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The man accused of fatally shooting his friend multiple times during an argument in the pool house of his parent’s Hillsborough home will stand trial on murder and weapons charges in the fall.
Bradley Allen Kleiman is set for a pretrial conference Sept. 26 and jury trial Nov. 7. He was given the date after his defense announced it would not challenge the conclusion of two court-appointed doctors that he is mentally fit for trial. Instead, attorney Chuck Smith has said he plans to focus on the merits of the case which he argues will show Kleiman has a strong case of self-defense, in part because the victim brought the gun with him.
According to prosecutors, Kleiman, 31, called 911 on June 15, 2010 to report shooting Christopher Calvache, 30, in a pool house detached from a five-bedroom main house on De Sabla Road where his parents live. Calvache and Kleiman were the only ones on the property at the time. Kleiman said he shot Calvache during a struggle after his friend pulled a gun on him. Prosecutors also say the friends had planned to go to dinner together before the altercation. When police arrived, they reportedly found Kleiman carrying marijuana plants in the backyard and a weapon and casings inside the pool house.
Calvache was shot twice in the head and once in the buttocks.
In September, Judge Richard Livermore took the unusual step of seeking a competency evaluation before Kleiman entered a plea. Two months later, a criminal grand jury indicted Kleiman.
Kleiman remains in custody without bail.
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