Oceanside CA— On December 28, 2014 at 8:00 p.m. Oceanside Police officers responded to an apartment in the 500 block of Sportfisher Drive regarding 27-year-old Mark Girard, Jr. not breathing. Officers arrived and found Girard unconscious.
A subsequent investigation revealed that Girard and two other friends were involved in an altercation with Derrick Lamont Belser at the rear entrance to Fire Water Saloon in the 300 block of North Tremont. Belser was employed as a bouncer at the Fire Water Saloon at that time.
The altercation occurred on December 28, 2014 around 2:12 a.m. Belser knocked Girard down during the incident and Girard struck his head on the ground when he fell. Girard was taken to Scripps Hospital in La Jolla where he succumbed to his injuries on December 30, 2014 and died.
On January 15, 2015 an arrest warrant was issued for Vista resident, Derrick Lamont Belser. On January 16, 2015 Belser turned himself into Oceanside Police. Belser was arrested for Involuntary Manslaughter, Assault With a Deadly Weapon, and Battery with Great Bodily Injury. Belser was booked into the Vista Detention Facility.
If anyone has any pertinent information regarding the altercation please call Detective Mike Provence at (760) 435-4746.