The sound of a single gunshot echoed through a San Diego courtroom this week as jurors in a Pacific Beach murder case listened to the audio of the bullet that killed 51-year-old Gabriel Fergus.
The defendant, 34-year-old Richard Kyle Herrman, is accused of the Jan. 26, 2025, slaying inside a condo just a few blocks from the beach. As the trial opened last Wednesday, Deputy District Attorney Gabriella DiCaprio played surveillance video that included the fatal shot, with the footage shown to a San Diego Superior Court jury, according to Times of San Diego.
Officers had been called to the 1600 block of Chalcedony Street on reports of an altercation and gunfire. When San Diego police arrived, they found Herrman outside a condo unit with a firearm and a man inside suffering from a gunshot wound. Herrman was arrested at the scene and booked on suspicion of murder and weapons offenses, the San Diego Police Department told 10News.
Surveillance, Crowded Unit and Complaints
Inside the complex, the unit at the center of the case had already been on neighbors' radar well before the shooting, the jury heard.
Steven Owen, the former president of the homeowners' association, testified that as many as seven people had been living in Unit C and that residents had complained about people jumping a tall wire fence and propping the gate open with gum or rocks. After the shooting, he said, the condo was left "demolished," with holes in the walls, broken windows, and mattresses scattered around the unit, and it eventually went into foreclosure and was sold, according to Times of San Diego.
Herrman remains in county jail on $2 million bail and has pleaded not guilty, according to court filings.
Charges and What Comes Next
Prosecutors have charged Herrman with murder and allege the fatal shot was fired during a fistfight inside the condo. He also faces related weapons counts. Jurors are expected to continue hearing from witnesses and to see additional surveillance evidence as the trial moves forward, as initially reported by 10News.
Neighbors say the case has left lingering concerns about safety and oversight at the complex. Investigators are asking anyone with information to contact the San Diego Police Homicide Unit at (619) 531-2293 or San Diego Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477. For earlier coverage of the arrest and community reaction, see this report on the fatal condo shooting arrest.
