07.04.1988
Sublime's first show. Started the Peninsula Riot of 1988 in Long Beach.
Belmont Shore melee lands 7 revelers in jail
By Neil Strassman
Staff writer
Two of seven people were still in jail Tuesday evening after a Belmont Shore Independence Day celebration turned into a melee between partiers and police. A police helicopter and 44 officers were needed to subdue a rowdy crowd of about 400 people at the corner of 62nd place and Ocean Avenue who allegedly shot Roman candles and threw firecrackers and bottles at the police, said Cmdr. Jim Stewert of the Long Beach Police Department. Some people said the police overreacted during the confrontation in which one officer was injured in the knee by a flying bottle. But no complaints of police misconduct had been filed by 6 p.m. Tuesday, police said. Sigfried Kapu, 19, of Long Beach, held on $2,000 bail, was booked on charges of assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer, and Illya Watkins, 20, also of Long Beach, held on $60,000 bail, was booked on charges of firing an explosive devise at an aircraft, police said. Ron Olsen, 21, of Long Beach, was booked on charges of using an explosive device. He was released after posting bail Tuesday. Four people were arrested for failing to disperse and another for public intoxication. The police initially responded CONTINUED/A10, Col. 1
Belmont Shore party lands 7 in jail
FROM/A1
To a call at 4:30 p.m. about an unruly beach party at 59th Place and sent 10 officers to investigate, said Stewart. “Shortly after 5 p.m. we got a complaint that people were breaking windows and looting stores on 62nd Place”, said Stewart. There were about 200 people drinking and milling around the street, shooting off firecrackers, he said. The window of The Decanter liquor store was broken late Monday afternoon, but it apparently was an accident, and nothing was taken, said store owner Bob Merlo. “It wasn’t out-of-control but it was on the verge,” said Tony Perez, 28, an 18-year resident of Belmont Shore. “It was bottled up for a year but the cork came out last night.” “There were a lot of people and it could have turned into a major riot if it wasn’t handled properly by police,” said Geo Ribb, 36, owner of a laundry on 62nd Place. “It could have been a lot worse than it was.” The crowd continued to grow and about 8:30 p.m., the police saw a man shooting fireworks a building and proceeded to arrest him.
“When we moved in the crowd tried to free the subject and they became unruly,” said Stewart. At 9 p.m. the police ruled it and unlawful assembly and helmeted officers with plastic face shields swept the crowd out to the beach and told them again to disperse, said Stewart. Police gave the crowd 10 minutes to leave and told them they would be subject to arrest, he added. “We must ensure for the safety of citizens and the police and we were significantly outnumbered,” said deputy police chief Gene Brizzolara. The crowd dispersed after a helicopter “got down low enough to where it would fling some sand around,” said Stewart. “People looked like ants running along the beach,” said Joanna Holtz, 20, a waitress at the café on 62nd Place.
“Everybody likes to have a party as long as it doesn’t get out of hand,” said Don Roberts, 65, a retired high school teacher who lives on 61st Place. “When you lose control and the family can’t go enjoy something like this (the fireworks), there’s something wrong.”
- thanks Teresa Robertson for the type out of the article
