Gang Members Sentenced to Life in Federal Prison

Three Latino gang members were sentenced today to life in federal prison for participating in a six-year conspiracy that led to the assault and murder of African-Americans in the Highland Park area of Los Angeles.

The defendants, who are members of the Avenues street gang, each received two consecutive life sentences from United States District Judge Percy Anderson in Los Angeles. In the federal system, these sentences carry no possibility of parole.

The three were convicted at trial this summer of being part of a conspiracy that committed numerous violent assaults against African-Americans, including murders that took place in 1999 and in 2000. Members of the conspiracy were found guilty of violating the civil rights of African-Americans in the gang's neighborhood by attacking and sometimes killing the victims. The jury found that the defendants caused the death of Christopher Bowser, an African-American man who was shot while waiting at a bus stop in Highland Park on December 11, 2000. The jury also found that the defendants caused the death of Kenneth Kurry Wilson, an African-American man who was gunned down while looking for a parking place in Highland Park on April 18, 1999.

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Los Angeles Police Department, under Los Angeles Police Chief William J. Bratton. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney's Office in Los Angeles and the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice.