Teenage Driver Arrested in Fatal Wreck

A 17-year-old Northridge boy was arrested on suspicion of vehicular murder after the Mercedes-Benz he was driving allegedly sped out of control in Porter Ranch and crashed, killing his 18-year-old passenger, authorities said Sunday.

Anthony Charles Famini, an 18-year-old from West Hills, was sitting in the front passenger seat of the four-door luxury sedan as it traveled west on Sesnon Boulevard near Porter Ranch Drive about 10:45 p.m. Saturday when the car crashed into a lamp post, said Lt. Ron Tingle of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Valley Traffic Division.

“I don’t know what they were doing up there, but one officer said they were going well over 100 mph,” said Sgt. Dan Mastro of the LAPD’s Devonshire Division.

Famini, a senior at Chaminade High School in West Hills, died at the scene, police said.

The 17-year-old driver, whose name is being withheld by police because he is a minor, managed to extricate himself from the wreck by climbing through the sunroof, said Brian Humphrey, a spokesman for the Los Angeles City Fire Department.

The driver had been wearing a seat belt, police said. They did not know whether Famini was wearing his seat belt.

The driver was taken to Northridge Hospital Medical Center but was released Sunday to his parents, police and hospital personnel said. According to police, arrested minors are usually released to the custody of their parents unless they are considered a flight risk.

The 17-year-old was arrested on suspicion of vehicular homicide, probably because of alleged excessive speed, said Officer Ralph Fournier of the Valley Traffic Division. Vehicular homicide and murder share the same California Penal Code section.

Under California law, a driver under 18 may be granted a provisional license to drive only after completing a driver’s education course and 50 hours of training. However, driving privileges are still restricted, such as during the first six months when a driver generally is prohibited from transporting passengers under age 20.

Police said they did not know whether the 17-year-old driver had a provisional license and, if so, how long he had been driving.

On Sunday, Famini’s family--which had been planning an Easter celebration--instead gathered to grieve for the young man they said had been a warm and loving son, brother and uncle.

“Tony was one of the most religious, spiritual individuals around. He had the soul of an old man,” said his sister, Jeanette Borrelli. “He brought such joy to people’s lives.”

Famini, the “baby” of a close-knit Catholic family with four older siblings, had been looking forward to starting college at CSUN in the fall and majoring in business, Borrelli said.