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Questions Emerge In 911 Handling Of Accident That Killed Baseball Prospect

TORRANCE  (CBSLA.com)    —  Questions have emerged in the 911 dispatch handling of a fatal crash that claimed the life of a top baseball prospect.

KCAL 9's Erica Mandy listened to the 911 tapes that captured the horrific crash on tape.

The tape captures the minute just before the crash occurred.

Jesse Esphorst Jr. -- a 16-year-old star baseball player at South High School in Torrance -- was killed in a three-vehicle crash in March.

In the call, Tung Ming is heard talking to the 911 dispatcher and making it clear he was chasing a car that was involved in an earlier hit-and-run.

RELATED LINK: South High Baseball Star Killed In Torrance Collision

The dispatcher asks Ming for the license plate number of the driver in question. When Ming says he can't see it very well, the dispatcher tells him to speed up to try to get it.

She asks for the plate three times. She suggests he pull over -- if and when he gets the number. But by then, it's too late.

A screeching noise can be heard. It's the deadly crash.

Investigators say Ming was chasing Darryl Hicks down Crenshaw Bpulevard in Rolling Hills Estates. They both allegedly ran a red light and crashed into Jesse and his father.

An LA County Sheriff's Captain told Mandy that deputies and call operators have to make split-second decisions.

They issued a statement that said, in part: "There was no indication that the driver was following the vehicle in an unsafe manner. The caller sounded calm, given the hit-and-run he had just been involved in, and was relaying necessary information."

Mandy spoke to Jesse's mother, who declined comment about the call.

Both suspects have pleaded not guilty and will be back in court next month.

Mandy reported from the crash site where flowers and notes and candles were still visible three months later.

Editor's Note: Audio of the 911 call in Mandy's story was obtained by The Daily Breeze]

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