Violence and Death Greet the New Year : Shootings and Fatal Crash Mar Holiday

New Year’s Eve in San Diego County:

One man was shot three hours before the old year ended; he died hours into the new year.

A driver was jailed after his brother died in what police described as a crash fueled by alcohol.

A quadriplegic was briefly kidnaped in a car by two armed men, and then dumped alongside a dark highway.

And a teen-ager, apparently caught up in the noise-and-fireworks revelry of New Year’s Eve, fired several shots into the air from a pistol. Then he accidentally fired a fatal shot at his head.

“This New Year’s Eve was a very busy night for us,” Lt. Michael Blakely, a San Diego police spokesman, said Sunday afternoon as he sorted through a log of crime incident reports.

At the same time, without releasing any hard figures on the number of arrests, law enforcement agencies throughout the county said it appeared that the number of New Year’s Eve drunk-driving cases had declined.

‘No More Than Usual’

The California Highway Patrol, for instance, reported no traffic fatalities and no major accidents that were related to alcohol. And, except for the National City crash that claimed the life of one man and sent his brother to jail, police spokesmen said it appeared that drinking and driving were not mixed as freely as in past New Years’ Eves.

A Chula Vista police spokesman said officers made about a dozen driving under the influence arrests, but added that that wasn’t any higher than most weekend nights. “That’s about typical,” he said. “No more than usual.”

Blakely said the first slaying of 1989 was recorded at 3:15 a.m. Sunday when Paul Berry, 28, died in surgery at UC San Diego Medical Center.

Police were called to a gas station in the 3500 block of National Avenue about 9 p.m., where they found Berry, suffering from a gunshot wound, inside a van.

Blakely said police interviews at the gas station led detectives to a residence in the 3400 block of Acacia Street. Inside, they found witnesses who said Berry had been involved in a fight with a roommate. A .20-gauge shotgun was recovered.

Police are seeking the suspect.

Half an hour after Berry was shot, Cesar Rangel, a quadriplegic, was waiting in a car near Interstate 805 and California 94 while a friend went into a store. Two armed men suddenly appeared, forced their way into the car and drove off with Rangel.

Blakely said the men searched Rangel for money, and then dumped him out of the car alongside the freeway. He was later found by a CHP officer and taken to San Diego Physicians & Surgeons Hospital, where he was treated and released.

“I don’t really understand why they did that to him,” Blakely said.

The car was found abandoned in the 2700 block of B Street. No suspects had been arrested.

At 2:10 a.m., Malcolm Dion Allen, 16, was with a group of three friends in the 4700 block of Home Avenue when he began firing into the air with a .22-caliber revolver.

Long-Distance Chase

Blakely said the youth would fire into the air, place the gun near his head, and then fire again into the air. He did this several times, Blakely said, and then accidentally shot himself in the head.

A high-speed chase began shortly after 3:30 a.m. in the 4900 block of El Cajon Boulevard. When it was over, police and CHP officers had pursued the driver through North County, across Orange County and finally to a stop in the Los Angeles suburb of Carson.

Blakely said Bodden Kennen, 26, was booked into jail in Long Beach on suspicion of a felony charge of evading a police officer and reckless driving.

In National City, a traffic incident ended much more tragically.

Police and firefighters were called about 4:30 a.m. to a two-vehicle collision at the intersection of 8th Street and Highland Avenue.

National City Police Sgt. David Ogilvie said they found two brothers trapped inside a burning car. Timothy Maurice Bracy, 27, of Los Angeles and Gregory Neil Bracy, 36, of Southeast San Diego were rescued from the car and taken to UC San Diego Medical Center.

Timothy Bracy, who had been a passenger, died at the medical center. His brother, who was seriously injured, was placed under guard in the trauma unit.

Ogilvie said Gregory Bracy was driving at high speed when he struck the rear of a pickup truck as its driver slowed to make a left turn. “Alcohol is suspected as a contributing factor in the collision,” Ogilvie said.

The truck driver, Antonio Madriz, 20, of Tijuana, was treated at the medical center for minor injuries.

But Ogilvie said Madriz was later moved to County Jail downtown when it was learned he was an illegal alien and that the truck he was driving had been reported stolen.