Ceres man accused of killing mom over broken video game headset enters plea

The Ceres man accused of killing his mom over a broke video game headset pleaded not guilty in Stanislaus County Superior Court on Friday.

Shackled and wearing a gray jail inmate jumpsuit, Matthew Douglas Nicholson, 28, had few words during his brief appearance in Department 10 in the lower level of the downtown Modesto courthouse.

He nodded a few times as his attorney, Saul Garcia of the Stanislaus County Public Defender's Office, entered a plea of not guilty, denied enhancements and waived his client's right to a speedy trial.

Judge Shawn Bessey set bail at $3 million and ordered Nicholson back in court on Feb. 16.

Nicholson is accused of killing 68-year-old Lydia Susanne Nicholson.

According to the Ceres Police Department, Nicholson had become enraged while playing a video game at his family's home on River Valley Circle on Jan. 11. When his mother went to check on him, he began to argue with her and ended up breaking the headset to his video game. Police said he retrieved a gun, threatening to kill his parents, then shot twice into the wall before shooting his mom.

His father, 81-year-old Loren Nicholson, managed to wrestle the gun away from his son, who then fled to to a relative's home in Riverbank, where he was arrested later that night.

Nicholson also is accused of making a criminal threat that would seriously injure his father. The charge includes an enhancement for allegedly using a gun.

After Friday's arraignment, several relatives left the court and were briefed on the proceedings by Annette Rees of the Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office.

Family members politely declined to comment about the case.

This story was originally published January 26, 2018 at 10:45 AM with the headline "Ceres man accused of killing mom over broken video game headset enters plea."