Two hurt in 4-vehicle crash
Laguna Canyon Road reopened in both directions shortly after 1 p.m. Monday after crashes involving four vehicles injured two people, including a motorcyclist, Laguna Beach police said.
The road was closed for nearly two hours following an accident near the dog park at 10:54 a.m. Monday, Capt. Jason Kravetz said in an email.
A red Toyota pickup traveling north on Laguna Canyon Road broadsided a vehicle making an illegal U-turn from a parking space in front of the dog park, Kravetz said. The truck rolled onto its roof.
The driver of a car heading south on the road braked to avoid the truck and that vehicle was rear-ended by a motorcyclist, who was thrown and suffered broken bones, according to police.
A tire fell from the back of the Toyota truck and hit a vehicle but didn’t injure anyone, police said.
*
Two men held after fight
Laguna Beach police took two men into custody after a June 7 fight that involved one beating the other in the face and head with a guitar, police said.
Gustavo Adolfo Vitale, 46, was arrested on suspicion of assault while Los Angeles resident Adam McQuerry, 41, was booked on suspicion of being intoxicated in public, Sgt. Louise Callus wrote in an email.
Police responded to a report of a physical fight involving two men and two women at the bus depot on Broadway Street at 6:23 p.m. June 7, Callus said.
Officers arrived and determined two men were involved. One man appeared to be intoxicated and, according to witness statements, had taunted and challenged the other person.
“This male subject [Vitale] had used his guitar as a weapon and smashed the guitar in the face and head of the first intoxicated male [McQuerry],” Callus said. “The second male subject [Vitale] continued to use his, now broken, guitar as a weapon on the intoxicated male [McQuerry].”
McQuerry had a large laceration on the back of his head, a swollen right eye and open wounds on his face, arms and body, while Vitale, who does not have a permanent address, was not injured, Callus said.
The Orange County district attorney declined to prosecute Vitale, who is unemployed, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department website. He was released from Orange County Jail on June 11, the website said.
*
Police set Pedestrian Safety Day
The Laguna Beach Police Department will sponsor Pedestrian Safety Day on June 26 in an effort to make people aware of the daytime and nightime dangers of crossing busy roads.
Officers often respond to incidents in which an errant motorist has failed to see a pedestrian or a pedestrian has entered a crosswalk without pausing to see if the road was clear, according to a news release.
Decoy department employees dressed in street clothing will look for pedestrian and motorist violators at various intersections along Coast Highway, Laguna Canyon Road and Glenneyre Street.