Skaters Stunned by Shooting

The shooting death of a high school honor student, allegedly by a neighbor furious over skateboarding in front of his home, has left the city’s skateboarders stunned and angry.

“There’s just so many people out there that feel skateboarders are scum and so it’s OK to blow us away,” said James Roll, 14, as he practiced twists and turns at the city’s new Robb Field Skateboard Park.

There was little disagreement among fellow enthusiasts at the Ocean Beach facility that a rising anti-skateboard mood contributed, at least indirectly, to the Nov. 28 death of Raymond Lang, 17.

Lang was fatally wounded as he stood in front of his home in the blue-collar Lomita neighborhood.

Police say a 44-year-old neighbor was angry at teenage skateboarders who frequently rode by his house and car.

The neighbor allegedly fired three shots from a .22-caliber rifle, missing the skateboarders but striking Lang. The victim had been skateboarding earlier but, at the time of the shooting, was using a video camera to film his friends, police said.

Ruben Tadepa, a security guard and Navy retiree, allegedly sped away after shooting Lang and then, after returning, exchanged shots with police before being arrested. He faces murder charges, with a court hearing set for Tuesday.

Prosecutors say that the day before the fatal shooting Tadepa had brandished a pellet gun at skateboarders. Tadepa’s teenage son is a skateboarder and often joined his friends skateboarding in the street, police said.

The death of Lang, who excelled in drama and computer classes, has galvanized the otherwise laid-back skateboarding community.

A “memorial skate session” is planned today at the Mission Valley Skate Park to show respect for Lang and to raise money for his family. Organizers say skateboarding superstar Tony Hawk, who lives in nearby La Costa, has agreed to attend.

Handbills in skateboard shops say that skateboarders are “made from a common mold [and] when one of us falls victim to such violence, everybody loses.”

“Security guards, cops, homeowners--they all give you so much attitude when they see you skateboarding--yelling, cursing. It’s unreal,” said Josh Brewer, 25, skateboarder and teacher at a private school. “Maybe this tragedy will make skateboarders more respectful of people’s property but also make people think about not getting violent.”

Part of the mystique of skateboarding is the sense of doing something both physically dangerous and socially defiant. The industry that has grown up around the sport encourages young skateboarders to see themselves as harassed by a hostile world.

Like those in many other regions, cities in San Diego County have passed ordinances to ban skateboarding in schools, shopping centers and other public places where it is considered a threat to the safety of pedestrians. A local company sells small devices the size of poker chips that are said to hinder skateboarding on walls and railings.

Just weeks before the Lang shooting, suburban Poway toughened its anti-skateboarding law so that a violator can be fined $500 and skateboarding equipment can be confiscated.

“Why are people so mad at skateboarders?” asked Phil McGreevis, 14. “Maybe a skateboarder will grind your curb, but he’s not going to blow up your house. Shooting someone over that--man, that’s bogus.”

Mario Arce, co-owner of Skateboard Heaven, said the Lang shooting has traumatized local skateboarders.

“The skateboarding community is big, but it’s not very mainstream, so it took a while for them to learn about it,” Arce said. “Now they’re saddened and angry. They think it could be them next.”

Some cities, including San Diego and Encinitas, have promoted the construction of skateboard parks. Others have not.

“They don’t want us at shopping centers or schools and so we go into our neighborhoods and somebody shoots us,” said Keith Silvas, a clerk at Emerald City Skate Shop in Coronado. “It was just a matter of time.”