Sheriff’s Deputies Wound 2 Men in Separate Incidents

Two men were shot and wounded in separate confrontations with Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies Wednesday.

In the first incident, an off-duty sheriff’s deputy shot and wounded a 21-year-old man who allegedly harassed people at a Lancaster New Year’s Eve party and vandalized a car, a Sheriff’s Department spokesman said.

At 1:20 a.m. Wednesday, the deputy’s neighbor told him that several men were trying to disrupt his party and threatening his guests, said Sheriff’s Sgt. Richard Dinsmoor.

The deputy, whose name has not been released, was rushed by one of several suspects, who was carrying a rifle, Dinsmoor said.

The deputy pulled a handgun and fired once, narrowly missing suspect David Baez.

Several other suspects then charged the deputy, who hid behind a nearby house and then fired another round at the men, hitting Baez in the leg.

Baez was arrested a short time later at a hospital, where he was being treated for the gunshot wound.

The other men fled the scene and were still being sought by deputies.

Minutes into the New Year in Whittier, a man in his 20s was critically wounded in a shootout with deputies.

The man, who was not identified, first fired into the windows of an empty car parked outside a home and then shot at sheriff’s deputies when they arrived, fellow officers said.

After being hit by several shots, the man ran to his sister’s home nearby, where he collapsed, said sheriff’s Sgt. Noel Lanier.

He was listed in critical condition at Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center.

The deputies were unharmed.