Thread: CA-Teen football star shot by alleged gang members

Official: L.A. athlete shooting suspect may be in U.S. illegally
Associated Press
Article Last Updated: 03/22/2008 11:19:14 AM PDT


Immigration officials say the suspected Los Angeles street gang member charged in the shooting death of a high school football star may have been in the country illegally.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman Virginia Kice said Saturday her agency has filed an immigration hold against 19-year-old Pedro Espinoza.

The hold means Espinoza will be transferred into her agency's custody for possible deportation when he leaves local custody.

Espinoza was released from jail in an assault case the day before the March 2 killing of 17-year-old Jamiel Shaw Junior.

Kice did not know if there was a hold on him during his previous sentence, but said inmates on hold are generally released directly into her agency's custody.

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Reputed gangster pleads not guilty in death of football player
Daily News wire services
Article Last Updated: 04/09/2008 12:34:12 PM PDT


A 19-year-old reputed gang member charged in the March 2 shooting death of standout Los Angeles High School football player Jamiel Shaw Jr. pleaded not guilty today to murder.

Pedro Espinoza is accused of gunning down the 17-year-old Shaw in the 2100 block of Fifth Avenue, not far from the Shaw family's Arlington Heights home.

The charge includes the special circumstance allegation that the defendant was "an active participant in a criminal street gang and the murder was carried out to further the activities of the criminal street gang."

The criminal complaint also alleges that Espinoza personally discharged a handgun.

Espinoza, who is being held without bail, is due back in court for a status conference on May 1. His preliminary hearing is set for May15.

Prosecutors have not yet decided whether to seek the death penalty for Espinoza, who was arrested March 7 and charged March 11 just before Shaw's funeral.

Espinoza is being held without bail.

According to police, Shaw was three blocks from his home at about 8:30 p.m. when Espinoza and another suspect pulled up in a white compact.

Espinoza got out of the vehicle and asked Shaw, "Where are you from?" - - meaning what gang -- before he opened fire, police said. Shaw was shot twice.

The shooting occurred just one day after Espinoza had been released from county jail, where he had been serving time for assault with a deadly weapon, said LAPD Detective Mark Holguin.
Shaw lived in an area known to be the territory of the Bloods but was not associated with any gang, according to police.

U.S. immigration officials believe Espinoza, a member of the 18th Street gang, may have been in the country illegally. That fact prompted Shaw's family to appear before the Los Angeles City Council yesterday, urging city leaders to go after criminals who are in the country illegally.

"We have a problem with the system. My son was murdered by someone that was here illegally. No matter how you look at it, that's what happened," Jamiel Shaw Sr. told reporters before entering the council chamber.

Authorities do not know why Espinoza was not detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement upon his release from the county jail.

A long-standing directive, Special Order 40, prohibits Los Angeles police officers from asking arrestees about their immigration status. The order is intended to encourage illegal immigrants to report crimes and assist police.

Shaw, a running back, was named his team's and the Southern League's Most Valuable Player in 2007 and had drawn the interest of recruiters from Stanford and Rutgers.

The teen's mother, Army Sgt. Anita Shaw, was serving in Iraq when her son was slain.

For more news and observations about crime in Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley, check out Mean Streets, the Daily News' crime blog.

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Jamiel's Loss
Grieving family pleads for a crackdown on illegal immigration
By Amanda Price
April 9, 2008

The family of Jamiel Shaw Jr.,

the 17-year-old high school student shot and killed two doors from his house in Arlington Heights last month, sat quietly in the Los Angeles City Council chambers on Tuesday, waiting to speak about their new cause.

Charged with Jamiel’s murder is

Pedro Espinoza, a 19-year-old alleged member of the 18th Street gang. Less than a day before Jamiel was killed, Espinoza had been released from jail, where he had been serving time for assault with a deadly weapon. Federal officials have

determined that Espinoza could have been deported since he was smuggled into the country illegally as a toddler.

The Shaws want the police to start cracking down on illegal immigrants and approve Jamiel’s Law. “The way he was released, it just didn’t seem right, and 24 hours later, he was in our neighborhood,â€