12 beers in less than 3 hours: A binge or a ruse in Temescal Valley triple-murder case?

• April 26, 2023

The prosecution in the murder trial of a Temescal Valley man who is accused of causing the traffic collision that killed three teenagers in 2020 after they played ding dong ditch on him sought on Tuesday, April 25, to cast doubt on Anurag Chandra’s testimony — including his claim that he drank 12 beers in the hours before the crash.

Chandra, 45, took the witness stand for a second day. He has pleaded not guilty to three counts each of first-degree murder and attempted murder.

Chandra previously testified that he saw a person in front of his home on Jan. 19, 2020, who wore a sweatshirt hood over his head. That person knocked on the door, rang the doorbell and exposed his buttocks. Chandra said he was afraid for his family’s safety, so he climbed in his car in an effort to chase down that person’s car and verbally express his anger.

He said the teens’ 2002 Toyota Prius sideswiped his 2019 Infiniti during the chase. Chandra said he continued to pursue the Prius and rear-ended the car when the Prius suddenly braked.

The Prius skidded into a tree on Temescal Canyon Road, killing three boys and badly injuring three others. Chandra then slowly drove past the crash site before heading home. He said he didn’t stop because he didn’t realize anyone was injured and didn’t believe he was responsible for the collision.

A prosecution crash-reconstruction expert testified Monday that Chandra had intentionally rammed the Prius, at one point driving 99 mph in a 40 mph zone.

Chandra, in a video played Tuesday of his interrogation in a California Highway Patrol office following his arrest, told Investigator Steve Cuevas that he “very, very rarely” drank alcohol.

Chandra testified Tuesday that after drinking 12 bottles of Corona Premiere between 7:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. the night of the crash, he planned to rise by about 5 a.m. the next day to meet a distributor at work in Buena Park to discuss a business deal.

Chandra also testified that despite the alcohol consumption, he was driving under control, even using his turn signals, as he pursued the Prius.

“Did you say 12 beers to give yourself a defense against premeditated murder?” Beecham asked.

“No,” Chandra said, before adding: “I’m not an attorney.”

Drake Ruiz, Daniel Hawkins and Jacob Ivascu were killed in January 2020 when, prosecutors say, Anurag Chandra rammed their car off the road in Temescal Valley. Chandra faces three counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder in 2023. (Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

Chandra testified that he arrived home as his wife was taking out the garbage can. She asked about the damage to their car, he said, and he responded that he didn’t want to talk about it and would “take care of things later.”

Officers who found the Infiniti’s front license plate at the crash scene arrived at his home a short time later, around 11 p.m., and knocked on the door and shined their flashlights. But Chandra testified he was asleep, having passed out from the “overwhelming stress.”

He finally awoke at about 2 a.m. and called 911 to report suspicious people outside his home. He didn’t mention the collision to the dispatcher, who explained in the 911 tape played for jurors that those people were law enforcement officers.

“Why are the officers at my door?” Chandra asked the dispatcher.

Closing arguments are scheduled for Thursday.

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​ Orange County Register 

Tesoro baseball defeats Capistrano Valley in 9 innings, takes control in South Coast League

• April 26, 2023

Tesoro’s baseball team grabbed sole possession of first place in the South Coast League in a dramatic way Tuesday.

The Titans scored in the bottom of the ninth inning for a walk-off 2-1 win over Capistrano Valley at Tesoro High School.

Tesoro is 8-2 in the South Coast League. Capistrano Valley is 7-3. They play each other twice more this week, the final week of the regular season. Wednesday’s game is at Capistrano Valley and Friday’s game is at Tesoro.

With the game tied 1-1 in the bottom of the ninth, senior Jacob Lambdin led off with a bad-hop single through the infield. Senior Jackson Kemmerer followed with a bunt that Capistrano Valley pitcher Owen Geiss fielded cleanly but his throw was high and sailed into right field, allowing Lambdin to score.

Geiss had another outstanding day of pitching. The senior, who signed with Long Beach State, entered the game with a 1.36 ERA, and he held Tesoro to four hits and one earned run.

Lamdin, a senior, pitched the final three innings, holding the Cougars to one hit and no runs with five strikeouts. His base hit in the sixth inning drove in the run that made it 1-1.

Tesoro (18-8 overall), No. 11 in the Orange County Top 25, has won 11 of its past 13 games. No. 15 Capistrano Valley is 13-12 overall.

The Titans were the CIF Southern Section Division 4 and CIF Southern California Regional Division IV champions last season.

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“This team is putting it together at the end of the season like we did last year when we got hot and kept it going,” said Tesoro coach Tony Nieto. “That’s a tribute to our players, and especially our seniors. We have 11 seniors who don’t want the season to end.”

Nieto said big defensive plays were plentiful Tuesday, with Kemmerer making a diving catch in left field in the first inning and Tanner Tobias expertly handling bunts.

​ Orange County Register 

Suspect wanted in stalking case shot and injured by Placentia police in Fullerton

• April 26, 2023

A suspect wanted in connection to a stalking case was shot by a Placentia police detective in Fullerton on Tuesday, officials said.

The incident happened around 5:52 p.m. on the 3200 block of Yorba Linda Boulevard. Placentia Police Sgt. Joe Connell said detectives attempted to make contact and detain the suspect when the officer-involved shooting occurred. No detectives were injured.

The 39-year-old suspect was hospitalized and is expected to survive, said Connell. Details on whether the suspect was armed or what prompted the shooting were not immediately made available. Police said the incident was still under investigation.

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​ Orange County Register 

Pacifica baseball tops Cypress to clinch at least a share of Empire League title

• April 26, 2023

GARDEN GROVE – It’s one of the better high school baseball rivalries and Chad Gurnea was feeling it.

The Pacifica right-hander, who has been the Mariners’ top starting pitcher this season, struck out five in three innings of relief Tuesday to help secure a 4-2 win over Cypress.

The win clinched a share of the Empire League championship for Pacifica. It is the school’s seventh Empire League championship. The last one came in 2021 when the Mariners were co-champions with, of course, Cypress, which won last year’s league championship by one game over second-place Pacifica.

Pacifica racked up several Garden Grove League baseball titles before moving to the Empire League in 2006.

Gurnea, a senior, is 8-2 with four complete games, three shutouts and a 0.35 ERA. He was beyond ready for the moment when he entered the game with a two-run lead in the fifth inning.

“Coming in late I had a little more adrenaline there,” said Gurnea, who signed with Cal State Fullerton. “Getting those last three outs was huge.”

Cypress still can get a share of the league championship. The Centurions are home against Pacifica on Thursday, the final regular-season game for both teams.

If Cypress wins and the teams are tied for first place a coin flip would decide which team goes into the CIF Southern Section playoffs as the Empire League’s No. 1 playoff representative, an important distinction that almost certainly guarantees a first-round game at home.

Tuesday’s win extended Pacifica’s Orange County-leading winning streak to 16 games. The Mariners are 21-2 overall and 9-0 in league. They are No. 7 in the Orange County Top 25 and No. 9 in the CIF-SS Division 1 Top 10.

Cypress, No. 6 in the county rankings and No. 7 in CIF-SS Division 1, is 20-7 overall and 8-1 in league.

Pacifica junior third baseman Aiden Marquez was 3 for 4 with an RBI double and a run scored. Senior center fielder Ryan Anema sent home a run on a squeeze bunt and junior right fielder Jacob Zanaboni pushed across a run with a bases-loaded walk.

Senior right-hander Logan Brady, right there with Gurnea as an effective starting pitcher, started Tuesday and got the win. He is 8-0.

Cypress had a 2-0 lead after two innings. In the first inning junior left fielder Gabe Cobian, who committed to Long Beach State, pulled a one-out double to the right-field corner and scored on Nick Montgomery’s ground out.

Centurions junior designated hitter Justin Tillar opened the second inning with a single and scored on junior third baseman Jackson Pohl’s single to make it 2-0.

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Pacifica tied it in the bottom of the second when senior DH Ryland Chastain scored on a wild pitch and Zanaboni’s bases-loaded walk plated the second run.

Marquez’s double in the fourth inning drove in senior second baseman Tristin Brinkman to give the Mariners a 3-2 lead and Marquez scored on Anema’s bunt.

The CIF-SS baseball playoff brackets will be released Monday at 11 a.m.

​ Orange County Register 

VOTE: Southern California Boys Athlete of the Week, April 28

• April 26, 2023

Each week, publications from the Southern California News Group’s 11 properties (Orange County Register, L.A. Daily News, Press-Enterprise, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Long Beach Press-Telegram, The Daily Breeze, San Bernardino Sun, Daily Bulletin, Redlands Daily Facts, Whittier Daily News and Pasadena-Star News) select the Athletes of the Week for their respective region.

Each athlete is then entered into the overall Southern California Athlete of the Week vote.

Click on the newspaper links below the athlete’s name to read about their performance from last week, and then vote for who you think deserves the top honor.

Readers are allowed to vote multiple times. Voting ends at Friday at noon, but final totals aren’t always immediately reflected due to processing.

GIRLS ATHLETE OF THE WEEK VOTING

The overall winner will be announced on Friday, April 28.

Voting poll at bottom of the page.

Ernesto Duenas, Gladstone: He kept the Gladiators’ Montview League title hopes alive by throwing a no-hitter with 18 strikeouts in a 9-0 win over Sierra Vista. Gladstone (7-1 in league) has two games against Nogales this week that will decide the league title. The Gladiators have only 10 players on their roster.

Aaron Gonzalez, Castaic: Gonzalez was instrumental in the Coyotes’ three wins last week, including two victories over Foothill League foe Saugus. The senior went a combined 7 for 11 batting with 12 RBIs as Castaic secured its first baseball playoff berth.

Eric Vasquez, Narbonne: Vasquez helped lead Narbonne to a sweep of San Pedro with his six-inning outing last week. Vasquez allowed two runs, one earned, four hits, walked two and struck out four. Vasquez and the Gauchos face Rancho Dominguez this week in a Marine League series.

Aiden Aguayo, La Mirada: Aguayo went 3 for 4 and nearly hit for the cycle in La Mirada’s 14-1 win at Warren on Thursday, April 20. The UCLA baseball commit missed the cycle by a double as he hit a two-run home run, triple and single. He also scored three runs and garnered a walk in his team’s key Gateway League victory.

Jayden Alden, Murrieta Valley: Alden made a long eagle putt on the final hole for a round of 3-under-par 33 to earn medalist honors as Murrieta Valley edged Great Oak 187-188 at Bear Creek Golf Club. The win clinched at least a share of the Southwestern League championship for the Nighthawks. It is the program’s first league title since 2018. On the last hole, Alden reached the green on the par-5 ninth in two shots and then sank a 60-foot putt to register the eagle.

Colin Barker, Aliso Niguel: He scored five goals and had one assist in a 12-11 win over San Juan Hills as the Wolverines clinched the Sea View League championship. Barker totaled nine goals and 14 points over Aliso Niguel’s three wins during the week. Aliso Niguel went into this week 13-5 overall and 5-0 in league. The CIF-SS boys and girls lacrosse brackets will be released Saturday.

​ Orange County Register 

VOTE: Southern California Girls Athlete of the Week, April 28

• April 26, 2023

Each week, publications from the Southern California News Group’s 11 properties (Orange County Register, L.A. Daily News, Press-Enterprise, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Long Beach Press-Telegram, The Daily Breeze, San Bernardino Sun, Daily Bulletin, Redlands Daily Facts, Whittier Daily News and Pasadena-Star News) select the Athletes of the Week for their respective region.

Each athlete is then entered into the overall Southern California Athlete of the Week vote.

Click on the newspaper links below the athlete’s name to read about their performance from last week, and then vote for who you think deserves the top honor.

Readers are allowed to vote multiple times. Voting ends at Thursday at midnight, but final totals aren’t always immediately reflected due to processing.

GIRLS ATHLETE OF THE WEEK VOTING

The overall winner will be announced on Friday, April 28.

Voting poll at bottom of the page.

Cat Calzada, Lakewood: Calzada’s two-RBI triple in the fourth inning powered Lakewood to a 4-3 win against Long Beach Poly last week. The victory put Lakewood in position for a Moore League championship game against Millikan at Mayfair Park on Thursday at 6:30 p.m.

Samantha Bland, Chino Hills: Bland, a shortstop headed to Nebraska, had a perfect week at the plate, going 7 for 7 with two hit by pitches in Baseline League wins over Los Osos and Rancho Cucamonga. Bland went 3 for 3 with a home run and five runs batted in during a 15-1 win over Los Osos. She hit for the cycle in a 14-4 victory over Rancho Cucamonga. She led off the game with a home run and completed the cycle with a single in the sixth inning. Bland is batting .461 with 32 runs and 27 RBIs this season.

Montserrat Reyes-Cardenas, La Mirada: She led the Matadores to a 2-1 victory Saturday over Norco, which is ranked No. 2 in CIF-SS Division 1. Reyes-Cardenas gave up one run on eight eights with eight strikeouts. She showed poise by getting out of a jam in the seventh inning to preserve the victory. The Mats have won the Gateway League title and will be in the Division 1 playoffs.

Brianne Weiss, Orange Lutheran: The Notre Dame commit fired a no-hitter with 12 strikeouts in a 1-0 victory against Santa Margarita and a four-hit shutout with seven strikeouts in a 4-0 triumph against Rosary to help keep the Lancers undefeated in the Trinity League. Weiss is 11-2 with a 0.69 ERA.

Nanea Kyle, West Torrance: Kyle had four hits, four stolen bases and drove in two runs in a 10-6 win over El Segundo. She contributed three hits, including a double and a triple, and drove in three runs in a 12-0 win over Wiseburn Da Vinci.

Madelaine Debs, Sierra Canyon: Debs was stellar in Sierra Canyon’s two Mission League wins last week, going a combined 5 for 6 with two homers. She went 3 for 3 with a home run and an RBI in a 6-1 win over Alemany before going 2 for 3 with home run, a double and two RBIs in a 7-5 win over Chaminade.

​ Orange County Register 

Kings’ Viktor Arvidsson on Kevin Fiala: ‘He’s a world-class player. He can boost any lineup’

• April 26, 2023

EDMONTON, Alberta — It was 22 days between games but the way Kings forward Kevin Fiala played in his return to the lineup in Game 4, it looked more like two days.

If that.

Fiala, who had two primary assists in the Kings’ 5-4 overtime loss to the Edmonton Oilers in Game 4, provided the spark they needed in this first-round playoff series, facing Oilers stars Connor McDavid and Leon Draistail. His impact was evident to the Kings’ players and coaching staff months ago.

“Right from Day 1, not playoffs but regular season,” Kings coach Todd McLellan said.

McLellan was talking after Tuesday’s morning skate at Rogers Place, hours before Game 5. After March 9, when Fiala was injured on a knee-on-knee hit from Colorado forward Andrew Cogliano, Fiala played in just three more regular-season games, the last coming on April 1.

“We’re a team that plays pretty good defensively and lacked that star power maybe that could break a game open,” McLellan said. “He’s proven that to us, game in and game out during the regular season. It’s great to have him back. Dynamic player. He can play anywhere up and down the lineup. And we missed him the last two months, or month, anyhow.

“Having that combination – of (Gabe) Vilardi and Fiala together on our third line – maybe gained an advantage. Him coming back was really good for our team.”

Not many teams have the luxury of putting their second-leading scorer, in Fiala, and his 72 regular-season points on the third line with Vilardi and Alex Iafallo.

“He plays with a lot of confidence,” Kings forward Viktor Arvidsson said. “He needs to do that to be good. And he does it every night. It doesn’t matter if he is out four weeks or out for a day or two. He comes back and plays the way he can.

“He’s a world-class player. He can boost any lineup.”

Fiala’s two assists in Game 4 came during the Kings’ three-goal first period and he logged nearly 22 minutes of ice time. “It felt good, just the wind (conditioning) was missing,” he said.

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There was no way he was going to be eased back into the lineup.

“In Kevin’s case, it’s open up the gate … and let’s face it, we don’t have time,” McLellan said.

ICE CHIPS

There was one lineup change for the Kings for Game 5, coming on the back end. Sean Walker made his series debut, drawing in for veteran Alex Edler and played on the third D pair with Sean Durzi. Not only was it Walker’s series debut but his first playoff game in the NHL.

Walker’s last game came in the regular-season finale against the Ducks on April 13.

He missed most of the 2021-22 season after suffering torn knee ligaments in an Oct. 25, 2021 game at St. Louis, which required surgery and a lengthy rehabilitation.

​ Orange County Register 

LAFC, Philadelphia expect another heavyweight clash in CONCACAF Champions League semifinal

• April 26, 2023

For Aaron Long, it only made sense that the Los Angeles Football Club faced the Philadelphia Union in the MLS Cup final.

“Me being in the East last year, Philly was definitely the heavyweight,” Long said. “In the East, they were a very good team. And then they came to L.A., and L.A. was the top dog in the West. So it looked like a heavyweight fight.”

The defender’s familiarity with what makes the Union tough to beat has repeatedly collided with LAFC’s unabashed success since 2018.

Very little has separated Major League Soccer’s top point-earning and goal-scoring organizations other than their style of play, giving Long the unmistakable impression last November that “the right two teams that should be in the final” made it.

Twelve days prior to entering free agency following seven seasons with the New York Red Bulls, Long watched as LAFC absorbed heavy blows from Philadelphia before landing a haymaker that would have dropped Rocky Balboa.

After 131 intense minutes plus penalty kicks – and three straight saves by hero goalkeeper John McCarthy, a Philly boy – LAFC denied the Union its first MLS Cup title and made Black & Gold history instead.

Five months on from that epic result the two sides remain competitively tethered, playing their way into the CONCACAF Champions League semifinal – Wednesday night at Subaru Park on the banks of the Delaware River, with the second leg set for next Tuesday (May 2) at BMO Stadium.

According to metrics valued by the Union, LAFC ranks No. 1 in scoring transition goals and transition defense. That strong combination illustrates how well LAFC has held up during a congested schedule to start 2023, as does its status as the lone unbeaten team in MLS (5-0-3).

With 177 points off a 54-13-15 home record since the 2018 regular season, the Union are second best on their turf in league play. LAFC, five points better at 54-9-20, shows the tight margins between the two across assorted statistics and records, which slightly favor the current league and Supporters’ Shield titlists over an opponent driven to surpass them.

Long’s vantage point might have shifted after signing with LAFC in January, but the defender’s impression of the league’s most compelling East-West confrontation is unchanged ahead of their two-leg Champions League clash.

Philadelphia plays direct and builds up the bulk of its successful moments through the midfield. LAFC has proven dangerous in a variety of ways and appears especially adept at isolating defenders while creating dangerous chances for its skilled attackers.

“When you have two styles like this and two teams that are good on the counter it makes for an exciting game,” Long said. “The final was extremely exciting.

“I think we’re going to expect a lot of that in the Champions League game. There’s just a lot of really good attacking players on both teams. There’s no way there’s not going to be a lot of chances created, and hopefully goals for us and not for them.”

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Through two rounds of the international competition, that has been the scenario returning home.

Coach Steve Cherundolo’s group traveled to Costa Rica and Vancouver, established seemingly insurmountable 3-0 advantages, and locked up each 180-minute result without much stress at BMO Stadium.

“We didn’t predict those scores but we were able to put in a performance both times that put ourselves in a great position to seal the deal at home,” Cherundolo said, “and that’s exactly what we’re going to try to do in Philly as well.”

LAFC AT PHILADELPHIA

What: CONCACAF Champions League semifinal (first leg)

When: Wednesday, 6 p.m. PT

Where: Subaru Park, Chester, Pa.

TV: FS1, TUDN

​ Orange County Register