Gunfire disturbs Gayley, Lot 8
By Robert Salonga
Oct. 19, 2003 9:00 p.m.
Police are investigating an incident that left one man wounded
early Saturday morning and marked the second shooting in as many
weeks in the UCLA area.
Shots were fired in front of the Sigma Nu fraternity house on
Gayley Avenue at about 2:26 a.m. that morning, according to
university police and eyewitnesses.
The victim was a male non-UCLA student, who suffered a wound to
his ankle. He was transported to a local hospital Saturday and is
in good condition, according to the Los Angeles Police Department,
which is investigating the shooting.
The shooting occurred at the tail end of a party held in the
fraternity house that was hosted by an outside group.
Shortly after, shots were fired in Lot 8, located about two
blocks east of the fraternity house on Strathmore Avenue. No one
was hurt, according to university police, who are investigating the
incident.
Police would not comment on whether the two incidents were
related, but according to eyewitnesses, this appears to be the
case.
Eyewitnesses said police began clearing out partygoers in front
of the fraternity house in the minutes preceding the Gayley Avenue
shooting.
Jonathan Forney, social chairman of the nearby Beta Theta Pi
fraternity, said he saw the events unfold from one of his
house’s balconies. As police began to disperse the crowd,
some ran toward Lot 8, said Forney, and he heard a gunshot come
from the general area of the garage, followed by cars speeding out
of it.
Though no one was hurt in the garage incident, some bullets hit
students’ cars parked in the lot, including that of Keith
Merrill, a second-year undeclared student.
Merrill’s vehicle had a bullet lodged in the right door
following the Lot 8 incident.
The investigation of the Lot 8 scene led to the arrests of four
individuals for charges ranging from possession of stolen property
to grand theft. It is not clear whether those arrests were related
to the shooting.
Sigma Nu did not sponsor the party where the Gayley Avenue
shooting occurred. House Manager Sarman Bravo-Karimi said the
building was rented to party management group 3 Tha Hard Way.
The group’s Web site billed the event at the Sigma Nu
house as “The UCLA Blue and Gold Bash.” Calls to the
group over the weekend were not returned.
Bravo-Karimi, who attended the party, added that it attracted
people from throughout Los Angeles.
Derrick Klunchoo, a third-year economics students and Sigma Nu
member, said most of the fraternity members were out for the night
and were not present at the party.
Fraternity officials agreed the party was unmanageable for most
of its duration, due in part to the amount of people present both
inside and outside. According to rough estimates, the number
totaled to as many as 800 partygoers.
“It was out of control from the get-go. There were too
many people there,” said Mark Hardin, director of risk
management for the Interfraternity Council, who stopped by the
party.
Bravo-Karimi said the party inside the house was alcohol-free
and drug-free, and security was instructed not to admit anyone who
was under the influence.
The crowd outside the house ““ which Bravo-Karimi estimated
to be as high as 200 people ““ was less regulated.
The aftermath of the scene ““ in which police closed off
much of the west side of Gayley Avenue in front of the house
““ prevented many members of Sigma Nu from returning home that
night.
Merrill said he was unaware of the shootings when he headed
toward Lot 8 to retrieve a football ticket out of his car on
Saturday morning, only to find the garage blocked off by
police.
“The police would not let me get to my car, so I had to
buy another ticket,” he said, adding that he probably
won’t pursue compensation for his car damage.
Some students said the shootings were not typical of UCLA and
served as a reminder to be more careful.
“I’m a little bit surprised that something like this
could occur at a school like this,” said Steve Vicijan, a
third-year history student. “It brings us back to
reality.”
Other students took the shooting in stride.
“The shooting doesn’t make me feel any less
safe,” said Megan Lee, a first-year political science
student. “It’s not like where I’m from, in South
Central L.A. … It’s Westwood, not Bosnia.”
This was the second shooting incident at or near UCLA in the
past two weeks.
On Oct. 5, a UCPD officer shot an alleged trespasser in
Kerckhoff Hall, who police said attacked the officer. The alleged
assailant, Willie Davis Frazier, plead not guilty Wednesday to
charges of assault and removing an officer’s weapon. He now
awaits a preliminary hearing while LAPD continues to investigate
the incident.
With reports from Brad Greenberg and Brendan Kearns, Bruin
Senior Staff.
