shank
Paradiso, 29, was pronounced dead at the scene where he fell behind the judge's bench.
Judge Cinda Fox was injured but was alert and awake when she was taken from the courtroom on a stretcher.
Paradiso had just resumed testifying in his own defense when he made a statement about his victim that caused a disruption in the courtroom.
David Paradiso
During the diversion, Paradiso suddenly lunged toward the judge and began trying to stab her.
A bailiff tried to pull him off the judge, then Lodi Police Detective Eric Bradley fired three shots at close range.
"He was going after her jugular, just as he did to the victim in this case," said his attorney, Chuck Pacheco. "He was not stopping stabbing her, going for her neck. Bradley did the right thing."
Though a juror was also taken away in an ambulance for chest pains, he was alert and awake. No other injuries were reported.
Paradiso took the stand at 2:03 p.m., and Deputy District Attorney Kevin Mayo asked Paradiso why he killed his girlfriend Eileen Pelt.
Eric Bradley
Paradiso responded: "Cause she deserved to die."
More than a dozen of Pelt's family members gasped and stiffened. Her mother sobbed out loud before she could muffle it.
Mayo asked why, and Paradiso made a derogatory sexual comment about Pelt.
His mother, Debra Paradiso, stood up and yelled at the defense attorney, "He told you he didn't want to be up there."
A bailiff moved toward Debra Paradiso, telling the sobbing, yelling woman to leave the courtroom. She did so, continuing to yell just outside the courtroom door, where Paradiso's brother was also upset.
The judge called for a break, asking a bailiff to escort the jurors out.
That was at 2:10 p.m.
In the midst of the confusion, Paradiso stood up from the witness stand, mere feet from the judge's bench.
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A woman in the courtroom yelled, "No David, stop."
He lunged toward the judge, pulled out the shank, an improvised knife, and began attacking her.
A bailiff began trying to pull him off, and Bradley was soon there. Bradley, the investigating officer in the murder case, had been sitting at the prosecutor's table before he stood and rushed toward Paradiso.
Bradley fired three shots at close range.
Some 50 people ducked for cover while also trying to see what happened, and they all quickly moved to the door.
Bailiffs converged on the second floor, soon joined by Stockton police officers, all with guns drawn. The courthouse was locked down until all witnesses were moved to various rooms to be interviewed.
The matter will be investigated by the county's protocol team, as well as the state's Department of Justice.
Paradiso was charged with murder in the Dec. 4, 2006, death of Pelt, an Auburn resident, whom he had known for a couple weeks.
He and Pelt, 20, were in the back seat of his mother's car when they stopped at his father's Lodi house. They were in a West Oak Street alley when Paradiso plunged a knife through Pelt's neck.
His mother testified that she didn't know what had happened until she turned and saw blood on Pelt's neck.
Paradiso did not deny the crime, instead mounting a defense that he was in a methamphetamine-induced psychosis.
He had testified Tuesday for several hours, talking in a calm, monotone manner about how he killed the young woman.
This morning, a doctor called by the defense testified about methamphetamine's long-term effect on the brain.
Outside the courthouse Wednesday after the shooting, Debra Paradiso said her family had tried to warn jailers about two weeks ago that her son had a weapon and had been carrying it into the courtroom with him.
"They killed him. They let it happen," she screamed on the courthouse steps.
Defendants in jury trials often are not restrained, or in handcuffs, so as to not influence the jury's decision.
The Stockton courthouse was evacuated following the shooting and witnesses were kept late into the night for interviews.
David Paradiso first encountered San Joaquin County's legal system in March 2001, when he was charged with driving under the influence in Stockton, according to court records.
He failed to appear in court but ultimately pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in February 2002. When he failed to pay fines and enroll in an alcohol treatment program, a warrant was issued two months later.
More than two years later, law enforcement caught up with Paradiso in May 2004 and arrested him on the warrant. He was charged with vandalism after kicking out the windows in a Sheriff's patrol car.
Then, in August of that year, Paradiso was charged with felony battery on a correctional officer. Exact details on that incident were unavailable, but Paradiso was housed at Deuel Vocational Institute in Tracy while his case moved through the court system. On Dec. 9, 2004, he pleaded no contest and was sentenced to two years in state prison, with 205 days worth of credit.
He was released from prison, and last February was charged with a misdemeanor count of being under the influence of a controlled substance. Paradiso pleaded guilty and was enrolled in a treatment program.
However, Paradiso returned to court on his own on May 11, requesting to serve a jail sentence instead of completing the treatment program. He was sentenced to 90 days in jail, though the sentence was suspended.
David Paradiso also has an older, quadriplegic brother who ran into his own legal problems in 2003. The older Paradiso had a medical marijuana presciption, but was charged with marijuana cultivation and gun possession. Debra Paradiso was also criminally charged because the drugs were found on her property.
Charges against her were ultimately dropped in September 2004, and her son plea-bargained for a misdemeanor weapons conviction in 2006.
Lodi Police Lt. Steve Price said Bradley has been a detective for about four years and with Lodi Police Department for eight years. He has not been involved in another shooting.
The last time a Lodi officer shot and killed someone was in November 2006. Detectives Sierra Brucia and Mike Kermgard opened fire after a wanted parolee used his vehicle to ram an unmarked police car and reached for what appeared to be a black handgun. It was a replica gun painted black and covered with black tape.
The parolee had gunshot wounds to the arm, chest and thigh. The San Joaquin District Attorney's office would later determine the two officers were justified in taking lethal force.
Cinda Fox
Judge Fox has been handling the sensational case of a Tracy teenager who escaped from an abusive home. The emaciated teen wandered into a gym on Dec. 1, wearing a chain around his bloodied ankle. He told police he had been shackled to a fireplace grate, beaten with a baseball bat and denied food. Four adults are facing charges in the case.
In October of 2007, Fox sentenced another local man who killed his girlfirend to a life wthout parole. Acampo resident Timon Pool strangled his pregnant girlfirend to death with a bedsheet in July 2006, the same year that David Paradiso killed his girlfriend.
Durng Pool's trial his defense argued that his judgement was impaired because he had consumed hallucinogenic mushrooms. David Paradiso's attorneys had argued it was meth that made him stab his girlfriend in the throat.
Lodi News-Sentinel City Editor Andrew Adams and Staff Writer Maggie Creamer contributed to this report.
Contact reporter Layla Bohm at layla@lodinews.com.
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kelmat wrote on Mar 7, 2009 2:41 PM:
intrinsicly_valued wrote on Mar 7, 2009 4:29 AM:
95242 wrote on Mar 7, 2009 3:45 AM:
WY wrote on Mar 6, 2009 4:41 PM:
Contrapasso wrote on Mar 6, 2009 7:51 AM:
To Officer Bradley: Thank you for your brave but difficult action. You have saved lives. God Bless You. "
WY wrote on Mar 5, 2009 9:41 PM:
I like the photo. Way to squeeze the trigger... no pun. "
Cogito wrote on Mar 5, 2009 7:55 PM:
JD wrote on Mar 5, 2009 7:01 PM:
a) Mommy dearest deliberately causes a disturbance, distracting the bailiffs.
b) Little junior takes a knife and attacks judge while bailiffs are distracted.
c) Law enforcement blows little junior to Kingdom Come
d) Mommy dearest immediately begins wailing that it's the court's fault.
Am I the only one who thinks this looks like a suicide-by-cop setup? I'd be looking to see if Ms. Paradiso recently took out a life insurance policy on her son. "
Scrutiny wrote on Mar 5, 2009 6:50 PM:
lodivice wrote on Mar 5, 2009 6:05 PM:
kperez wrote on Mar 5, 2009 5:21 PM:
Alacante wrote on Mar 5, 2009 5:13 PM:
kelmat wrote on Mar 5, 2009 4:39 PM:
commonsense1 wrote on Mar 5, 2009 1:33 PM:
S & W 500 wrote on Mar 5, 2009 12:45 PM:
I pray for the Pelt family! "
LodiJoe wrote on Mar 5, 2009 10:51 AM:
WY wrote on Mar 5, 2009 10:24 AM:
Officer Bradley... you're a hero. You go ahead and sleep well at night. You did what your job ask of you. You protect and serve the good people. Thank you!
This is a story about good and evil. "
David Nielsen wrote on Mar 5, 2009 9:53 AM:
4AStrongLodi wrote on Mar 5, 2009 9:47 AM:
reality1 wrote on Mar 5, 2009 9:24 AM:
Good job Bradley. You saved taxpayers thousands of dollars.
If every murderer was put to death it would get the message out. Too bad a judges life was almost taken by this piece of s*!*. "
Socrates wrote on Mar 5, 2009 8:57 AM:
NomadNoMo wrote on Mar 5, 2009 8:57 AM:
smkdady wrote on Mar 5, 2009 8:51 AM:
Thank you Officer Erick Bradley,You are a hero for saving Judge Cinda Fox and the tax Dollars. "
MOM759 wrote on Mar 5, 2009 8:29 AM:
gail1 wrote on Mar 5, 2009 8:20 AM:
wowerzz wrote on Mar 5, 2009 8:14 AM:
wtf wrote on Mar 5, 2009 8:10 AM:
Now its time to take a closer look at the mother and her actions. "
wtf wrote on Mar 5, 2009 8:10 AM:
Given all of the circumstances as presented, even the mothers allegations that she had told the sheriffs/jail her son had a weapon is suspicious. It would boil down to a he said/she said type of thing between her and the jail staff. "
wtf wrote on Mar 5, 2009 8:10 AM:
The mother had been given immunity for her questionable actions in the death of Ms. Pelt for which her son was standing trial; she then proceeds to create a diversion at a critical time leaving the court in a vulnerable position. Vulnerable to either attempted homicide or a hostage situation regarding the judge. "
wtf wrote on Mar 5, 2009 8:09 AM:
The news reported last night that they thought the "shank" was brought in by being inserted into the leg iron since the leg irons set off the metal detectors. It appears that the sheriffs didn't do a physical inspection and put the metal detector going off down to the leg irons.
The mother might want to think twice before attempting any type of lawsuit. "They" did not kill her son; she, herself, was directly responsible for his death. "
PB wrote on Mar 5, 2009 7:49 AM:
Also, great reporting, LNS! "
Jaysam1 wrote on Mar 5, 2009 7:42 AM:
jramagic wrote on Mar 5, 2009 7:42 AM:
T & C wrote on Mar 5, 2009 7:16 AM:
Flight_risk wrote on Mar 5, 2009 6:33 AM:
radman1 wrote on Mar 5, 2009 6:23 AM:
jocelynsmeme wrote on Mar 5, 2009 3:50 AM:
This guy was wacko before and after his drug use, believe me. Unfortunately, there are many bad BAD and evil human beings.
Thank God Detective Bradley was there. Some police use such force when not required, Lodi Police seem to think and not just react.
Look at that mom...can we even imagine how this creep was raised???
I think Mom and brother could both be involved and should be investigated.
I hope Judge Fox is OK.
What a crazy day in the Stockton courts. "
napa valley chef wrote on Mar 5, 2009 1:29 AM:
HRH6S1 wrote on Mar 4, 2009 11:35 PM:
Detective Bradley should not be troubled over this... He is a hero. "
wineman wrote on Mar 4, 2009 11:04 PM:
Rhodie wrote on Mar 4, 2009 10:54 PM:
wineman wrote on Mar 4, 2009 10:52 PM:
Nextel wrote on Mar 4, 2009 10:33 PM:
shockedinlodi wrote on Mar 4, 2009 9:51 PM:
The picture of his Mother at the top of the page makes her look crazy. You think the first words out of her mouth would have been is the Judge okay was anyone hurt not "They killed him. They let it happen," Debra Paradiso you killed him not them. You should have made your son accountable for his actions and not try to cover up everything he did . You should feel very guilty and ashamed of yourself. Just remember it was you who killed your son, not them. Don't play the victim when you are not a victim. I hope I am a juror on your suit you will file claiming everyone else is to blame for your son's death. You would not get a dime in fact I wish they could make you pay the court. You are a waste of space. "
Billy Rubin wrote on Mar 4, 2009 9:45 PM:
A hero.
That rotten swine Paradiso got better than he had coming to him.
Bradley saved us millions in murder (Ms. Pelt) an assault w/a deadly weapon/attempted murder trial (judge) and millions more supporting that filthy scum for the rest of his rotten worthless life.
Now we'll have to see how long it takes for that rancid mother of his to start laying claim to restitution $$$.
EXCELLENT shooting, Det. Bradley.
Geez that was fine work. I wish you ease and comfort in your contemplation of it - it was the right thing to do. It had to be done. "
Jenn H wrote on Mar 4, 2009 9:29 PM:
dogbark wrote on Mar 4, 2009 8:35 PM:
Thank heavens this is not an Octo-mom. "
carlos wrote on Mar 4, 2009 8:20 PM:
journey wrote on Mar 4, 2009 7:46 PM:
Journey wrote on Mar 4, 2009 7:27 PM:
educator wrote on Mar 4, 2009 7:17 PM:
This dirtbag hurt people to the end. I hope that the Judge, County, and Det. Bradley all sue this crazy woman for creating and enabling a monster. "
Journey wrote on Mar 4, 2009 7:11 PM:
Giovanina wrote on Mar 4, 2009 7:11 PM:
" Ditto, acampomom.
At a certain point in a child's development, he makes his own choices. But when parents shield him from the consequences of his actions, they do him no favors.
I have seen a lot of this parental "protecting of the guilty" in San Joaquin Co. Teachers, unfortunately, see it all the time. "
Mad Dog wrote on Mar 4, 2009 6:34 PM:
Detective Bradley, it can not be easy to shoot someone but thank you for being there.
I hope the mother is charged accordingly. "
mjp wrote on Mar 4, 2009 6:27 PM:
bigbillybob wrote on Mar 4, 2009 6:25 PM:
shockedinlodi wrote on Mar 4, 2009 6:23 PM:
Alacante wrote on Mar 4, 2009 6:21 PM:
Whoa Nellie! wrote on Mar 4, 2009 6:13 PM:
Det. Bradley possibly saved the life of Judge Fox. He is to be commended for his fast action... and excellent marksmanship.
Let's look at the brightside (tongue-in-cheek), the taxpayers of the great state of California have been saved $90K+ yr for 40+yrs.
And why don't we still have capital punishment? "
mamax3 wrote on Mar 4, 2009 6:12 PM:
sam wrote on Mar 4, 2009 5:43 PM:
acampomom wrote on Mar 4, 2009 5:18 PM:
WingIt wrote on Mar 4, 2009 5:14 PM:
M&M wrote on Mar 4, 2009 5:10 PM:
bigbillybob wrote on Mar 4, 2009 4:54 PM:
HRH6S1 wrote on Mar 4, 2009 4:39 PM:
Good job, Bradley, Lodi needs more like you... apparently Stockton does, too. "
weezer wrote on Mar 4, 2009 4:36 PM:
wandabeme wrote on Mar 4, 2009 4:35 PM:
It's too bad this slum wasn't killed when arrested and save the cost of a trial. We've already wasted too much $$ on him. "
warrenb1973 wrote on Mar 4, 2009 4:26 PM:
lodidian wrote on Mar 4, 2009 4:24 PM:
midtowner wrote on Mar 4, 2009 4:08 PM:
warrenb1973 wrote on Mar 4, 2009 4:06 PM:
kidsalami wrote on Mar 4, 2009 4:04 PM:
warrenb1973 wrote on Mar 4, 2009 3:58 PM:
Observer wrote on Mar 4, 2009 3:51 PM:
Mrs. S. wrote on Mar 4, 2009 3:50 PM:
warrenb1973 wrote on Mar 4, 2009 3:50 PM:
Observer wrote on Mar 4, 2009 3:49 PM:
warrenb1973 wrote on Mar 4, 2009 3:46 PM:
warrenb1973 wrote on Mar 4, 2009 3:44 PM:
acampomom wrote on Mar 4, 2009 3:43 PM:
Mrs. S. wrote on Mar 4, 2009 3:43 PM:
warrenb1973 wrote on Mar 4, 2009 3:40 PM:
Mrs. S. wrote on Mar 4, 2009 3:29 PM:
At a certain point in a child's development, he makes his own choices. But when parents shield him from the consequences of his actions, they do him no favors.
I'll bet the DA wishes he hadn't cut a deal with David's momma now. And if David dies, momma will probably sue the county. What a messed up bunch. "
warrenb1973 wrote on Mar 4, 2009 3:22 PM:
LodiReaderFromStockton wrote on Mar 4, 2009 3:20 PM:
My condolances to the family of Ms. Pelt, may she rest in peace. It's not every one who gets to see the murderer of a loved one taken down in a hail of gunfire. "
acampomom wrote on Mar 4, 2009 3:15 PM:
And mom will have to live with the consequences of her actions when Ms. Pelt died and with what happened in the courtroom today. It is heartbreaking when your child goes astray but you CANNOT try to protect them from this horrendous types of crimes. "
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