Woman who pulled gun on barber to stand trial

At first, the situation didn’t seem at all unusual when a woman walked into a North Park barbershop in February and asked for a cut, a barber testified Thursday morning.

The woman didn’t talk much, but expressed that she wanted her hair trimmed short because it was damaged, the barber said. She also wanted some lines or other type of design cut into her new hairdo.

He obliged. And when the work was done, the woman didn’t immediately indicate one way or the other how she felt about the result before she walked out of the shop.

About 20 minutes later, she came back with a gun.

Adrian Blanche Swain, 29, was ordered on Thursday to stand trial on a charge of premeditated attempted murder, with a gun-use allegation. She is accused of pointing a .22-caliber handgun at the man who cut her hair that day and pulling the trigger three times.

The gun didn’t fire.

Swain’s defense lawyer argued during the preliminary hearing that a charge of assault with a firearm was more appropriate, given the testimony. The attorney also noted that Swain told police she had been diagnosed with schizophrenia and anxiety.

After hearing from the lawyers and the witnesses, San Diego Superior Court Judge Lorna Alksne determined that enough evidence had been presented at the hearing for Swain’s case to move forward on the attempted murder charge.

According to the testimony, the incident occurred Feb. 10, about 10 a.m., after Swain walked into the 619 Barber Shop on 30th Street near University Avenue.

Lennin Luna Lopez testified that he tried to make small talk while he cut Swain’s hair. She responded to some of his questions but spoke very slowly and at a low volume. At times she seemed to be mumbling under her breath.

When he was done, she paid the barber $20 plus tip. He said she didn’t seem angry or upset.

“She didn’t have much of a reaction,” Luna said, with help from a Spanish-speaking interpreter. “I even gave her a business card in case she wanted to come back.”

Luna said he was with another customer when Swain came back into the shop and pulled a gun from her purse. He testified she pointed it in his direction and said, “Look what you did to me.”

He said he saw the woman pull the trigger the first time, but nothing came out. Then she said, “Do you think I’m kidding?”

She pulled the trigger again and then a third time, Luna told the judge.

“My immediate reaction was to hide behind the chair,” he said. “Then she started walking toward the outside and that was the moment I reacted.”

Luna said he tackled the woman and, with help from a co-worker, was able to hold her down on the floor and take the gun away. He said the woman cussed at him to let her go, and later told him to shoot her in the head.

A photo was displayed in the courtroom that showed Swain after her arrest. The right side of her head was shaved close.

“She doesn’t have hair on the side where I had done the haircut, the design,” Luna said.

San Diego police arrested Swain at the barbershop. Outside, police found a vehicle registered to Swain with the engine running. A gun case was found inside the vehicle along with ammunition.

The semi-automatic handgun that had been confiscated at the crime scene had a magazine that was fully loaded with 10 rounds, a detective testified. There was no round in the chamber.

“You’d have to rack it in order to shoot it,” said Detective Andrew Tafoya. He explained that in order to load a round into the chamber of the gun, a person would have to pull back the slide at the top of the weapon.

Deputy District Attorney Makenzie Harvey argued that the evidence showed the defendant was trying to kill the barber when she pointed the gun at him and pulled the trigger. The prosecutor cited testimony from the barber, who said he saw Swain’s hand on the top of the gun before he tackled her.

“I think her intentions were clear,” Harvey said.

Swain’s lawyer, Deputy Public Defender Lindsey McGregor argued that Luna was not able to say exactly where the gun was pointed other than in his general direction. The attorney also said her client’s hand may have been on top of the gun in an effort to conceal it as she tried to leave the barbershop.

“She never racked the gun and no bullet was ever fired,” McGregor said.

If Swain is convicted, she faces a possible sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole.

dana.littlefield@sduniontribune.com