Man Killed When Car Fleeing Deputies Slams Into Vehicle

A Rosemead man was killed in a law enforcement chase, an Inglewood woman was shot to death by an intruder who broke into her apartment, and a Watts shopkeeper was stabbed to death by robbers in this weekend’s violence, authorities said.

The Rosemead man, Angel Ostrum, 19, died early Sunday in West Hollywood after his car was hit by a driver fleeing sheriff’s deputies, authorities said.

A sheriff’s cruiser was chasing Keith Anthony Somers’ car on Sunset Boulevard after he hit a parked car, said Sheriff’s Lt. Janet Williams. She said Somers lost control after running a red light, hit a taxi and plowed into Ostrum’s car.

Six people were hurt--one critically--according to Los Angeles County fire officials. Somers, 27, was booked on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter. He was suspected of being under the influence of drugs and alcohol, Williams said.

The accident was the second fatal crash involving a local law enforcement chase in a week. Three people were killed Nov. 7 when gang members trying to elude Hawthorne police slammed their car into another vehicle.

In Watts, Seong Rhee, a 58-year-old Korean-American storekeeper, bled to death Saturday after two robbers stabbed him in the neck during an attempted holdup, police said. The victim’s name was not released, and no suspects were being held.

In two other incidents, a 36-year-old Inglewood woman was shot to death Saturday night by an intruder who broke into her apartment. Her three children and a neighbor’s child were in the apartment at the time but were unhurt, Inglewood police said. No motive was disclosed, and no suspects were in custody.

In what police believe was a gang-related killing, 14-year-old Jason Lara was slain while standing on East 108th Street when three men in a car drove up, confronted the teen-ager and shot him several times. He died at the scene, police said.