Arsenio Devo Morgan
Salvador Soliz
Ramiro Sanchez
Shooting allegedly motivated by desire to join street gang
RIVERSIDE - A preliminary hearing is expected to wrap up today for a Riverside man accused of gunning down a young man and his friend near the UC Riverside campus, in an attack allegedly motivated by the defendant's desire to be in an all-black street gang.
Arsenio Devo Morgan, 20, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder, one count of gang activity, as well as multiple sentence-enhancing allegations, including that the shootings were part of a hate crime.
Morgan allegedly killed 18-year-old Salvador Soliz and 16-year-old Ramiro Sanchez on Dec. 14, 2008, to gain admittance to the 1200 Blocc Crips, a decades-old gang in Riverside.
A preliminary hearing in the case -- which will determine whether there's sufficient evidence to warrant a trial -- began Wednesday. At least a half-dozen witnesses have been called to testify so far. Riverside County Superior Court Judge Elisabeth Sichel ordered increased security because family members of the victims and the defendant's friends apparently exchanged words outside the courtroom.
Morgan, who is still serving a six-year prison term for armed robbery, was identified by a police informant last April, according to the Riverside County District Attorney's Office.
During a news briefing in May, former District Attorney Rod Pacheco said detectives learned that in 2008, Morgan was seeking to leave a small-time gang called Sex Cash in favor of joining the 1200 Blocc Crips. But in order to earn a place, he had to "put some work in -- literally, kill someone," Pacheco said.
Crips members told the defendant about a birthday party attended mostly by Hispanics at a residence in the 1800 block of Enterprise Avenue, and Morgan went there with the intent to kill, according to the former prosecutor.
Around midnight, Morgan arrived at the party and allegedly opened fire on a group of celebrants standing in the driveway.
Soliz, who had just graduated from Poly High School, died at the scene. Sanchez died less than an hour later at Riverside Community Hospital.
"The tragic shooting elevated the status of one violent gang member at the cost of two young lives simply because their killer believed they belonged to the wrong race," Pacheco said in May.
Morgan could face the death penalty if convicted.
http://www.myvalleynews.com/story/54121/
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