911 tape suggests black men behind Long Beach attack

A 911 phone recording played Monday in the trial of nine black girls and a boy accused of beating three white women on Halloween suggested that black men carried out the attack.

The call came from the unidentified owner of a home on the block where the assault took place as he apparently spoke to the victims in the frontyard. The details he gave supported the defendants’ statements to police that a group of males in black hooded sweatshirts mobbed and beat the women.

“Um, outside in front of my house, like, 10 guys just came up and started beating the ... out of two girls,” the caller said.

911: “Did you see the guys who are doing this?”

Caller: “Uh, they were all dressed in black and ran off.”

The 911 operator asked the caller several questions about the attackers, which he relayed to the victims, who shouted answers back.

911: “I can’t hear you with all that racket in the background.”

Caller: “Well, I’m sorry, I’m trying to deal with girls who have just gotten beaten the ... out of. They said they were black men and there were at least 10 or 12 and they were just beating on the girls.”

The victims’ voices in the background also indicated the assailants yelled a racial insult, as has been alleged. The 10 young people -- ages 12 to 18 -- are charged with assault with intent to cause great bodily harm; eight of them face a hate crime enhancement.

One of the victims, Loren Hyman, suffered 10 fractures to her face; another, Laura Schneider, may have sustained a concussion, according to testimony. There has been no testimony that the third, Michelle Smith, suffered significant injuries.

Deputy Public Defender Stephanie Sauter played two other 911 calls from that night. Neither added much to the case, except that one appeared to support the defense’s claim that the victims were fighting back.

Unidentified caller: “There’s some people fighting.”

911: “OK. Are they fighting or are they beating someone up?”

Caller: “No, they were fighting them across the street, so it’s about, um.”

911: “How many people?”

Caller: “Uh, looks like a mult- ... like probably four or five.”

911: “Male or female?”

Caller: “Looked like male, it looks like male. It’s dark, I can’t really make it out.”

Earlier in the trial, Deputy Dist. Atty. Andrea Bouas played the 911 call of its star witness, Kiana Alford.

“Hi, um, yes, I am calling because there is a female and she got jumped by like 30 people and we’re on Bixby and Linden,” she said, according to a transcript.

On Thursday, Alford’s companion that night, Lineshia Hill, finished her testimony by saying she did not believe Alford told police the truth when she claimed she had witnessed the entire attack and recognized eight of the defendants as culprits.

If Judge Gibson Lee determines Hill’s testimony was credible, it would severely erode the prosecution’s case.

Hill testified that as she and Alford walked along the other side of the street, they saw a group of people milling around on the corner.

When Hill and Alford were driving away, Hill testified, they saw residents gathered around three white women who looked as though they had been beaten up. But Alford testified that she saw the attack in detail as she looked in her rear-view mirror and over her shoulder.

In her 911 call, Alford can be heard talking to a victim: “Did they know you, like [unintelligible]? No? Oh my God. Yeah, ‘cause I saw when I was on the other side of the street.... They were all standing right there before.”

Bouas, angry and raising her voice, tried to discredit Hill, saying she was frightened to testify about what she really saw because after Alford did so, someone rammed her parked car. Police say they suspect the culprits were gang members; Bouas has accused the defendants and their families of being behind the incident.

“Why is it you won’t admit you were freaked out about Kiana’s car being smashed?”

“It didn’t freak me out; it surprised me,” Hill said.

Bouas shot back that Hill had used the phrase “freaked out” in a telephone interview with the prosecutor. Hill conceded she might have used those words.

Bouas also focused on Hill’s telling Alford that night to “leave me out of this” as a sign she was scared to get involved.

Attorney Frank Williams tried to clear that up for the defense.

“When you said ‘Leave me out,’ were you indicating that you don’t want to be part of any false identifications?”

“Correct,” Hill said.

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