HUNTINGTON BEACH : D.A. Wants Suspect to Be Tried as Adult

Prosecutors said Thursday that they want a 17-year-old male tried as an adult for his alleged role last weekend in a shootout that terrorized a Huntington Beach neighborhood, left one suspect dead and resulted in injuries to a resident and a sheriff’s deputy.

The teen-ager, who has not been identified because of his age, and two men have each been charged with two counts of attempted murder as well as single counts of assault, robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery.

Juvenile Court Referee James Odriozola found sufficient evidence Thursday to detain the youth for further court proceedings, officials said. A Dec. 2 hearing was set to determine whether the youth should be tried as an adult.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Jim Tanizaki said the juvenile should be tried as an adult because of the seriousness of the crimes.

Keith Gonzalez, 19, of Garden Grove and Travis Claude, 19, of Long Beach are scheduled to be arraigned today. A fourth youth, Ryan Mones, 17, committed suicide rather than face arrest, officials have said.

The incident began Saturday night, when the four allegedly opened fire on Sheriff’s Deputy Derek Franklin. Authorities say the officer had interrupted them as they were planning a robbery in a parking lot near Bolsa Chica State Beach.

The four led officers on a chase down Pacific Coast Highway to a Huntington Beach condominium complex where residents were terrorized and a massive search was launched.

Before it was all over, one resident was shot twice and injured when he tried to flee a gunman, and a couple were threatened and forced to turn over their car keys, officials said.

Franklin suffered injuries from shattered glass. He has been released from the hospital but may face additional surgery because of metal fragments embedded in his eye.