Man called police ‘screaming for help’ after fatally shooting his friend, police say

A man who fatally shot his friend in the head called police afterwards “screaming for help,” according to an arrest report released Tuesday.

Matt Stafford, of Bakersfield, Calif., is charged with one count on involuntary manslaughter in the death of Chris Campise, according to court records. Stafford and another friend called police on Thursday from an apartment on the 9300 block of Gilcrease Avenue, police said.

A witness told police that a group of friends were hanging out when Campise brought out four guns to show the rest of the group. Stafford initially refused to talk with detectives but later said he’d been taking shots of alcohol, even though he doesn’t usually drink.

The witness said Stafford had pointed the gun at Campise but didn’t believe he’d intentionally fired the shot. Stafford was “shocked” after Campise was shot, according to the report.

Stafford later said he believed the gun was unloaded when he pointed it at Campise. The gun went off on accident, he said.

“You guys think I murdered my friend,” Stafford told police. “That’s what you think. The gun was his. Early in the night, I checked and made sure everything was unloaded. Everything I checked every single gun that was there was unloaded. Everything was unloaded.”

Stafford posted bail and is scheduled to appear in court in April, according to court records.

Contact Jonah Dylan at jdylan@reviewjournal.com. Follow @TheJonahDylan on Twitter.