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VILLAGE NEWS
Scott Appleby & Kerry ApplebyPayne
LA JOLLA
A Family Tradition of Real Estate Success
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THURSDAY, MAY 19, 2011
San Diego Community Newspaper Group
Firework observers lounge near La Jolla Cove to watch a previous annual pyrotechnic show. DON BALCH | Village News
explosion of debate
www.SDNEWS.com Volume 15, Number X
Craigslist transaction turns deadly for La Jolla High grad BY MARIKO LAMB | VILLAGE NEWS
Fireworks permit sparks
DRE#01197544 DRE#01071814
Garrett Berki, a Mission Beach resident and graduate of La Jolla High School, was shot and killed in a Craigslist transaction gone wrong on May 11. According to police, the 18year-old Mesa College student and his girlfriend, Alejandra Fouda, answered an advertisement on Craigslist for a $600 computer on the 2800 block of Casey Street in Paradise Hills. Berki and Fouda were reportedly met by three 17year-old males — Rashon Abernathy, Seandell Jones and Shaquille Jordan — who allegedly robbed the couple of their cash and cell phones at gunpoint, then fled the residence in a green Honda Accord. Police reports indicate the couple followed the Honda in their own vehicle in an attempt to get the Honda’s license plate number. The pursuit ended in a cul-de-sac on Artemia Way, where one of the
teenagers in the Honda allegedly shot through the front windshield of Berki’s vehicle, striking him in the chest. The San Diego Police Department responded with ground, air and canine units to reports of vehicles driving quickly and the sound of gunshots. Police pursued the Honda on the 3000 block of Fleming Way, where the suspects crashed their vehicle and fled the scene on foot. All three suspects were caught about one block away from their abandoned vehicle. Berki was transported to Mercy Hospital in Hillcrest where he died from a single gunshot wound at 11:13 p.m. that night. “I hope that Garrett has touched all of your lives,” said Berki’s mother, Connie, during a candle-lit gathering on Mission Beach on Friday night. From accounts, it appears Berki has. Friends described Berki as a fearless, loyal friend whose charm
Garrett Berki, who graduated from La Jolla High School last year, was killed on May 11.
and positive spirit transcended to others. He was described by one former La Jolla High School classmate who wished to remain anonymous as “someone to rely on in any given situation.” Another longtime friend and classmate described him as “full of life and always determined to SEE BERKI, Page 6
Community shows support for plan to unite La Jolla New requirements, fees may mean the end of La Jolla’s annual display BY KENDRA HARTMANN | VILLAGE NEWS Organizers of fireworks displays in San Diego recently became the first in the country to be required to apply for and purchase an annual permit to celebrate the Fourth of July with pyrotechnics, and the move may spell disaster for the yearly celebration at La Jolla Cove. On May 11, the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, San Diego Region voted unanimously to issue a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit, costing $1,452, in order to allow organizers to lawfully discharge pollutants present in fireworks to meet federal Clean Water Act requirements. “The fireworks at the Cove are com-
BY JOSHUA SELIGMAN | VILLAGE NEWS
pletely put on by donations,” said Deborah Marengo, director of the La Jolla Community Fireworks Foundation (LJCFF). “The reality is that we’re going to have to make a decision about where this money will come from.” The permit requirement, effective June 1, applies to displays over any body of water in the region and requires organizers to collect, remove and manage debris created by the fireworks. It does not, however, require water quality and sediment monitoring to determine the extent to which the pollutants actually contribute to the degradation of surface water health. Environmental groups contend that fireworks contribute chemicals and other
The city of San Diego’s redistricting was the talk of three civic meetings in La Jolla this past week: the city of San Diego’s Redistricting Commission’s last of nine pre-map public hearings on May 11, the La Jolla Shores Association’s monthly meeting on May 11 and the La Jolla Town Council meeting on May 12. Redistricting is a result of a San Diego city charter requirement that establishes a Redistricting Commission each decade. This commission listens to and implements plans that will redefine the boundaries of each City Council district in order to account for changes in population. This decade is unique because the city will add a ninth district and council seat. The last time a seat was added was in the 1960s. About 140 people attended Wednesday’s Redistricting Commission meeting at the La Jolla Library, said Joe LaCava, former president of both the La Jolla Community Planning Association and the Bird Rock Community Coun-
SEE FIREWORKS, Page 5
SEE REDISTRICT, Page 4
A blessed rally
roars up to Mount Soledad
See page 6