Driver Killed, 2 Passengers Injured When Car Hits Tree

A 19-year-old man was killed and two other men seriously injured early Saturday when the car they were in slammed into a tree as they fled a popular hangout for drag racers near San Fernando Road and Balboa Boulevard, authorities said.

The driver of the car, Julio Mares Jr. of Pasadena, died at the scene, said Officer Carl Helm of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Valley Traffic Division.

Passenger Cesar Guzman, 20, of Pacoima, suffered head injuries and a broken wrist. The second passenger, Brandon Barsh, 18, of Van Nuys, suffered a concussion and cuts, Helm said. Both men were taken to Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills.

The accident occurred at 2:15 a.m. after officers from the Foothill Division shined their lights to break up a group of car racers congregating in a remote area near San Fernando Road between Sepulveda and Balboa boulevards, Helm said.

Drivers scattered in all directions, Helm said. Mares, Guzman and Barsh fled in a 1989 Ford Mustang at a high rate of speed, he said. Mares apparently lost control of the car, which jumped a curb and struck a tree, he said.