Owner of Garage Domicile Could Face Legal Action

The garage where a pregnant 15-year-old was shot to death Saturday night was illegally converted into a residence, and that might bring action against the property owner, Costa Mesa officials said Wednesday.

“It’s a building code problem and a zoning violation,” said Sandi Benson, the city’s chief code enforcement officer. “Obviously a garage is for a vehicle, not a room for living.”

The city will notify the property owner, she said, and determine to what extent the garage conversion violated building, health and safety codes. If the site is not restored to its original condition voluntarily, the property owner, whom Benson did not identify, could face a misdemeanor citation of up to $1,000.

“We need to make it very clear to the property owner that this is not acceptable,” she said. “People should not have to live in a garage.”

Yuridia “Judy” Balbuena and her baby both died after the weekend incident, in which police said a gunman fired three shots into the wooden door of the garage, which is attached to an apartment on Wallace Avenue. The teen was living in the garage with her parents, Modesto and Micalea Balbuena, her three siblings and her fiance. The family had been paying $100 a month since February to live in the small structure, city officials said.

The gunman remained at large Wednesday night, police said.