Idiots That Gave Away Their Souls To The Other 49 States

[Common Sense]

Gang member who shot Newark cops gets 30 years


September 10, 2007

Calling him a "violent and assaultive" man who needed to be made an example, a judge today handed a 30-year prison sentence to a Bloods gang member who shot and wounded two Newark police officers during a shootout at a South Ward housing complex.


Superior Court Judge Michael Ravin handed the stiff sentence to Naeem Mitchell after using unusually strong language to describe a history of criminal behavior that began when the defendant was 15.

"Nothing has deterred you," Ravin said. "This sentence will deter you. And the others, the drug dealers, perhaps the sentence I am about to impose will cause them to think twice before continuing to destroy our communities."

Mitchell, 24, also took a tongue-lashing from Edward Vernotica, a Newark police officer who was shot in the arm during the Sept. 24, 2005, incident at the Seth Boyden housing complex. Vernotica derided Mitchell's claim that he did not know the people chasing him were police officers and that he gave up his gun when he realized who they were.

"The only reason why you gave up was because bullets were starting to come back at you," Vernotica told the defendant. "We thank God you were a terrible shot, because you could have easily killed us."

Mitchell was convicted July 23 of two counts of aggravated assault for shooting and wounding Officer Ronald Polhill and shooting at Officer Anthony Rawa. He also was found guilty of two weapons charges and pleaded guilty to possession of a weapon by a convicted felon.

He was acquitted of two other aggravated assault charges and three attempted murder charges, and the jury deadlocked on a charge of attempted murder stemming from the Polhill shooting

[shaun_zach]

Man, it's pretty messed up that people are willing to throw their life away. But hey that's part of being in a gang or living the life of a hustler, you take chances with your life that an ordinary person doesn't. I just hate that some of the people that are convicted are so young, hell their lives have just started and has ended so soon. Life behind bars is not as pretty and exciting as many lead others to believe, nor is living the life of a gangster or drug dealer. It's time that we start to teach our younger generation that there is a better life outside of the hood, and that you won't be considered a sell-out for wanting to better your life and be somebody. It's time out for all this bull shit, I mean we have more youth going to prison than graduating from high school or going to college, now that's what is so sad. There is no time to glorify the life, a true O.G. is gonna let these youngsters in on "the truth of the matter." These youngsters really think that they are doing something new in the game, hell in the end it only leads to two places: the grave or prison. Now that is some END OF THE ROAD!!!!! for that ass. It all about the choices that we make in life, we are entitled to make mistaes but some mistakes we really don't need to make but watch and learn from others so that we won't fall in the same trapping that they have or repeat the same mistakes that others have made, but hey a hard head makes for a soft ass I was always told.

[Common Sense]

Man, it's pretty messed up that people are willing to throw their life away.

Yea your right. Many don't even know it until it's too late. Many 1 or 2 troubled people (hopefully more) can read some of these cases posted here, and save themselves before it's too late.

I just hate that some of the people that are convicted are so young, hell their lives have just started and has ended so soon.

Judges are handing out 50 + year sentences like candy canes during Christmas. Serious stretches are being dealth all over the country on a weekly basis. Who's going to end up on this thread next week? I know someone will. It's almost a guarantee.

Life behind bars is not as pretty and exciting as many lead others to believe, nor is living the life of a gangster or drug dealer.

Not at all.

It's time that we start to teach our younger generation that there is a better life outside of the hood, and that you won't be considered a sell-out for wanting to better your life and be somebody.

The questions is: Who is going to teach who? Some parents are worst than the kids, throw in grandma too. Some kids don't have a chance in hell unless something happens, and they are removed from the home early, and that's not always guaranteed. I like to see non related people mentor a kid or too, when possible.

It's time out for all this bull shit, I mean we have more youth going to prison than graduating from high school or going to college, now that's what is so sad.

True.

There is no time to glorify the life, a true O.G. is gonna let these youngsters in on "the truth of the matter."

If there is such a thing. To me, a stand up OG, will take responsibility. "Kid get lost" See me when your older". Some of these characters are all about title and less about character. That's why there is little structure on the street with some of there gangs.

These youngsters really think that they are doing something new in the game,

Fo sho!, until they reach prison. Then they find generations of fools that have made the same idiotic mistake.

It all about the choices that we make in life, we are entitled to make mistaes but some mistakes we really don't need to make but watch and learn from others so that we won't fall in the same trapping that they have or repeat the same mistakes that others have made,

It's always better to choose life, especially outside of the systems walls.

[Common Sense]

Canyon County News

Gang member sentenced to 30 months

09/17/2007 04:23 PM MDT

Associated Press

BOISE, ID -- A Middleton gang member has been sentenced to 30 months in federal prison for possessing a firearm while being addicted to a controlled substance.

Twenty-eight-year-old Christopher Ohlsson was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Edward Lodge last week. He was arrested last November in Canyon County.

Sheriff's deputies said they found two loaded handguns inside a car that Ohlsson was riding in, and he allegedly told officers that he owned the guns and also used marijuana.

Federal law makes it a felony for a drug user to possess a gun.

Ohlsson has been convicted of 20 prior misdemeanors in the Boise region, but this was his first felony conviction.

Federal prosecutors asked for a stiff sentence because of Ohlsson's involvement with the Northside criminal street gang.

http://www.ktvb.com/news/canyoncounty/k ... 6c893.html#

[Common Sense]

Spring Valley gang member sentenced for robbery, selling guns

By STEVE LIEBERMAN
THE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: September 19, 2007)

Spring Valley, NY
An admitted gang member was sentenced this morning in New York state Supreme Court to eight years in prison for robbery and selling guns.


Lester Watkins of Spring Valley, who claims membership in the Bloods street gang, was sentenced on his June guilty pleas to second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and third-degree criminal sale of a firearm.


Justice William Kelly sentenced Watkins to eight years and seven years, respectively, on each conviction. He will serve the prison terms concurrently.


Watkins, who lived at 357 Roosevelt Ave. in Spring Valley, also pleaded guilty to second-degree robbery for stealing a man's wallet while armed with a BB gun in a first-floor restroom of the Palisades Center in July 2002. Watkins was sentenced to seven years on that plea, to run concurrently with his other terms.


His co-defendent in the mall robbery was Khalfani Sorel, 20, who was sentenced earlier this year to 30 years in prison for killing a New Jersey teen during a drug deal and for a separate robbery in Bardonia.


Watkins admitted he and another person sold a .22-caliber revolver to a undercover police officer with the New York state Police Gun Investigation Unit. Watkins also possessed a .38-caliber revolver loaded with five rounds of ammunition.


Watkins was prosecuted under the state Operation Impact Program, involving the Rockladn District Attorney's Office and its anti-gun prosecution unit, the Haverstraw Police Department and the state police Hudson Valley Gun Crime Unit.

http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs ... 023/NEWS07

[Common Sense]

Chicago convicted of murder in Cicero shooting


September 22, 2007 3:54 AM ET

CHICAGO (AP) - A Chicago teenager faces from 45 years to life in prison after being convicted yesterday of a 2004 fatal shooting near a Cicero gas station.

Porosecutors say David Leonardo, who is now 19, was 17 when 23-year-old Joshua Rutherford of suburban Addison was killed in an apparently gang-related incident.

Police say Rutherford was sitting in a car with two other people when Leonardo and another man walked up.

Prosecutors say Rutherford was a former gang member, and had a tattoo on his hand that indicated affiliation with a rival gang to Leonardo's.

They say that when Leonardo saw the tattoo he pulled a gun and shot Rutherford twice, and 1 of the bullets struck his heart.
http://www.wqad.com/Global/story.asp?S=7113437&nav=1sW7

[Common Sense]

Gang member gets life in Central Islip murder

BY NIA-MALIKA HENDERSON
October 2, 2007

Central Islip, NY
They were but a few feet apart Tuesday before the judge, separated by miles of grief and guilt.

On one side of the judge, the mother of a slain Central Islip man, and on the other the gang member convicted of killing him. She was there to tell of a son who comes to her in dreams and whose memory keeps her boys up at night. And Josue Otoniel Rubi-Gonzalez, 22, was there, in jailhouse blue, to hear his fate. He heard that fate after he heard Jesus Valentin's mother.

"They do not know the harm they have caused. It is so huge, this emptiness that is in my heart," said Iris Valentin, 50, through an interpreter. "Nobody knows how much I miss my son. I see him in my dreams and I call for him to come."

She called Rubi-Gonzalez, a member of the MS-13 gang, "a murderer without feeling and without heart." So she asked U.S. District Judge Leonard D. Wexler to "bring the weight of the law."

Rubi-Gonzalez kept his head up, looking forward.

And then Wexler sentenced Rubi-Gonzalez to the mandatory term of life in prison without the possibility of parole. He was convicted last October of fatally stabbing Jesus Valentin, 22, in June 2003 in Central Islip.

Valentin said she never saw her son's body, which was found in a drainpipe weeks after the killing. There was no goodbye and no closure, she said.

"On the streets, I see a kid that dresses or walks like him and I slow down to see if it is him," she said. "I still do not believe that my son is not here with us. ... It very much hurts to lose your son in such a fashion."

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/suffo ... rint.story

[Common Sense]

Addendum to above case:

MS-13 Gang Member Sentenced to Life in 2003 Slaying


CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (AP) -- A member of the MS-13 street gang has been sentenced to life without parole after being convicted of murdering a Central Islip man in 2003.

Federal prosecutors say Josue Otoniel Rubi-Gonzalez and two other MS-13 gang members killed 22-year-old Jesus Valentin after they mistakenly concluded that he was a member of the rival Latin Kings street gang. The confusion may have arisen because the victim was wearing a yellow shirt, a color frequently worn by Latin Kings.

They then lured Valentin into the woods, and beat him with a metal fire extinguisher and a piece of lumber before Rubi-Gonzalez fatally stabbed the victim with a pocket knife.

[Common Sense]

Gang members guilty of robbery
Two convicted in Bound Brook incident that ensnared three others.


STAFF REPORT

Oct 4, 2007
NJ
A jury Tuesday convicted two members of the Los Angeles-based 18th Street Gang of robbing three people more than two years ago in Bound Brook.

The state Superior Court jury found Victor Vasquez, 25, of New Brunswick guilty of robbery, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, unlawful possession of a weapon and hindering apprehension. They also found Juan Merino-Raphal, 25, of Bound Brook guilty of robbery and hindering apprehension.

A third defendant, Jose Merino-Luis, was acquitted of robbery.

The 18th Street Gang, whose membership primarily is Mexican nationals, is one of the most violent and aggressive street gangs in the United States, Somerset County Prosecutor Wayne J. Forrest said.

Sentencing is expected in six to eight weeks.

The two were convicted of robbing three people during the early morning hours of July 2, 2005, on East Main Street in Bound Brook.

Forrest said that during the robbery, Vasquez displayed a 12-inch butcher knife while Javier Romero, who earlier pleaded guilty, wielded a metal baseball bat.

The victims were robbed of their money and baseball hats, Forrest said.

Vasquez and Romero initially approached the victims at approximately 3:30 a.m. under the mistaken impression they were members of the rival MS-13 street gang, Forrest said.

MS-13, primarily comprised of Salvadoran nationals and also known as Mara Salvatrucha, is one of the largest street gangs in the United States, Forrest said.

Immediately after the robbery, the victims notified Bound Brook police, who then searched a building on East Main Street and arrested six members of the 18th Street gang, Forrest said.

Three other members of the 18th Street Gang had previously pleaded guilty to their roles in the robbery:


Romero, 25, of New Brunswick pleaded guilty to robbery, conspiracy to commit robbery, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, unlawful possession of a weapon and hindering apprehension. Romero, who is serving an unrelated sentence in New Jersey State Prison, is expected to be sentenced to a concurrent term of 10 years in state prison.

Rafael Garcia, 21, of New Brunswick pleaded guilty to attempted theft and conspiracy to commit theft. Garcia has been sentenced to five years in prison.

Sergio Lopez, 25, of Bound Brook pleaded guilty to theft and conspiracy to commit theft in exchange for a negotiated sentence of five years in state prison.
Lopez was deported to his native Mexico in April by U.S. customs agents after serving approximately 650 days in Somerset County Jail.

Forrest said he expects the remaining defendants to be deported to Mexico after serving their prison sentences.
http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/articl ... 30334/1006

[Common Sense]

Man gets life in killing of gang member

Friday, October 05, 2007

ERIC VELASCO
News staff writer

Birmingham, AL
Marcus Watts was convicted Thursday of intentional murder and sentenced to life in prison for killing a fellow gang member during a crime that went unsolved for five years.

Watts was tried in Birmingham this week on a capital murder charge that he killed Lavar Davis in 2001 during a robbery.

Watts' life sentence carries the possibility of parole.


Watts, 29, and Davis were members of the Insane Gangster Disciples gang in the Riley community of southwest Birmingham, testimony showed.

Davis, 23, was killed with a single gunshot to the back of his head. His partially decomposed body was discovered several days later by a jogger in a remote area off Lakeshore Drive.

The police probe quickly stalled. But it was one of the first crimes taken up in 2005 by a newly formed Birmingham police cold-case squad after a federal prisoner said he had information about Davis' death.

Watts was arrested in 2006.

Most of the testimony against Watts came from fellow inmates at federal prisons where he served on an unrelated gun charge after Davis' death.

They said Watts had bragged about the crime to them.

Davis' car was found burned and stripped of its expensive tire rims and stereo system. One of the inmates testified that Watts and his associates took money from Davis' trunk and sold his belongings.

"He said he got about $800 out of it," testified Earl Hunter, who was Watts' cellmate in the federal prison at Talladega. "He was not happy because his split was to be more."

Watts told police detectives he didn't have anything to do with killing his fellow gang member. He said he borrowed Davis' car that day, but returned it before Davis left the gang's clubhouse to pick up some diapers for his baby. Watts said he didn't see Davis again until the funeral.

Defense attorneys Richard Izzi and Bob Sanford argued that testimony coming from convicted felons acting as prison snitches seeking sentence reductions provided enough reasonable doubt for jurors to find their client innocent.

But the stories from inmates who served time with Watts in Alabama, Florida and Mississippi matched the evidence, prosecutor Patrick Lamb said. They provided details only the killer would know, he said.
http://www.al.com/news/birminghamnews/i ... xml&coll=2

[Common Sense]

Gang Member Convicted Of "Crimes Of Terrorism" For Murder Of Young Girl

October 31, 2007

New York
A gang member was convicted of "crimes of terrorism" Wednesday, more than five years after killing a 10-year-old girl.

The Bronx district attorney says a jury convicted Edgar Morales, 25, of manslaughter in the first degree, along with several other charges.

Evidence proved all of the offenses were "crimes of terrorism," because Morales' gang tried to dominate a neighborhood through criminal acts. All of the charges come with harsher sentences.

Police say Morales and several other members of the Saint James Gang invaded a christening party back in August of 2002, where they opened fired outside.

Melanny Mendez, 10, and another bystander were killed.

http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.js ... &aid=75163

[Common Sense]

Maywood gang member who mistakenly killed teen gets 45 years for murder
Victim killed in case of mistaken identity

By Victoria Pierce

Special to the Tribune

October 2007

A Maywood man was sentenced Monday to 45 years in prison for fatally shooting a 16-year-old he mistook for a gang rival in March 2004.

Lavelle Thornton, 20, was 16 when he was charged with the murder of Deloney Watt. He received the minimum term.

"It's finally over," Watt's mother, Jacqueline Simmons, said after sentencing in Cook County's Maywood courthouse. "I hope that will give him time to think about what he's done to me and my family."

After the sentencing, defense attorney Herb Goldberg said he will file an appeal.

In a victim impact statement read by a prosecutor during the hearing, Simmons wrote she sometimes still hears the back doorknob turning just before the shots rang out at 10:20 p.m. March 26, 2004. She was home at the time of the shooting and found her son dying outside the door.

"It tortures me every day trying to accept it. It's still hard to believe," wrote Simmons, who has since moved to Alabama with her other son, Watt's twin.

During the trial in September, Assistant State's Atty. Joe Keating played a videotaped statement made at the Maywood Police Department when Thornton was arrested. On the tape, Thornton admitted that he was driving around with a friend when they spotted a gang member he had argued with in the past. They retrieved a gun and drove back to the area and waited behind a two-flat in the 800 block of South 19th Avenue. When they heard footsteps coming up the drive, Thornton said he ran up the steps and shot Watt twice as he reached for the door. When he saw Watt fall, he realized the victim was the wrong person.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/loca ... 0610.story

[Common Sense]

November 1, 2007

Gang Member Is Convicted Under Terror Law

By TIMOTHY WILLIAMS

In the weeks after Sept. 11, 2001, 36 states enacted laws that would guarantee harsher sentences in terrorism cases. Gov. George E. Pataki signed New York’s law within six days of the attack. Like the others, it was aimed at international terrorism organizations like Al Qaeda.

But yesterday, in State Supreme Court in the Bronx, jurors for the first time found a defendant guilty under New York’s statute, and he did not fit the stereotype of a terrorist. The defendant, Edgar Morales, is a 25-year-old recreational soccer player and gang member who fatally shot a 10-year-old girl and wounded a second man outside a christening party in 2002.

Mr. Morales, a baby-faced construction worker, was a member of the St. James Boys, a gang described in the trial as being formed by Mexican immigrants to protect themselves from being assaulted and robbed by other gangs in the west Bronx.

Robert T. Johnson, the Bronx district attorney, was criticized by some lawmakers when he used the statute against Mr. Morales two years ago; some said it was not the law’s intended use.

But just as racketeering laws aimed at mobsters have since been used in other crimes, Mr. Johnson said, the terrorism charge fit because Mr. Morales and his gang had terrorized Mexicans and Mexican-Americans in the west Bronx for years through violence and intimidation. It also provided for a far more substantial sentence.

The jury deliberated for four days after testimony ended last Thursday, but despite their disagreements on other elements of the case, jurors said yesterday they had concluded very early that Mr. Morales was guilty of terrorism.

“When you fire a gun into a crowd, whether you hit your intended victim or not, you scare people, you make them fearful for their lives, and that’s why, in my opinion, the terrorism charges applied,” said a juror who identified herself only by her first name, Linnea. Like the other jurors, she did not want to be identified because the case involved gang members and a killing.

Another juror said she had been hesitant about using the terrorism statute against Mr. Morales when prosecutors presented evidence, but once Justice Michael A. Gross told them on the trial’s final day that terrorism was defined as an act meant to “intimidate or coerce a civilian population,” her reluctance dissolved.

Still another member of the jury said, “When we think of terrorism, we think of Sept. 11th, so I was skeptical at first, but when we heard the definition of terrorism — to inflict fear and to dominate — from the get-go we agreed.”

Other states have used their terrorism statutes, which were seen as largely ceremonial when they were introduced because major terrorism cases were likely to be prosecuted by the federal government. Still, the Virginia antiterror law was used in to convict John A. Muhammad, who was convicted of masterminding 16 sniper shootings in the Washington area in 2002 that killed 10 people. He has been sentenced to death.

In a statement after the verdict in the Bronx case was announced, Mr. Johnson reiterated that the terrorism charge had been applied properly.

“These were callous acts that resulted in the life of an innocent child being snuffed out,” he said. “The jury’s finding of terrorism is significant in determining an appropriate punishment.”

The verdict quickly drew criticism from both ends of the political spectrum, as some wondered whether it would lead to a deluge of new prosecutions using the same approach.

Timothy Lynch, director of the Project on Criminal Justice at the Cato Institute, a libertarian research organization, said the New York law and others like it had no place being used to prosecute gang members.

“Lawmakers were told after Sept. 11th that we needed new laws, and it’s become kind of a bait-and-switch, because lo and behold, they are not being used against Al Qaeda, they’re being used against ordinary street crime,” Mr. Lynch said.

Donna Lieberman, executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, whose views are often the opposite of the Cato Institute’s, also criticized the terror application in the trial.

“Without commenting on the manslaughter and attempted murder convictions, the pile-on of a terrorism charge is indeed a matter of concern,” she said. “The law was pitched as New York’s way to protect itself against Al Qaeda and the like. No matter what horrific crimes were committed against the Mexican-American community, that’s not terrorism.”

The Bronx jury convicted Mr. Morales of first-degree manslaughter, attempted murder, criminal possession of a weapon and conspiracy, each with the additional element of terrorism, which is likely to increase his prison term significantly when he is sentenced Nov. 14.

The terrorism component increases each crime one level — a B felony becomes an A felony, for instance, raising a potential 15-year sentence to 25 years to life.

Dino Lombardi, Mr. Morales’s lawyer, said he would probably appeal the verdict because he did not think the terrorism charge was appropriate.

Before the trial began, Mr. Lombardi had argued against the application of terrorism charges in a gang murder case, but he softened his stance yesterday.

“We may be looking at a future where this is a justifiable application for these types of gangs that don’t have a money-making motive, as opposed to traditional organized crime operations, but this gang was directed to inflict themselves mainly on rival gangs,” said Mr. Lombardi, drawing a distinction between gang members and other civilians.

The terror legislation was sponsored by Michael A. L. Balboni, then a state senator from Nassau County, who has called its use by Mr. Johnson an “unanticipated application.” Mr. Balboni, who now oversees the state’s Office of Homeland Security, did not return a call seeking comment yesterday.

The shooting occurred on Aug. 18, 2002, when Malenny Mendez, 10, went with friends to a christening party at a church.

Also at the party were Mr. Morales and a group of other members of the St. James Boys, who had come uninvited and with at least one handgun.

After getting into a fight with other partygoers, the St. James Boys decided to seek retribution.

Mr. Morales, who did not testify at the trial, had previously acknowledged handling a gun that evening and being a member of the gang.

The only witness who testified that he saw Mr. Morales shoot the gun was Enrique Sanchez, another member of the St. James Boys, who was among those present that night. In a deal with prosecutors, Mr. Sanchez agreed to testify against Mr. Morales in exchange for the chance to plead guilty to second-degree murder.

Mr. Sanchez said he watched Mr. Morales fire the .38-caliber revolver, killing Malenny with a bullet to the head, and striking Javier Tocchimani, 32, three times, leaving him paralyzed.

Though jurors said they did not believe portions of Mr. Sanchez’s testimony, they blamed Mr. Morales for not leaving once he felt that a shooting would take place.

“He knew about the gang, he knew what it was all about, he saw there was a problem that night, why didn’t he leave?” one juror said. “Why didn’t he drop the gun when it was handed to him?”
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/01/nyreg ... ref=slogin

[Common Sense]

Bloods Gang Member Get's Life

Bloods member from Minneapolis who shot 16-year-old sentenced to life without possibility of parole.

By ROCHELLE OLSON, Star Tribune

January 8, 2008 - 10:08 PM

Gennaro Knox was 16, the oldest of three children living with their single mom in the Phillips Neighborhood of Minneapolis. He attended school, played sports and worked at a job to help supplement the household income. He never gave his mom any trouble, didn't even have his driver's license yet.

"Seldom have I seen such senseless waste of young life," Hennepin County District Judge Denise Reilly said before she sentenced 21-year-old Jeremy Jackson to life without possibility of parole. It was Jackson's second trial for the murder of Knox, who was in the wrong place at the wrong time on Oct. 5, 2006.

"Every day, I keep looking at the door thinking he's going to walk in like he used to do, with a big smile on his face," said Gennaro's mother, Carol Knox.

Jackson, a member of the Rolling 30s Bloods gang, shot Knox three times in the neck and head as he biked with a friend in the 2400 block of Elliot Avenue S. Jackson and others had been driving around south Minneapolis in an attempt to avenge the shooting of a Bloods member earlier in the evening.

In addition to Knox's murder, Jackson was convicted of attempted murder for shooting a woman who was waiting for a bus. James Morris also was convicted in the shootings and has been sentenced to 18 years in prison.

Jackson stood before Reilly in orange jail attire with his arms folded across his chest. She asked if he wanted to comment. "No," he said. As he left the courtroom, one young woman yelled, "We love you, Pooh."

First trial ended in hung jury

Jackson has maintained his innocence and it took two trials to convict him. The first trial in September resulted in a hung jury. At the end of the second trial in December, a jury took only an hour to convict him. Some of his family members left the room in anger during Tuesday's sentencing hearing.

"It took us two times, but justice was done," Assistant County Attorney Hillary Caligiuri said after the sentencing. "That's the bottom line with this case -- it was a long haul, but the jury got it right."

Four people gave statements on behalf of Gennaro Knox, including his mother. All told the tale of a neighborhood, still home to proud working families, but also beset by gang turf violence.

Carol Knox said the killing ripped her life apart. "I stayed on my kids all the time. My other son doesn't even have a police record; he's about to turn 16," she said. "There is no amount of words that I can put on paper to tell my true feelings."

She said she's now working to forgive Jackson "because I refuse to take this to the grave with me."

'A generational curse'

Gennaro's cousin Alicia Marshall wore a T-shirt with a picture of him and the words, "He had a dream, too." She and his aunt Darleen McPhersen spoke of the sadness at the loss, not just of Gennaro but of once-thriving streets and youths who fall into gang life.

"It seems a generational curse. We know these people. We walk with these people. When does it stop?" Marshall asked.

"We took great pride in what's now reduced to the territory of the Rolling 30s Bloods," McPhersen said. "This was a good Minneapolis neighborhood for many years."

But now, she said, people are afraid to wear red or blue for fear they might be mistaken for gang affiliates.

Reilly called the case one of the saddest she has seen in her 10 years on the bench. She told Jackson, "I think you had a lot of potential, but you joined a gang instead."

[Common Sense]

Five 'Joy Road' drug gang members sentenced

The Detroit News

Monday, January 14, 2008
DETROIT -- Five local men were sentenced in federal court Monday following an investigation of their involvement in a drug-dealing gang that distributed crack cocaine throughout the city, authorities announced.

U.S. District Court Judge David M. Lawson sentenced Gary Tranell Young (a.k.a. "GY"), 24, to at least 20 years in prison for his role as the gang's organizer and leader; Isaac Terrell Spencer (a.k.a. "Ike"), 24, Reginald Jermaine Gilder (a.k.a. "JR"), 24, and Anthony Shane Mack (a.k.a. "Free"), 27, each received 60 months; and Scott Jarad McDuffie (a.k.a. "Cuz"), 22, was sentenced to 48 months.

Each defendant pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine and conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute crack cocaine.

They had been identified as members of the "Joy Road" gang through an investigation by TIDE (Tactical Intelligence Driven Enforcement), led by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Detroit Police Department.

Michigan State Police and the Drug Enforcement Administration also assisted.

"Today's sentences demonstrate the great results that can be achieved when federal, state and local law enforcement work together as a team, as we do in Project TIDE, to fight violent crime in northwest Detroit," U.S. Attorney Stephen J. Murphy said in a statement. "The commitment of the partners in this endeavor has been extraordinary. With our success in northwest Detroit, we hope to expand the TIDE initiative to other areas of the city."

The operation was run in tandem with the investigation of another Detroit drug dealing gang called "Detroit Thug Lordz." The year-long investigation resulted in the federal indictments of 13 people, according to the ATF.

In 2006, the gang was infiltrated by an undercover ATF agent, who purchased guns and crack cocaine from members by calling via a "dial-for-dope" method, officials said.

The ATF estimates that the gang, which operated near Joy Road and used many different telephone numbers, earned about $10 million during its three-year operation.

[Common Sense]

Thug faces death penalty if convicted

BY JOHN MARZULLI
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

January 2008

The feds in Brooklyn are revving up the death penalty machine.

First up in 2008 is James (JD) McTier, a reputed leader of a crack gang called Folk Nation, which operated out of Riverdale Towers and Marcus Garvey Village and wreaked havoc on the Brownsville area.

McTier, 25, faces death by lethal injection if he's convicted of any one of the three murders he's charged with in a racketeering indictment, including the killing of bystander Tabitha Buckman, who was hit by a stray bullet on Oct. 14, 2001, while taking a cigarette break outside a restaurant where she worked.

Co-defendants Dwayne (Divine) Stone and Sharief (Lucky) Russell are charged with one murder each and face life in prison.

The Brooklyn U.S. attorney's office sought the death penalty against five defendants last year, but only Ronell Wilson was condemned for fatally shooting two NYPD detectives during a gun "buy and bust."

Jury selection starts Tuesday for Gilbert Caraballo, who faces death for allegedly hiring a hit man to kill his mistress' husband in Green-Wood Cemetery.

Five others face death penalty trials later this year.

Folk Nation left the streets littered with innocent victims during shootouts with a rival Bloods gang called Anybody Gets It.

Besides Buckman, the gang's violence wounded an off-duty cop, a 12-year-old girl and a woman holding a 3-year-old child.

Despite the mindless violence, Folk Nation is celebrated in a video titled "Hood Behind Us" on YouTube, in which an unseen voice raps: "Can we have a moment of silence? F--- the feds!"

Folk Nation, an offshoot of the Crips, subjected new members to beatings as part of an initiation rite.

The gang's trademark tattoo is a pitchfork, and at least two members were branded by McTier, according to prosecutors Jason Jones, Morris Fodeman and Jeffrey Knox.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crim ... ted-2.html

[Common Sense]

Manatee County Gang Member Sentenced to 30 Years for Racketeering

January 17, 2008

~ Gang member faces jury for organized crime, is convicted in less than an hour ~


TALLAHASSEE, FL – Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced that a Manatee County man has been convicted by a jury for organized crime. Eric “E.J.” Santiago, the first of his gang to face a jury, was convicted of criminal racketeering and conspiracy to commit racketeering after the jury deliberated for less than an hour. Santiago was identified as a member of a violent gang that has terrorized Manatee County through robberies, assaults, violence against law enforcement and other dangerous crimes. He and multiple co-defendants were prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office of Statewide Prosecution, although he is the first to refuse a guilty or no contest plea and go to trial.

“This is a clear message to any member of a gang or anyone considering joining a gang that Florida’s law enforcement and prosecutors are serious about getting the toughest sentences possible for these dangerous offenses,” said Attorney General McCollum. “We will absolutely not back down in these efforts to combat gangs and gang violence in our state.”

Prosecutors with the Office of Statewide Prosecution and the State Attorney’s Office for the 12th Judicial Circuit used the Street Terrorism Act to structure the case against Santiago. The racketeering charge is used to target the gang as an organized criminal enterprise, often useful when witnesses or victims are unwilling or unable to testify against the gang members. Racketeering charges also provide for stronger sentences. Santiago’s co-defendants, Justino "Crazy" Santana, Fernando "Freddy" Chavez, Jose "Payaso" Luis Rodriguez, Alberto Gutierrez, and Pedro "Perico" Garcia, have all pleaded guilty to similar charges and have received various prison sentences. Gang leader Jose “Charlie Brown” Lopez was sentenced to seven years in prison in September.

Santiago and his co-conspirators were arrested in January 2006 through a joint effort by the Office of Statewide Prosecution, the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office and the Bradenton Police Department. Two additional gang members, Frank “Magoo” Alvarez, and “Pistol” Pete Garcia, already pleaded to charges of conspiracy to commit racketeering and will be sentenced at a later date.

To address the gang issue on a statewide level, the Attorney General’s Office launched a statewide grand jury in August to investigate criminal gang activity including crimes involving narcotics or other dangerous drugs, robbery and gambling, as well as violations of the Florida Racketeer Influenced and Corruption Organization (RICO) Act. The Attorney General and the Statewide Prosecutor also released the first Interim Report of the Grand Jury this week. The report acknowledges that law enforcement and prosecutors are attacking the problem, but increased enforcement tools and long-term joint investigations are critical. The Attorney General said developing and implementing a state strategy to combat gangs is a top priority and a commitment to arrest and prosecute gang members and gang leaders is a crucial part of this strategy.
http://myfloridalegal.com/newsrel.nsf/n ... D30076CB79

[Common Sense]

Gang member sentenced for shooting at federal agents

By LEVI PULKKINEN
P-I REPORTER

A Renton man already facing a lengthy prison term for a gang killing was sentenced Friday to an additional 14 years in prison for shooting at federal agents in October 2004.

Earlier that month, Wilber Jose Sorto, 26, killed another man, Antonio Pinto, after chasing him down on a South Park street. According to prosecutors, Sorto wounded Pinto and then shot the man several times as he lay on the ground pleading for his life.

Two weeks later, Sorto inadvertently ran across two Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents who had been conducting surveillance for an unrelated fraud case in Federal Way, according to prosecutors. When the agents identified themselves to Sorto as police, the Salvadoran native opened fire on one of them and narrowly missed killing him.

Sorto was captured five days later at a Los Angeles restaurant.

In court papers, prosecutors argued for a stiff sentence in part because of Sorto's lengthy involvement with Salvadoran gangs. According to prosecutors, Sorto joined the Mara Salvatrucha gang at age 12.

Sorto was convicted of first-degree murder in Pinto's slaying, and a weapons violation last March in King County Superior Court.

Friday's ruling means he will be behind bars for more than 45 years, a Justice Department spokeswoman said.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/348802_sorto26.html

[Common Sense]

Gang member convicted of assault

March 6, 2008

A Greeley gang member was found guilty Wednesday of two counts of second degree assault, engaging in a riot and criminal mischief, according to a press release.

A Weld District Court jury convicted Mark Sandoval, 31, who was arrested on March 23, 2007, for throwing rocks at Joe Salazar. Two of the rocks hit Salazar in the head, while one smashed the back window of his car hitting his daughter in the back of the head.

Sandoval fled the scene with three other men, including Jesus Castillo, 25, the release stated.

According to an arrest affidavit, Salazar was on his way to the store when he came across four gang members who threw something at his car.

Salazar went looking for Sandoval after the assault, and found his car in a north Greeley neighborhood. There, Castillo opened fire on Salazar. He fired four rounds - none of which hit Salazar, according to the press release.

Castillo pled guilty Feb. 12, 2008, to second degree assault with a deadly weapon and was sentenced to eight years in prison.

Sandoval faces 32 years in prison. His sentencing is 2 p.m. April 8
http://www.greeleytrib.com/article/2008 ... /308578989

[Common Sense]

Gun possession lands gang member in prison

March 7, 2008

Utah

A known gang member has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for possessing a gun used in a shooting in Ogden.
Ricky Ray Crespin, 25, was convicted in U.S. District Court of being a felon in possession of a firearm. On Wednesday, he was given the maximum possible sentence under federal law.

Crespin was indicted in March 2007 after a shooting in which witnesses saw him open fire on a passing car. Officers found a gun in the car he was riding in.

[Common Sense]

Three convicted in murder of rival gang member

March 2008

PROVIDENCE, R.I.—Three gang members who played a role in the beating death of a rival have pleaded guilty.

Judge Robert Krause on Friday sentenced 20-year-old Sarith Chith, 20-year-old Thomas Havey and 19-year-old Tavares Morales to lengthy prison terms for last year's murder of Vicheth Klakratok.

Chith and Havey pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, while Morales pleaded guilty to manslaughter. All three defendants also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit felony assault.

Chith, who struck Klakratok in the head with a pipe, received 60 years in prison with 42 years to serve and 18 suspended.

Havey received 50 years, 30 years to serve with 20 years suspended.

Morales was sentenced to 30 years in prison, 18 years to serve with 12 years suspended.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/rhode_ ... ng_member/

[Common Sense]

Two gang members sentenced in killing

March 7, 2008

Two Bloods gang members were sentenced yesterday for their role in the killing of an Essex man who failed to pay a weekly $250 "protection fee" to sell marijuana on the gang's turf, a Baltimore County prosecutor said.

Tavon M. "Batman" Mouzone, 22, was sentenced to life in prison in the fatal shooting of Marquel "Marty" Smith on Dec. 17, 2006. He was convicted in November by a Baltimore County jury of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, a handgun offense and aiding and abetting second-degree murder.

Troy W. "Tru" Smith, 25, the highest-ranking gang member charged and the man police say gave the orders in the fatal shooting, was sentenced to 20 years, with 10 years suspended. He pleaded guilty in November to one count of conspiracy to commit armed robbery.

Prosecutor J.R. Francomano said Smith's sentence reflected an inability to prove that he ordered the killing.

James Edward "Lil' J" Smoot, a 15-year-old gang member convicted of pulling the trigger, was sentenced last week to 20 years in prison.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/ ... 0288.story

[Common Sense]

MS-13 GANG MEMBER SENTENCED TO 20 YEARS FOR RACKETEERING CONSPIRACY

March 17, 2008

Greenbelt, Maryland - U.S. District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow sentenced Everec Alvarez Chacon, also known as Moreno, age 30, of Washington, D.C., today to 20 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release for conspiracy to conduct and participate in racketeering enterprise activities of MS-13, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein and Assistant Attorney General Alice S. Fisher of the U.S. Department of Justice, Criminal Division. Judge Chasanow also ordered Chacon to pay $6,783 in restitution for funeral expenses.

“Twenty-one MS-13 gang members now have been convicted in Maryland on federal RICO charges for participating in a racketeering conspiracy, and fourteen other gang members have been convicted on other federal charges over the past two years,” said U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein.

"We are making a clear impact," says ATF Special Agent in Charge Gregory K. Gant, "but we're not finished until there is no longer a threat of gang violence in our communities.”

According to the plea agreement, La Mara Salvatrucha, also known as MS-13, is a gang composed primarily of immigrants or descendants of immigrants from El Salvador, with members operating throughout Prince George’s County and Montgomery County, Maryland and elsewhere. MS-13 is a national and international criminal organization with approximately 10,000 members.

MS-13 is organized in “cliques,” including the Sailors Locos Salvatruchos Westside (“SLSW”), the Teclas Locos Salvatruchos and the Langley Park Salvatruchos. Chacon became a member of MS-13 while he lived in the vicinity of Sonsonate, El Salvador. Chacon entered the United States illegally in December of 2000 and came to live in Washington, D.C. area. By May of 2004, Chacon was introduced to various SLSW clique members.

On May 20, 2004, Chacon and two SLSW clique members started talking with Ashley Antonio Urias in a parking lot in Suitland, Maryland, where they were all drinking beer. All four individuals decided to go to the Washington National Cemetery in Suitland, Maryland. Chacon

and the SLSW members drove Chacon’s vehicle to the cemetery, Urias drove his truck, and all four continued to drink beer.

The MS-13 members believed Urias to be a member of a rival gang. Later in the evening, a fight broke out. Urias was beaten with a baseball bat and a golf club, suffering several skull fractures, with one blow essentially severing the spine from the base of his brain. Urias was dragged through the cemetery by Chacon and the other SLSW clique members, to an area of dirt and gravel, where they left his body. Urias’s body was discovered by groundskeepers later on May 21, 2004. Also on May 21, 2004, Anne Arundel County police pulled over Urias’s truck, which was being driven by one of the SLSW clique members with Chacon and the other SLSW member as passengers in the truck. The truck was impounded, but none of the three men were arrested.

Chacon and the two SLSW clique members were advised by MS-13 associates to leave the area, after it was discovered they had been involved in a murder. On May 23, 2004, all three men arrived in Port Washington, New York, at the home of a relative of Chacon.

On June 24, 2004, Chacon was arrested in Port Washington, New York. After Chacon initially denied membership in MS-13, or any knowledge of, or participation in, the Urias murder, he made another statement to investigators. Chacon claimed that he had been drinking heavily for three days and that he was inside his car when an argument broke out between Urias and the SLSW clique members. Chacon stated that one of the SLSW clique members and Urias began hitting each other with bats, but that he did not participate in the fight. Chacon acknowledged dragging Urias out of the cemetery roadway, but claimed Urias was still alive at the time. In fact, Urias could not have survived the most serious blow to his spine (from the golf club) for more than a few seconds and died prior to his body being dragged to the area where it was later discovered.

While Chacon was detained for the murder of Urias in Prince George’s County, he directed that a postcard be written to threaten and persuade the SLSW clique members not to cooperate with authorities. The postcard was sent on February 24, 2005.

To date, this office has charged 49 gang members with federal offenses, with 30 defendants charged in this RICO conspiracy case. Twenty-one MS-13 gang members have been convicted thus far of RICO conspiracy charges.

United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the RAGE Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Prince George’s County Police Department; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement; the Montgomery County Department of Police; the Howard County Police Department; the Maryland National Capital Park Police; and the Maryland State Police.

Mr. Rosenstein thanked the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Glenn F. Ivey and Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy for the assistance that they and their offices provided.

Mr. Rosenstein commended Assistant U.S. Attorneys James Trusty and Chan Park, and Trial Attorney David Jaffe, a prosecutor for the Justice Department’s Gang Squad, who prosecuted the case.
http://baltimore.fbi.gov/dojpressrel/pr ... 31708a.htm

[Common Sense]

Wood Boys gang member sentenced for 2002 murder

By Sherry Koonce
The Port Arthur News
March 2008

BEAUMONT After several hours of deliberation, a Jefferson County jury sent a message loud and clear to former Port Arthur gang member Mario Bellard Thursday with a 30-year prison sentence and $10,000 fine.

A day earlier, on Wednesday, Mario Bellard, a 23-year-old Port Arthur resident who was a member of the Wood Boys gang, was convicted of murder. He was charged with the 2002 slaying of 30-year-old Nelson Ozane — a senseless murder that was the result of a gang initiation, prosecutors said.

Bellard’s trial began Monday in Judge Lane Walker’s 252nd Criminal District Court.

Prosecutors said Bellard, when he was 16, gave another man a gun that was used to shoot Ozane in February, 2002 at Port Arthur’s Carver Terrace Apartments.

Ozane was believed to have no affiliations with gangs, he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, Assistant District Attorney Patrick Knauth said.

One of the men, D’Artagnan Arceneaux, who was 19 at the time of the shooting, in 2006 pleaded guilty to the slaying, according to The News archives.

Knauth praised the jury for handing down the conviction and the stiff sentence.

“It was an excellent jury; they very much cared and paid attention to the evidence. I think they truly cared about the victim and his family,” Knauth said.

Bellard was one of about 15 members of the Wood Boys gang — a group that terrorized Port Arthur for a time, Knauth said.

Since then, the gang has been dismantled one-by-one. Most of the gang members have been sentenced to the penitentiary, Mark Blanton, Port Arthur police chief, said.

Bellard faced a life prison sentence, or could have received probation for his part in Ozane’s death.

Albert Wilson, a third suspect in the slaying who prosecutors is the shooter, is scheduled for trial March 31.

Blanton said he was pleased with the verdict and the sentence handed down by the jury.
http://www.panews.com/local/local_story_073210105.html

[Common Sense]

Former Gang Member Sentenced To 64 Years In Prison

May 21, 2008
DENVER -- A judge in Weld County sentenced a former gang member to 64 years in prison Wednesday for robbing an Auto Zone in Greeley.

In November 2007 George Aguirre was found guilty of four counts of aggravated robbery and one count of theft, said Jennifer Finch of the Weld County District Attorney's Office.

Aguirre and another man, Ernie Madaleno, drove to the Auto Zone and demanded cash out of the front registers and the safe. Aguirre held a loaded gun to the neck of one of the store employees, Finch said.

They escaped with $1,706, she said.

Madaleno pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated robbery and was sentenced to 35 years in prison.
Finch said Aguirre’s lengthy criminal history and former gang ties were considered at the sentencing hearing.
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/16 ... n&psp=news


Gang member sentenced for shooting

May 21, 2008

HILLSBORO, OR -- Had Rolando James Manuel Tijerina had better aim, he might be going to prison for life instead of 13 years.

On Aug. 6, Tijerina, who was 16 at the time, fired a semiautomatic pistol out the window of a car into a group of rival gang members standing about 10 feet away outside a Beaverton restaurant.

The bullet hit a brick wall at Geraldi's Restaurant, 6175 S.W. Lombard Ave., sending pieces of brick into the crowd. No one was injured.

Tijerina was a member of the Southside Criminals and the victims were members of Tepa, a prosecutor said.

About a month later, Tijerina got into a fistfight with a Tepa gang member after classes let out at nearby Aloha High School. Tijerina and a friend chased several Tepa members. When one tripped and fell in the parking lot of the Susan Marie Apartments, 5400 S.W. 180th Ave., Tijerina stabbed him several times. The victim, who was 16 at the time, recovered after several days in a hospital with a lacerated liver and other stab wounds.

Miguel Torres Gonzales, 15, will be sentenced today for hitting the victim in the head with a wrench.

Washington County Presiding Judge Thomas W. Kohl sentenced Tijerina to 13 years, 3 months in prison after he pleaded guilty to attempted murder in the first case and first-degree assault and unlawful use of a weapon in the later case.

Although Tijerina said nothing to the judge, his mother said he had a mental disability and "has gone through some very emotional and disturbing things in his life," but did not explain.
http://blog.oregonlive.com/breakingnews ... _shoo.html

[Mcminister]

Gang member convicted of assault

March 6, 2008

A Greeley gang member was found guilty Wednesday of two counts of second degree assault, engaging in a riot and criminal mischief, according to a press release.

A Weld District Court jury convicted Mark Sandoval, 31, who was arrested on March 23, 2007, for throwing rocks at Joe Salazar. Two of the rocks hit Salazar in the head, while one smashed the back window of his car hitting his daughter in the back of the head.

Sandoval fled the scene with three other men, including Jesus Castillo, 25, the release stated.

According to an arrest affidavit, Salazar was on his way to the store when he came across four gang members who threw something at his car.

Salazar went looking for Sandoval after the assault, and found his car in a north Greeley neighborhood. There, Castillo opened fire on Salazar. He fired four rounds - none of which hit Salazar, according to the press release.

Castillo pled guilty Feb. 12, 2008, to second degree assault with a deadly weapon and was sentenced to eight years in prison.

Sandoval faces 32 years in prison. His sentencing is 2 p.m. April 8
http://www.greeleytrib.com/article/2008 ... /308578989

i don get it ...someone can get 32 years for throwin a rock at someone??



its hard to believe all these people actually get caught with the amount of crime in the inner cities..and how guttsy people are to do them

[Common Sense]

Yes you can. Assualt and battery. He hit him in the head, and also a young child in the back of the head. A blow to the head could possibly cause serious, if not life threatening damage. Plus throw in any criminal history or gang associations to sweeten the deal.

[Common Sense]

Drug kingpin is convicted

May 23, 2008

A man police called the kingpin of an extensive drug trafficking and money laundering operation was convicted in federal court in Nashville this week.

Jamal Shakir of Los Angeles, a member of the Rollin' 90s Crips gang, was found guilty of obstructing justice, money laundering and nine murders between 1994 and 1997. The jury found that at least three people were killed to prevent them from cooperating with law enforcement, according to a new release from the U.S. Attorney's Office.

The victim in one homicide that Shakir was convicted of was Richard Chambers, killed in August 1994 in Cheatham County. The jury also found that Shakir was guilty of distributing large amounts of cocaine, crack cocaine and marijuana across several states. He recruited new gang members to participate in the drug trafficking business that operated in Nashville, Los Angeles, Memphis and Oklahoma City, according to the release.

U.S. Attorney Ed Yarbrough asked the jury to consider the death penalty. The jury did not come to a unanimous decision, so Shakir faces multiple mandatory life sentences.
http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll ... 017/NEWS01

[Common Sense]

Gang member sentenced for 'senseless' murder

May 29, 2008
UPPER MARLBORO, Md. - A gang member convicted of murdering another man as part of an initiation ritual will spend the rest of his life in prison.

Prince George's County Judge Ronald Schiff sentenced 19-year-old Mario Rodriguez-Gutierrez of Hyattsville to life in prison plus 20 years for the murder of 19-year-old Francisco Quintanilla of Riverdale.

Rodriguez-Gutierrez, a member of the MS-13 gang, randomly shot Quintanilla as part of an MS-13 initiation ritual on July 14, 2007, Prince George's State's Attorney Glenn Ivey says.

"This is an MS-13 gang member who was trying to make a name for himself and this guy just happened to be one of the first people he came across. Words were exchanged, and he killed him," Ivey says.

Quintanilla's death was a "senseless and brutal murder," Ivey says.

"Keeping him off the streets for the rest of his life made sense."
http://www.wtop.com/?sid=1412274&nid=25

[Common Sense]

Bellevue Gang Member Sentenced To 16 Years

SEATTLE -- A gang member from Bellevue has been sentenced to more than 16 years in prison on gun and methamphetamine charges.

Prosecutors said 25-year-old Israel Davis joined another man in running a heavily fortified, booby-trapped compound in SeaTac, from which they distributed methamphetamine and recruited teens as young as 14 to get involved their gang lifestyle. U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour sentenced him on Friday.

The other man, Albert Barrientes, was sentenced to 20 years.

[Common Sense]

Gang member sentenced to life in prison in killing
October 3, 2008
A man with ties to the violent Salvadoran street gang known as MS-13 was sentenced yesterday to life in prison in the fatal shooting of a Dundalk woman over an alleged drug debt. Abraham Urquilla "Tigre" Rauda, 23, of Rosedale was convicted in July of first-degree murder, burglary and handgun charges. He was arrested in New York in September 2007, 11 days after witnesses said he was one of three or four men who broke into Lymaris Mejias' house in Dundalk and shot her in the head while she slept. Witnesses told authorities that a Baltimore drug dealer with ties to MS-13 had threatened the woman's life over a debt, according to court documents. Baltimore County Circuit Judge Vicki Ballou-Watts sentenced Rauda to life in prison for the fatal shooting and concurrent sentences of 10 years and 20 years, respectively, for the handgun and burglary convictions, said Baltimore County prosecutor John Magee
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/ ... 1451.story

Reputed gang member convicted in Elizabeth murder

September 12, 2008,
NJ
An alleged member of a El Salvadoran street gang was convicted today of murdering a man he thought insulted him at an Elizabeth bar.

Juan Jose Castillo, 23, a native of El Salvador who lived in Elizabeth, stabbed Manuel Rodriguez after an argument at the El Quixote Bar on Sept. 25, 2005

"The victim bumped into the defendant on his way to the bathroom," said Assistant Union County Prosecutor James Donnelly who tried the case in Superior Court in Elizabeth. "A short time later the two began yelling at each other across the bar and the defendant flashed a hand signal that bartenders recognized as a gang sign."


Authorities say Castillo is a member of the Mara Salvatrucha gang, also known as MS-13. During the bar argument, he lifted his shirt and showed "MS" which was tattooed on his stomach. His arms carried the numbers, "1" on the right, "3" on the left.

Castillo was thrown out of the bar, but waited for Rodriquez outside.

At 2:45 a.m. as the bar emptied and Rodriguez emerged, Castillo stabbed the 25-year-old from Puebla, Mexico, twice in the chest. The knife blade punctured Rodriguez' heart. Rodriguez died on the way to University Hospital in Newark.

Six months later, when Castillo was captured, he initially denied he was the attacker. Later he admitted he was drunk.

During the trial, New York State Police investigator Hector Alicea, who was called in by the prosecution as a gang expert, said he is convinced Castillo was following gang protocol by exacting revenge for the perceived slight of him and his gang.

"The gang problem that exists in the county and especially in the large cities like Elizabeth is responsible for so many senseless deaths, like this one," Union County Prosecutor Theodore Romankow said. "Every effort is being made by this office to remove the scourge from the streets, to make the city a safer place to live and work."

Castillo faces 30 years to life in prison when Superior Court Judge Stuart Peim sentences him on Nov. 14 for murder and weapons possession.
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/0 ... icted.html

Reputed gang member sentenced in slaying of Morris man

NJ
July 01, 2008
A reputed Bloods gang member from Newark was sentenced today to 14 years in prison for fatally shooting a Morris County man and critically wounding his girlfriend during a botched drug deal last year.

Superior Court Judge Michael Casale sentenced Ronald Darby, 20, on manslaughter charges stemming from the Jan. 24, 2007, killing of Oliver Matthew Ballentine, 23, of Montville, and the wounding of Stephanie Schroeder, then 21, of Mendham.

Prosecutors agreed to drop murder charges in exchange for Darby's guilty plea to aggravated manslaughter in May.

The streets of Newark serve as an open-air drug market for many suburbanites, and more than a few have been murdered in recent years while on such errands.

This case was unusual in that Schroeder told police she had accompanied Ballentine as he was going to Newark to sell marijuana to Darby, an alleged member of the Nine Tre Gangsters faction of the Bloods.

She said they met in the parking lot of a Pathmark on Lyons Avenue and, with Darby and another person following in a white Lexus, drove to a secluded area near Shaw Avenue and Leslie Street, according to the police report.

After they showed Darby a jar of marijuana in a backpack, Darby left and met them later at the same corner, she said. This time he got into the car with a gun, and when Ballentine tried to take it from him, he opened fire, striking both victims several times, she said.

Ballentine, a former football standout at the Morristown-Beard School with two minor drug charges on his record, died in the driver's seat of his Jeep Cherokee.

Darby fled in the Lexus and was arrested March 8, 2007, in a suburb of Atlanta.
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/0 ... enced.html


Sixth Jungle Junkies Gang Member Sentenced

June , 2008

ALBANY—The sixth member of the Jungle Junkies gang which operated within the city of Albany has been sentenced after pleaded guilty to a federal racketeer influenced and corrupt organizations (RICO) violation relating to the criminal activities of the gang.

Taron Robinson, aka Turtle, 20, of Albany was sentenced to federal prison for 137 months to be followed by supervised release for five years and to pay a $100 special assessment. Robinson previously admitted that he was a member of a criminal organization in known as the “Jungle Junkies,” participated in the affairs of the gang, and conspired with others to possess with intent to distribute and distribute cocaine base (crack cocaine) within the Northern District of New York.

Robinson’s involvement in the narcotics conspiracy involved the possession with intent to distribute and distribution of more than 35 but less than 50 grams of cocaine base (crack cocaine).

He also previously admitted that on Sept. 25, 2006, after speaking to a co-conspirator on the telephone, he left his residence with a handgun in order to arm himself for an anticipated confrontation with members of a rival gang in the vicinity of Morton Avenue and Eagle Street, Albany, that resulted in shots being fired. 6-12-08
http://www.northcountrygazette.org/2008 ... sentenced/