Jury Selection Starts for Trial of Man Accused of Fatally Shooting Business Partner

MURRIETA - Jury selection got under way today for the trial of a Menifee man accused of gunning down his partner in a Temecula bed and breakfast because of a legal dispute.

Louis Joseph DiBernardo, 60, could face life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted in the May 12, 2010, slaying of 60-year-old Victor Borcherd.

DiBernardo is charged with first-degree murder, kidnapping, making criminal threats and special circumstance allegations of lying in wait and killing during the course of a felony. He's being held without bail at the Southwest Detention Center in Murrieta.

Riverside County Superior Court Judge Timothy Freer summoned prospective jurors to his courtroom at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta to determine their eligibility and availability.

Opening statements in the case could begin before week's end. The trial is expected to wrap up before the Christmas break.

DiBernardo allegedly killed Borcherd after ambushing him at the Castle Bed & Breakfast at 35250 Loma Ventosa Lane. The wine country lodge was owned by the defendant and operated by the victim.

In June 2009, Borcherd and his wife, Suzanne, signed a lease agreement with DiBernardo, committing to running the bed-and-breakfast while living on the premises. A few months later, the Borcherds entered into a superseding contract that stipulated they would purchase the inn the following year, according to court papers.

DiBernardo declared the agreement void after the Borcherds allegedly failed to make monthly lease payments. The couple sued him in January 2010, alleging breach of contract.

According to a trial brief filed by Deputy District Attorney Brandon Smith, on the day of the shooting, Victor Borcherd was attending a deposition on the civil lawsuit in Newport Beach. His wife remained at the B&B, and around 5 p.m. that day, DiBernardo allegedly confronted her with a handgun as she tended to business in the sewing room.

The defendant allegedly duct-taped the woman's hands behind her back and forced her at gunpoint to walk to a downstairs bedroom and sit on a bed.

''The defendant was angrily and continually expressing his frustration with her husband and their business dealings regarding the purchase of the Castle,'' Smith wrote. ''The defendant told her he was going to kill her, her husband, and their attorney ... for what they had put his family through.''

DiBernardo allegedly held the woman in the bedroom for two hours, at which point her husband returned to the inn, according to the prosecutor.

Victor Borcherd walked into the room and was immediately confronted by DiBernardo, who ordered the victim to get on the ground, Smith alleged.

Borcherd tried to edge closer to his wife, prompting DiBernardo to allegedly fire two warning shots. Seconds later, the defendant allegedly fired two more shots, the final one hitting Borcherd in the stomach.

''Upon being shot, Victor stated, 'Now you've killed me; leave her alone,''' according to the prosecution's trial brief.

Suzanne Borcherd pleaded to be next to her husband, and DiBernardo unwrapped her hands, then called 911, allegedly telling a dispatcher someone had been shot. He then walked into another room and waited for deputies to arrive, according to Smith.

The prosecutor alleged that DiBernardo admitted to the first arriving deputy that he had shot a man and surrendered without incident. A 9 mm handgun and two loaded pistol magazines were located nearby.

Borcherd died at the scene.