Balboa Defended as ‘Safest Major Urban Park’ : Show Goes On at Old Globe Despite Tragic Slaying

At the Old Globe Theatre and throughout Balboa Park, it was on with the show Friday, despite the considerable pall cast by the mysterious stabbing death of actor David Oliver Huffman in a canyon not far from the stage where he was starring in the Globe’s production of “Of Mice and Men.”

Cultural and civic leaders remained stunned and saddened by the slaying, which occurred shortly after Huffman left the theater at about 12:30 p.m. Wednesday. But they said emphatically that the bizarre crime should not reflect poorly on Balboa Park, which police, municipal and cultural officials alike hailed as the safest major urban park anywhere in America.

Huffman’s slaying was the second highly publicized such incident in the park in less than a year. Last summer, two San Diego police officers were gunned down while making a traffic stop in the Grape Street area of the park.

The 40-year-old actor’s body was found by schoolchildren on a field trip at 1:10 p.m. Wednesday, but was not identified until late Thursday afternoon. Huffman’s van had been parked illegally near the municipal gymnasium, about 100 yards from where his body was discovered. The keys and his wallet were inside, and the parking lights had been left flashing.

Lt. Paul Ybarrondo, of the Police Department’s homicide division, said a 25-officer force spent a second day Friday looking for clues in the steep ravines behind the Balboa Park Club where Huffman’s body was found, but remained baffled by the case.

“We’re just hoping someone comes forward who might have seen something strange there Wednesday afternoon,” Ybarrondo said. “That’s a heavily traveled area during the day, so any number of people could have witnessed some little thing that might help us in this case. We’ve had some calls, but nothing that gives us a significant lead to go on.”

No mention of Huffman’s death was planned at Friday night’s performance of the play “Of Mice And Men,” based on the John Steinbeck novel. But the Old Globe has scheduled a special March 10 benefit performance, with proceeds going to the actor’s widow and their two children.

There will be visitation for Huffman, who was to leave the Globe’s production Sunday to appear in a television mini-series, today and Sunday at Cunningham & O’Connor Funeral Home on Santa Monica Boulevard in Los Angeles. A memorial fund to benefit young actors has been established in his name.

A funeral mass will be said at 10 a.m. Monday at Good Shephard Catholic Church in Beverly Hills. Burial will follow at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills.

“His death is in the very forefront of all of our minds, but we are professionals--we go on and do our jobs as we were rehearsed to do them,” said Bill Eaton, public relations director for the Globe.

“This production portrays an American tragedy in itself--bringing this death to the audience’s attention is totally unnecessary.”

The Globe’s judicious reaction mirrored those throughout the city, where the emotional response to the slaying was tempered by a strong reticence to attach any overwhelming significance to what police believe was a motiveless crime.

“We had one random murder, and while this one shook a lot of people up because of the person and the circumstances involved, it shouldn’t indicate that there is a violent crime problem in Balboa Park, because there isn’t one,” said Capt. Winston Yetta, the ranking administrator in the Police Department’s Central Division, which includes the park.

“There’s a lot of concern here, naturally,” said John Walter, the city’s area manager of Balboa Park. “But not one person has been heard to say they aren’t going to continue to enjoy the park because they are afraid of being a crime victim.

“It’s as safe in Balboa Park as it is anywhere in the city, and you won’t find a safer big-city park in this country,” Walter said. “Maybe the only problem is that some people have thought it was too safe. I think everyone who comes here now might be just a little more careful, a little more observant of what’s going on around them.”

Eaton, whose famed theater was scarred by tragic and devastating arson fires in 1978 and last year, and now has seen one of its star players killed within walking distance of its stage, staunchly defended the safety of the park.

“There have been problems, but I absolutely disagree with anyone who advances the conclusion that they shouldn’t go to the park because they feel unsafe,” Eaton said. “Balboa Park is as safe or safer than any municipal park in the United States. A person can come up here any day, any night, or any weekend and still share the wonderful feelings and experiences that make the park such a treasured asset in this community.

“There’s no defense against this type of random, senseless murder,” Eaton said.

According to police statistics, the number of criminal incidents in Balboa Park increased 5% in the first 11 months of 1984 compared to 1983, and Yetta said that while figures have not yet been compiled since December, “that trend is continuing this year.”

Despite the highly publicized killings of the police officers and Huffman, Yetta said, “there has been no alarming increase in violent crimes in recent year. Considering the number of visitors to the park each year (estimated by the city at 13.5 million in 1984), our record is remarkably good. The overwhelming percentage of the cases involve nonviolent crimes, mostly auto break-ins.”

Nevertheless, police have stepped up security in the park with the addition two weeks ago of a special tactical force which has at least one undercover officer on duty in the park 24 hours a day, Yetta said.

At least one uniformed officer is always on patrol in the park as well, Yetta said, and 90% of the time logged by the department’s four-officer mounted patrol comes in Balboa Park, where the horses are stabled.

A proposal by Councilman Mike Gotch to increase police protection in Balboa and Mission Bay parks is pending before a City Council committee.