Five years have passed since a 64-year-old man was beaten to death with a dumbbell in his University City home, and a judge ruled Sept. 30 that his son is still mentally incompetent to stand trial for the crime.
The personal presence requirement of Nikola Chivatchev, 29, was waived as he remains in a locked facility in Vista, represented by his attorney before San Diego Superior Court Judge Joseph Brannigan.
The murder charge against Chivatchev remains suspended in the Oct. 7, 2009 death of his father, Alexander Chivatchev, at the La Jolla Crossroads apartment complex. He has not regained his ability to understand court proceedings since he was first committed in April of 2010.
Nikola Chivatchev has been diagnosed with a brain injury and could not stay at state mental hospitals because he could not take care of himself. Court records say Chivatchev is “childlike” and has to wear diapers. His mother received permission for him to live in a locked skilled nursing facility.
Brannigan ruled that he found Nikola Chivatchev to be “gravely disabled.” If doctors suspect Chivatchev has regained his mental competency, he would face a judge to determine that issue and stand trial if found competent.
The family came from Bulgaria to the United States in 1990. The victim’s wife called 911 when she saw her son attack his father in his sleep at 1:14 a.m. with a dumbbell in the 9100 block of Judicial Drive.