Gunman Opens Fire in Court; Slain by Bailiff

A decertified chiropractor who claimed that the Mafia was following him stormed a courtroom to kill his prosecutor today, wrestled with a judge, then died in a shoot-out that left a bailiff wounded.

Jeremy Sigmond, 35, of Woodland Hills was killed in the 10:15 a.m. shoot-out at Los Angeles Municipal Court in suburban Van Nuys, said Ted Goldstein, a spokesman for the city attorney’s office.

The bailiff, county Deputy Marshal Cliff Wofford, 30, of Palmdale, was shot in the abdomen and was in stable condition at St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Burbank, where he underwent surgery, said Linda Roberts, a spokeswoman for the hospital.

Convicted on 4 Counts

Sigmond was convicted in the same courtroom Tuesday of four misdemeanors--reckless driving, evading police, carrying a loaded weapon and carrying a concealed weapon--stemming from a high-speed chase on Oct. 22, 1987, Goldstein said.

Jessica Perrin Silvers, 48, who has been with the city attorney’s office since August, 1979, prosecuted his case.

At his sentencing, which was scheduled for May, Sigmond could have been sent to jail for up to 18 months.

Today, less than three minutes after Silvers arrived in the courtroom, Sigmond walked in and pointed a gun at her head, said Jim Epstein, a private attorney and longtime friend of the prosecutor.

Bailiff Drops Gun

A female bailiff pulled a gun on Sigmond, but he countered: “Drop it or I’ll kill both of you,” Epstein said.

The bailiff threw her gun behind Sigmond, he said, and as he reached for the weapon, Silvers was able to break away and run into a jury room, where she locked the door, he said.

Epstein said the gunman, waving both guns, then approached Municipal Judge Michael Harwin. Harwin began wrestling with the gunman, trying to disarm him, he said.

Wofford then arrived and in an exchange of gunfire, Sigmond was killed and Wofford wounded, Epstein said.

Silvers was shaken but unharmed, Goldstein said.

Wofford, who is single, has worked for the marshal’s office since 1981, marshal’s Cmdr. Clyde Gatlin said.

Sigmond testified at his trial that he thought he was being chased by the Mafia instead of the California Highway Patrol on Oct. 22.