Police gunfire hurts 2, hits neighbors' homes

LOS ANGELES — Ten Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies opened fire early yesterday on a sport-utility vehicle they were chasing, discharging 120 rounds in a frenzied crossfire that injured a deputy and the unarmed suspect while sending bullets into nearby homes.

The shooting on a narrow residential street in Compton sent residents diving for cover as bullets zipped over their heads and through their windows. In the aftermath, bullet holes pocked the walls of at least five homes.

Sheriff Lee Baca pledged a full investigation into the incident, which was caught on videotape. "The aspect of shooting in an urban area is problematic and dangerous under all circumstances," he said.

Internal-affairs investigators are trying to determine whether the gunfire was a case of "contagious fire," meaning that some deputies incorrectly believed their colleagues' shots were coming from the suspect, prompting them to open fire.

Neighborhood residents said the deputies put their lives in jeopardy.

"This is crazy — really, really crazy," said Trina Hays, 42, who dived onto her lawn when the shooting erupted 20 feet away. "They didn't have any concern for anybody's life, including their own. That's why their own police officer got hit. ... They could have just sat there and waited it out, but they opened fire."

The incident began shortly after midnight, when deputies responded to a call of gunfire and were told to look for a white SUV.

Winston Hayes, the suspect, had been driving his white Chevrolet Suburban around the neighborhood for about four hours, playing music from his car stereo to residents who were celebrating Mother's Day by lounging on their front lawns.

When deputies arrived, they tried to talk to Hayes. But he sped off, leading them on a chase that circled the block several times at speeds up to 35 mph.

Some residents said they believed he was showing off and teasing the officers.

"He'd stop and when it looked like the police were going to get out, he'd take off. He was playing a little cat-and-mouse game with them," said Terry Moore, 48.

The chase came to an abrupt halt when Hayes drove up onto Moore's lawn.

Authorities said the deputies fired at least 120 rounds, and videotape shows them pumping rounds at Hayes' vehicle in two sustained volleys.

Hayes, who was struck four times, was in stable condition at a hospital.

A deputy, Edward Clark, was struck in the upper part of his protective vest during the crossfire. Clark's injuries were not serious, officials said.

A second deputy tripped and fell during the gunfire, and his colleagues may have assumed he had been brought down by gunfire, sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said.

Baca said deputies can use deadly force when they believe their lives or the lives of bystanders are in jeopardy.

Authorities said they have no evidence that Hayes was involved in the shooting that brought officers to area except that he was driving a vehicle similar to one possibly involved in that incident.