Adult Members of Notorious Criminal Street Gang Engaged in ‘Alarming Pattern’ of Gang Violence Since Reaching Age of Majority
SAN FRANCISCO (Feb. 19, 2009) — A San Francisco Superior Court judge has granted a request by City Attorney Dennis Herrera to add six new adult gang members to the provisions of a 2007 civil gang injunction against the notorious Oakdale Mob, a violent criminal street gang that claims a four-block area in San Francisco’s Hunters Point neighborhood as its turf. In an order issued yesterday, Judge Peter J. Busch found that Herrera provided clear and convincing evidence that the six individuals are currently active members of the criminal street gang, and that “the ends of justice would be served” by modifying the original injunction to include the additional members of the Oakdale Mob. No substantive provisions of the permanent injunction were altered.
“The newly enjoined Oakdale Mob members have engaged in an alarming pattern of gang violence and criminal conduct in a short span of time, and their addition to the existing injunction is clearly warranted,” said Herrera. “I’m grateful to Judge Busch for considering an enormous amount of evidence. I’m also extremely thankful to the San Francisco Police Department’s Gang Task Force-and Officer Len Broberg in particular-for their expertise and hard work in helping to develop and enforce these injunctions to protect San Franciscans from gang-related crime.”
“Civil gang injunctions have been an important tool to help police and prosecutors target and discourage gang activity in San Francisco, and the ability to obtain modifications like this one when needed is important to ensure their continued effectiveness,” said Officer Len Broberg, who filed an expert declaration in Herrera’s petition for modification. “I’m thankful to City Attorney Dennis Herrera and his office for their efforts on this injunction.”
Under terms of the permanent injunction issued against the Oakdale Mob on March 15, 2007, enjoined Oakdale Mob members are prohibited from engaging in a variety of gang-related conduct within the four-block safety zone, including: possession of any gun or dangerous weapon; possession of any illegal drug or drug paraphernalia; loitering with intent to sell or distribute drugs; undertaking any form of intimidation against witnesses or victims; use of threats to recruit or retain gang members; defacing property with graffiti or possessing graffiti-making instruments; and trespassing. Gang members are additionally prohibited from any form of association together within the safety zone, except when inside a school to attend a class or on other legitimate school business, or when inside of a church. Evidence provided to the court details extensive gang-related nuisance and criminal conduct by the six Oakdale Mob members subject to the injunction, five of whom were juveniles when Herrera filed his original civil complaint against the Oakdale Mob in September 2006. None of the evidence presented for the court’s consideration has included conduct while the gang members were juveniles. * Gerardo Canon (born Feb. 22, 1990) drove a stolen car while in possession of a loaded handgun, according to police declarations and supporting evidence, and was observed by police hiding near a loaded handgun immediately after two members of a rival gang had been fired upon. Canon is an admitted Oakdale Mob gang member and boasts two gang tattoos. * Eric Jones (born Nov. 8, 1987) was convicted of felony assault with a deadly weapon for assaulting and threatening to kill a woman with a handgun on Oakdale Mob turf, among other gang related conduct. Jones has been in custody since January 2008, following his assault arrest, and was sentenced in December 2008 to three years state prison for the offense. Jones is an acknowledged member of the Oakdale Mob. * Keimareea Lake (born June 18, 1989) engaged in extensive gang related conduct, according to evidence filed with the court, including firing a gun at the occupant of a car; gun possession along with a known gang member; and threatening to kill a store employee during a liquor store burglary. Lake is an admitted Oakdale Mob member and has gang tattoos on his forearms. * Kenyon McDowell (born Nov. 25, 1988) was convicted in February 2008 for felony negligent discharge of a firearm. As a condition of his probation for that conviction, he was ordered to stay away from the safety zone, though police declarations attest that he has defiantly violated the stay-away orders. McDowell is an admitted Oakdale Mob member and also claims a gang tattoo. . * Dimarea McGhee (born Dec. 27, 1988) has been convicted of felonies that include grand theft, possession of a concealed firearm, robbery, and active participation in a criminal street gang. He was sentenced to two years in state prison in October 2008. Additional gang related activity documented in court records include assault on a woman within the gang turf, and home invasion with a gun and burglary. McGhee is also an admitted Oakdale Mob member with gang tattoos. * Mario Woods (born July 22, 1989) is an active member of Oakdale Mob whose gang related activities include armed robbery and attempted armed robbery; shooting incidents; weapons possession offenses; and driving a stolen car according to police evidence. Woods was also involved in an automobile injury accident that occurred while fleeing from police. The court-ordered modification additionally removed three deceased Oakdale Mob members: Gregory Bennett, Daniel Dennard and Charles Rollins. The civil gang injunction against the Oakdale Mob currently enjoins 25 gang members. The case is People of the State of California et al v. Oakdale Mob, San Francisco Superior Court No. CGC-06 456517.
Civil gang injunctions have been used with documented success in Southern California since the 1980s, and in San Francisco since Oct. 30, 2006, when Herrera first obtained a temporary restraining order against the Oakdale Mob. The City Attorney’s gang injunction program works in collaboration with other enforcement agencies, including the SFPD’s Gang Task Force and San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris’s office. Violations of civil gang injunctions may be pursued civilly by the City Attorney, or criminally by the District Attorney.