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Man given prison time for drive-by
Suspected gang member pleads guilty in shooting at Club Rio
By MATT STEWART
The Times

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A Gainesville man has pleaded guilty to a gang-related shooting in August that injured four people at a former nightclub and banquet hall.

Jose Isidro Macias, 20, a suspected SUR-13 gang member, was sentenced Monday to serve 20 years in prison for the Aug. 6 drive-by shooting at Rio, said Northeastern Judicial Circuit District Attorney Lee Darragh.

In addition, Macias will spend another 20 years on probation, Darragh said.

Macias received concurrent 20-year sentences for aggravated battery of Gabriel Avalos and Andrea Castro and aggravated assault of Iliana Medina, Jose Hernandez and Josh Delarosa.

Darragh said Macias shot Avalos, Castro, Medina and Hernandez at Rio on Shallowford Road, sending all four to the hospital. Macias shot at but did not hit Delarosa, he said.

Macias was sentenced to probation for related counts of possessing a gun during the commission of felonies.

His terms of probation include no contact with any of the shooting victims, banishment from Hall and Dawson counties and payment of the victims' medical expenses and damage to Rio, Darragh said.

"The sentence imposed was appropriate for the seriousness of the crime," Darragh said. "(The sentence) also forces (Macias) to take responsibility for his actions."

Gainesville-Hall County Gang Task Force Lt. Scott Ware said Macias' sentencing was a major coup for the anti-gang unit.

"It's a shame that it comes to this, but it's a good sentence," Ware said. "That's one less problem off the streets, but we probably won't be out of a job anytime soon."

Macias, who is believed to be an illegal immigrant, was shooting at a gang member of rival PLC 21, or "Pure Latin Crew," a Hall-specific gang. Ware said all four victims of the drive-by shooting were unintended.

"If everything works out like it's supposed to, (Macias) will be deported," he said.

Rio, commonly called Club Rio, closed last year after the city pulled its beer license, citing the shooting.

The club lost its liquor permit after a November 2004 shooting and other alleged violations, but was allowed to serve beer again after submitting a 19-point security plan.

The owner blamed gangs for the trouble and revamped the former bar and dance floor portion as a children's' play zone.

Staff writer Rick Lavender contributed to this article.

Contact: mstewart@gainesvilletimes.com, (770) 718-3432

Originally published Wednesday, February 8, 2006