VENTURA : Judge Orders Lower Bail in Shooting

A judge ordered $250,000 bail Friday for a Ventura man accused of shooting a 13-year-old neighbor who accidentally hit the defendant’s car with a baseball.

A probation official had recommended bail of $1 million for Brian Adams, charged with attempted murder and burglary.

Ventura police say Adams forced his way into Kevin Natale’s Dolphin Court home Wednesday, chased the boy down and shot him with a 9-millimeter handgun.

Before the shooting, Kevin and a friend had been playing video games in the family’s Ventura Keys home. Police say Adams missed on at least two shots as Kevin tried to escape, but a third shot hit Kevin in the neck.

In April, Adams allegedly punctured the tires on a car belonging to Kevin’s family after the youth accidentally hit Adams’ car with a baseball while playing catch with his stepfather, police say.

In court Friday, Deputy Dist. Atty. Linda S. Groberg said a $1-million bail is appropriate because Kevin’s friend fears that Adams might try to intimidate him. Groberg said Adams put a hand over the friend’s mouth before shooting Kevin.

Groberg also said Kevin is expected to be paralyzed. He remains in intensive care at the Ventura County Medical Center.

Deputy Public Defender Stephen P. Lipson opposed the recommended bail, saying even accused murderers typically are given $250,000 bail.

Lipson said Adams is a lifelong Ventura resident and is employed at Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura. He did not say what Adams does at the hospital, and a hospital spokesman would not comment.

As a condition of the bail, Clark ordered Adams not to have any contact with the victim or witness.