VILLAGE NEWS L A JOLL A
L A J O L L A’ S P R E F E R R E D S O U R C E F O R L O C A L N E W S
www.SDNEWS.com Volume 14, Number 2
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2008
San Diego Community Newspaper Group
Defense attorney gets in prosecutor’s face Jury deliberations begin in beating death of surfer BY NEAL PUTNAM | VILLAGE NEWS
Jury deliberations continued this week in the Seth Cravens trial following a dramatic closing argument Monday by his attorney who got within five inches of the prosecutor’s face and yelled an obscenity while pretending to be slain surfer Emery Kauanui Jr. Attorney Mary Ellen Attridge called the prosecutor’s murder case “a runaway train” in which she asked that Cravens, 22, be acquitted of second-degree mur-
der and manslaughter in the May 28, 2007 death of Kauanui in front of his mother’s home in La Jolla. “Choo, choo!” concluded Attridge. Attridge claimed Kauanui was “not some docile victim” and instead was the aggressor, citing the testimony of Matthew Yanke, 22, who told jurors last week that Kauanui stepped up to Cravens and yelled at him within five inches of Cravens’ face. “How the (expletive), how the (expletive), how the (expletive) did you come over to my house?” Attridge screamed to Deputy District Attorney Sophia Roach. Roach froze and gave no reacSEE DEATH, Page 5
ON WINGS OF EAGLES
La Jolla, LJCD gridders roll; Bishop’s falls to Patriots 27-20 BY DAVE THOMAS | VILLAGE NEWS
The La Jolla High football team took out some frustration on neighborhood rival University City (UC) High last Friday afternoon with a 51-8 victory. The win kept alive any post-season hopes the Vikings had. La Jolla (4-5, 2-2), which did a good job controlling the line of scrimmage, scored early and often. La Jolla started the assault as safety Yoshi Rothman intercepted a Skyler Dougherty pass and returned it 35 yards to the UC 14. After an 11-yard run by junior fullback Matt Petch, senior
running back Victor Rangel vaulted two yards for the first score of the afternoon (Lee Abelkop PAT) for a 7-0 lead. La Jolla got the ball back and made it 14-0 when Rangel followed Petch’s key block and sprinted the ball 56 yards up the middle for another touchdown. The Vikings made it 21-0 nine minutes into the game when senior back Robbie Beathard ran it in from 28 yards out. The second quarter proved no better for UC, as Rothman took a punt and went 66 yards for the SEE ROLL, Page 7
PFC Gallardo (left) and PFC Hunter, both 11 years old, Marines from the Camp Pendelton Eagle Young Marines, stand at attention next to a plaque honoring Brigadier General James Maitland Stewart, United States Air Force, during the Nov. 8 Veterans Day ceremony at the Mount Soledad Veterans Memorial. Stewart, who died in 1997, was a highly decorated WWII pilot who was better known to the rest of the world as Hollywood legend Jimmy Stewart. His VILLAGE NEWS | RONAN GRAY daughter and other family members attended the plaque dedication event.
La Jolla Christmas Parade calls for support BY ALYSSA RAMOS | VILLAGE NEWS
La Jolla Town Council members hosting the 51st annual Christmas Parade & Holiday Festival are seeking volunteers to ride in this year’s parade and sponsors to help fund the tradition. Set for Sunday, Dec. 7, beginning at 2 p.m., the parade will kick off at Girard Avenue and Kline Street, winding up at Prospect Street and Draper Avenue.
The Holiday Festival starts at 3 p.m. at La Jolla Recreation Center, 615 Prospect St. This year’s theme, “History on Parade,” will feature La Jolla philanthropist Ellen Revelle as the grand marshal. Revelle is a member of the Scripps family and widow of University of California, San Diego founder Roger Revelle. La Jolla Town Council President Darcy Ashley said the council is seeking additional financial support for this year’s parade. Though La Jollans are feeling
economic pressures along with the rest of the country, council members need volunteers to help with the parade and participate, Ashley said. “We need 26 VIP vehicles,” Ashley said, adding a VIP vehicle is a car that’s open so people can see inside, such as a convertible. “We are looking for as many antique vehicles as we can. We also need the people that are doing the floats to go ahead and SEE PARADE, Page 6
Lifeguards install temporary tower Village planners unpleasantly surprised BY ALYSSA RAMOS | VILLAGE NEWS
La Jolla lifeguards initiated installation of a temporary lookout tower while waiting for construction to begin on the newly passed replacement station at the Children’s Pool. But local planning group members said city officials failed to inform them about the building. “Clearly, I don’t think the public Workers erect scaffolding Nov. 6 for the temporary lifeguard tower at Children’s wants this tower,” City of San Diego lifeguard Sgt. Ed Harris said. “But VILLAGE NEWS | ALYSSA RAMOS Pool, a stop-gap safety measure.
it solves our water observation issues and eliminates excess staffing.” After more than seven years of battling with residents and planning groups, asking them to approve a new design for the Children’s Pool replacement lifeguard station, lifeguards with the city of San Diego and La Jollans resolved their differences. La Jolla planners passed the Children’s Pool design during their October meeting. The new design replaces a con-
demned tower, but La Jolla’s lifeguards continued to operate from trailers and temporary towers, waiting for construction to start on the new Children’s Pool station. “It’s obvious the underlying message from the city is they want to speed up work on the new Children’s Pool lifeguard station,” La Jolla Community Planning Association (LJCPA) board member Darcy Ashley said. Meanwhile, about four months ago, lifeguards decided they need many features the new tower SEE TOWER, Page 3