KFMB sports anchor Kyle Kraska took the stand against the man who is accused of trying to kill him in February 2015.
The San Diego CBS affiliate reports Kraska told the court his doctor said he was in “really bad shape” after being shot six times by Mike Montana.
Kraska says he spent six days in a coma after he was shot in the bicep, the leg, and twice in the chest.
The two had agreed on a payment of $800 up front and $2,200 upon completion after Kraska hired Montana to paint his house. KFMB reports Kraska “said he wrote a check for $800, but Montana failed to show up the first day and his attendance was not very good after that.”
Kraska said Montana’s work was “careless” and the defendant started asking for more money, which Kraska refused to give him. Eventually, Montana said he was “broke” and later quit, saying he couldn’t finish the job, Kraska testified.
Three months later, Montana pounded on Kraska’s front door at 6:30 a.m., leaving a letter under a mat that read in part, “It’s in your best interest to pay me the money you owe me.”
“It was violent, it was scary,” Kraska said of the letter.
A week later, Montana told him “You should have paid me the $2,200” and started shooting.
“I was being assassinated, it seemed like,'” Kraska said in court. “It was chaos. It was beyond comprehension.'”
Defense attorney Richard Jayakumar conceded that Montana “systematically” shot at Kraska’s car, including the side, tires and hood, but maintained that his client “was not trying to kill Mr. Kraska.”
If Montana wanted to kill the victim, he could have shot him point-blank, the defense attorney said.
Montana faces a charge of premeditated attempted murder and shooting into an unoccupied vehicle.