Seven of eight suspects in gang shootings free
The Los Angeles District Attorney’s office has rejected all but one case against the eight men who were allegedly involved in a series of gang-related shootings that occurred in an eastside Santa Monica neighborhood earlier this year.
The Santa Monica Police Department had arrested eight suspects who were allegedly involved in one or more of the five shootings that occurred in the Pico neighborhood between May and June. The charges ranged from attempted murder to parole violations. Three searches were conducted in apartments occupied by several of the suspects, where police found evidence allegedly linking them to the shootings.
But the DA’s office recently threw out seven of the eight cases because there wasn’t enough evidence to prosecute. Only one suspect — 25-year-old Andre Steph-aun Alexander — was formally charged with carrying a concealed firearm in a vehicle and carrying an unregistered firearm.
“Most of the cases we didn’t file on the grounds of insufficient evidence,” said DA spokeswoman Sandi Gibbons.
“Most of the cases we didn’t file on the grounds of insufficient evidence.” — — SANDI GIBBONS DA spokeswoman
But police say evidence collected during the investigation is still being analyzed by the Los Angeles County Crime Lab and will eventually link the suspects to the shootings.
In June, Alexander pleaded no contest and was sentenced to 300 hours of community service, 36 months of probation and six days in jail. His alleged partner in the vehicle, Rodney Lenny Crayton, 26, wasn’t charged. SMPD arrested the men after they were stopped for a traffic violation on the 1900 block of Pico Boulevard. They matched the description of the suspects involved in a drive-by shooting in the same neighborhood on June 5, police said.
Witnesses and the two victims, both of whom are Latino and are affiliated with a Santa Monica gang, told police that two black men shot at them while they were sitting in a parked car. Both Alexander and Crayton are black.
None of the shootings — which occurred on May 9, 18, 19, 20 and June 5 all within a few blocks of each other — caused any injuries. The May 9 shooting, however, resulted in a stray bullet traveling through two walls before it hit a dresser in a bedroom of a woman’s home while her four children were there.
Despite the mass dropping of charges against the seven men, police remain confident that the suspects will indeed be brought to justice.
“A lot of the times, the DA rejects the case for insufficient evidence and we have to wait for it to come back from the lab,” said SMPD Lt. Frank Fabrega. “Then everything is resubmitted to the DA.”
It’s unclear how long the crime lab will take to analyze the evidence.
The suspects who were not charged are: ■Ashia Boldwar, a 20-year-old black male, arrested on a robbery warrant. ■Terrence Brown, a 23-year-old black male, arrested for assault with a deadly weapon and outstanding warrants. ■Richard DeLa Cruz, a 30-year-old Hispanic male, arrested and charged with a probation violation. ■Richard Hernandez, a 19-year-old Hispanic male, arrested for a felony probation violation. ■ Marshall Lipps, 21, of Santa Monica, arrested for allegedly being involved in the May 20 shooting. ■ Kevin Lamarr Crosby, 24, of Inglewood, arrested for attempted murder and a parole violation.
Meanwhile, police are also still waiting for evidence to be returned from the crime lab relating to the murder of 19-year-old Jalonnie Carter who was shot in the back on Sept. 2.
Arthur Archuletta, 21, was arrested for murder by Santa Monica Police days after the shooting, which occurred in an alley east of 20th Street, but the DA’s office rejected that case as well, saying there wasn’t evidence for a conviction.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on October 3, 2003. Read the original PDF.