SLO Man accused of murdering his mother appears in court

September 21, 2011

By JOSH FRIEDMAN

A San Luis Obispo man accused of murdering his mother and shooting at a police officer with a shotgun, appeared in court Wednesday morning for his arraignment.

Judge John Trice granted Christopher Shumey, who was represented by Patricia Ashbaugh, a time waiver which delayed the arraignment until September 27 at 8:30 a.m. At which time, the case will be transferred to Judge Michael Duffy.

Shumey, 34, was dressed in black and white stripes as a reminder to jail staff to be more attentive to the suspect and those around him because of the recent loss of his mother. Shumey remained calm throughout his brief appearance.

Shumey, who is currently being held in San Luis Obispo County Jail on a no bail order, appeared for initial arraignment yesterday via video conference.

The alleged murder of his mother, Karen Shumey, a 65-year-old teacher with the Lompoc Unified School District, occurred Saturday at 2:30 p.m. at Shumey’s apartment on the corner of Beach and Buchon streets following a heated argument.

When police arrived, Shumey allegedly started shooting at officers with a shotgun from his upstairs apartment but surrendered shortly thereafter. Officers booked Christopher Shumey into San Luis Obispo County Jail on charges of murder and assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer.