Photographer Killed After Chasing Justin Beiber’s Car

02 Jan, 2013

A photographer was hit by a car and killed Tuesday after taking shots of Justin Bieber’s white Ferrari while it was pulled over by the California Highway Patrol, authorities said.

Police are interviewing the motorist who hit the 29-year-old man but no arrests have been made. Bieber was not in the car.

The photographer died at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. A friend of the photographer told KCAL-TV Channel 9 that he was not a professional.

The incident took place on Sepulveda Boulevard near Getty Center Drive shortly before 6 p.m. A friend of Bieber was driving the sports car when it was pulled over on the 405 Freeway by the CHP for a traffic stop, according to LAPD Sgt. Rudy Lopez.

The CHP officer directed the driver of Bieber’s car off the freeway and onto Sepulveda.

The photographer arrived at the scene, got out of his car and crossed Sepulveda to take photos. He was hit by the car as he went back across the boulevard to his own car, the sources said.

The paparazzi have tracked the driving habits of Bieber, 18, and the Los Angeles city attorney’s office has been unsuccessful in its attempt to use a novel state law to limit their pursuits.

Judge Thomas Rubinson ruled in November that the state law did not pass constitutional muster in a case against Paul Raef, a photographer who sped on the 101 Freeway last year to capture Bieber receiving a traffic citation.

Passed in 2010, the law punishes paparazzi driving dangerously to obtain images they intend to sell. But Rubinson said the law violated 1st Amendment protections, potentially affecting wedding photographers or those speeding to events where celebrities are present.

AP

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