Trial ordered for "Fresno Uncensored" participants
By Pablo Lopez / The Fresno Bee
(Updated Friday, July 15, 2005, 11:30 AM)
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A judge ruled this morning that the actions of six alleged gang members, who guzzled beer, barked like dogs and mocked police in a DVD called "Fresno Uncensored," constituted felony behavior.
Judge Gary Hoff ordered a trial in Fresno County Superior Court for Serafin Villalobos Ceja, 18; James Gayton Frausto, 23; Adolfo Leyva Gomez, 19; Joseph Anthony Trinidad, 20; Francisco Gonzalez, 18; and Danny Alonzo Jr., 28.
Each of them face a felony count of being an active participant in a criminal street gang. Trinidad also faces a felony count of reckless driving for allegedly spinning doughnuts on a public street.
They will be arraigned July 26.
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Hoff made his ruling after three days of testimony and legal arguments in the defendants' preliminary hearing. Prosecutor Greg Anderson smiled after the ruling, but left the courthouse without making a comment.
Defense lawyers said Hoff's ruling was a disappointment, but didn't surprise them because the legal standard at a preliminary hearing is reasonable suspicion that a crime was committed.
At trial, the legal standard is the much higher beyond a reasonable doubt, the defense lawyers said.
Defense lawyers had asked Hoff to dismiss the charges or reduce them to misdemeanors on the grounds that the defendants' actions were constitutionally protected free speech and association.
They also argued the defendants' right to due process and equal protection under the law were violated because they were singled out for prosecution because they are Hispanic.
In addition, the defense lawyers contended that the defendants' actions on the video didn't rise to felonious behavior because all they did was drink beer, show off gang tattoos and hand signs, and shoot off their mouths.
Hoff denied the legal challenges, saying the constitutional rights don't apply to gang members whose language and actions incite or promote criminal activity.
In making his ruling, Hoff said he reviewed the evidence against each individual defendant, but came to his conclusion by "looking at the totality of the evidence."
Outside court, Gonzalez's mother, Gloria Baca, said, "It's unfair. They didn't do anything wrong. "They were just playing around."
Trinidad's mother, Yolanda Trinidad, said she understands the judge's ruling, but her son, as well as the others, "we're just having a little fun."
"Fresno Uncensored" ruffled local law enforcement because it glorified gangs in some of the city's toughest neighborhoods. During a police roundup in June, 23 people suspected of being in the DVD were arrested.
The defendants in Hoff's courtroom are the first adults to answer to charges.
The people on the 91-minute DVD bark like dogs, mock police, show off gang tattoos and display drugs and high-powered weapons. The six defendants in Hoff's courtroom are on the DVD for fewer than six minutes, testimony revealed.
The defendants don't show off any drugs in the DVD; the only weapon shown is a small ax held by Jose Luis Gonzalez, who is not among the charged defendants. During one short segment, a green car spins doughnuts; Trinidad is accused of being the driver.
For two days, Tony Gates, a California Highway Patrol officer assigned to the county's anti-gang unit, has testified that cameras captured for the DVD showed the defendants promoting the Fresno Bulldogs, a notorious street gang. The activity took place in April on Dakota Avenue near Fruit Avenue, he said.
Some of the defendants have admitted to being Bulldog gang members, Gates testified. Many of them wore similar gang clothing on the DVD, mainly red sports clothes representing Fresno State and its Bulldog mascot.
Anderson argued that the defendants' actions constituted felony territory because a friend of the defendants was holding an small ax, which is considered a dangerous weapon.
While the friend held the ax, the DVD captures gang members cursing and challenging rival gangsters, Gates said.
The defendants also encourage Trinidad to allegedly drive recklessly in the street, which promotes the Bulldog gang by spreading fear that they are a lawless group, Anderson argued.
Defense lawyers, however, say that simply holding an ax is not a felony, and that the person holding it did not threaten anyone with it. The lawyers said it also is not a felony to drive recklessly unless the driver has prior felony convictions for driving recklessly and causing great bodily injury. Testimony revealed that Trinidad has no prior criminal record.
Check FresnoBee.com for updates throughout the day and read The Fresno Bee tomorrow for further details.
The reporter can be reached at
[email protected] or (559) 441-6434.
