P. v. Cervantes CA4/3
Seventeen-year-old G.C. went to codefendant Richard Ramirez’s house to pay off a debt owed by a family member. Ramirez was a drug dealer. When G.C. arrived, Cervantes and Stanley Cruz (another codefendant) accosted G.C., asking him where he was from, and demanding that he show any gang tattoos. When G.C. said he was from the City of Artesia but not in any gangs, Cervantes and Cruz blocked G.C.’s exit path. The defendants were members of gangs hostile to a gang from Artesia. Cervantes went to summon Ramirez. When Ramirez learned that G.C. was from Artesia, he told Cervantes to fetch some rope and tape, which he did, and ultimately G.C. was killed with a lethal dose of heroin. Cervantes then helped dispose of the body and later attempted to clean the scene of the crime to destroy any evidence.
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