Fresno County man sentenced for shooting death of friend during a night of carelessness
Calling it a remarkable use of poor judgment, Fresno County Judge Jonathan Skiles sentenced a 32-year-old Reedley man to three years in prison for fatally shooting his friend during an evening of rowdiness.
Elvis Hernandez stood silently in court Wednesday as Skiles admonished him and the others involved for the recklessness that resulted in the death of 23-year-old Bradly Smith of Clovis.
“I don’t know where the belief that firearms, even with rubber bullets, are anything other than lethal,” Skiles said “This case is a stark reminder that guns are dangerous and will kill.”
Fresno County Sheriff’s deputies said Hernandez, Smith and another man were partying the night of Dec. 13, 2020 at a house in the 28000 block of Burrough Valley Road in the Tollhouse area east of Clovis.
Brian Gillium, the owner of the home and the father of the third friend, said that during the evening the men began shooting rubber bullets, similar to the type of less-lethal ammunition used by law enforcement. They also had a protective vest and helmet.
Gillium, who described Smith as extremely energetic, said they went into his son’s bedroom, covered his son with a mattress and began firing rubber bullets at him.
“Bradly kept trying to coax him to do the same thing to him,” Gillium said.
Deputy District Attorney Carlie Bruce said Smith got a metal plate, put a helmet on and asked to be shot with a rubber bullet. The friend fired first and struck Smith in the shoulder. Smith wanted to be shot again, she said.
Hernandez was next.
“He shot Bradly once in the back and he immediately collapsed,” Bruce said.
Hernandez told investigators it was an accident. He did not intend to shoot Smith with a live round, let alone kill him.
He pleaded no contest to one count of involuntary manslaughter.
Bruce gave Hernandez credit for taking responsibility for the shooting and offering to pay for his friend’s funeral expenses. But it was his careless actions that caused the death of another man and for that there should be consequences, she said.
Bruce asked the judge for a total of seven years in state prison.
Letter from widow
She also read a letter from Smith’s window, Julie Smith.
“I never imagined myself a widow at age 21 and having a son who is fatherless at two years old,” Smith stated in her letter. “He was too young to leave this earth at 23 years old.”
Brian Andritch, Hernandez’s attorney, said his client is extremely remorseful and has sought counseling to deal with the tragedy. Hernandez didn’t intend to kill anyone that night, he said.
Hernandez wrote a statement to the court, but he was too emotional to read it. His lawyer read it instead.
Hernandez wrote about how the past year and a half have been life-changing for him on many levels. He said that not a day goes by that he doesn’t regret what happened that night.
“Bradly was a good friend and there is nothing I wouldn’t do or give to change the events that happened,” Hernandez wrote.
He added that he wants to be able to have the opportunity to talk to young people about gun safety.
The judge took into account Hernandez’s limited criminal history, his cooperation with law enforcement, and his willingness to help others learn from his mistake.
He sentenced him to three years, instead of seven.
“I know you did not intend to hurt your friend and I appreciate some of the changes you have made that were relayed through your attorney,” Skiles said. “One last word of encouragement going forward. What you are going through right now is challenging and extraordinarily hard on a number of different levels. I encourage you to use this for something positive.”
