L.R. and M.G. are cousins and former members of the Red Krewe Norteños, a subset of the Norteños criminal street gang. L.R. and M.G. were hanging out at L.R.’s house on the evening of March 17, 2016, St. Patrick’s Day. They drank beer for several hours. During the course of the evening, L.R. checked Facebook and saw photographs posted by another cousin, Rosemarie. L.R. reached out to Rosemarie through Facebook in hopes of getting together.
Rosemarie had been celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with her cousin and roommate, “Rita.” Rosemarie and Rita shared an apartment with Ramirez, who was Rosemarie’s boyfriend and a current member of the Red Krewe Norteños. Rosemarie and Rita spent several hours barhopping before meeting up with Ramirez. The trio continued barhopping and eventually found themselves at a bar called the Spot, where they would soon be joined by Castaneda and Labrasca.
Castaneda and Labrasca had also been partying that day. Castaneda, who goes by “Silencio,” is a current member of the Red Krewe Norteños. Labrasca is a member of a Norteños subset known as the Varrio Valley High Norteños. Castaneda and Labrasca were recent acquaintances, having met only a couple of months earlier. They started drinking beer in Labrasca’s backyard in the late afternoon. They eventually made their way to the Spot, where Labrasca met Ramirez, Rosemarie, and Rita for the first time.
Castaneda and Labrasca arrived at the Spot at approximately 10:30 p.m. They left the bar with Ramirez at 10:33 p.m. and returned a short time later. Defendants came and went twice more before returning to the Spot at 11:17 p.m.
In the meantime, Rosemarie was communicating with L.R. via Facebook. In one such communication, at 11:11 p.m., Rosemarie informed L.R. that she was at a bar with Ray (Ramirez), Silencio (Castaneda), Manny (Labrasca), and her cousin (Rita). L.R. pressed for an invitation to get together. Eventually, a plan was made that they would meet and hang out at the apartment Rosemarie shared with Ramirez and Rita. The group left the Spot and made their way to the apartment.
Rosemarie, Rita, and Ramirez occupied a second story apartment in a gated complex. The gates, which provide vehicular access to the complex, can be opened from inside the apartment by means of a “clicker” (i.e., a remote-control gate opener), allowing guests to park in an adjacent parking lot.
L.R. and M.G. pulled up to the apartment complex at approximately 11:46 p.m. L.R. called Rosemarie to ask her to open the gates. The gates opened, and L.R. and M.G. drove into the complex and parked. They got out of the car and were immediately rushed and stabbed. The assailants left the parking lot, and L.R. managed to get a gravely injured M.G. into the car. L.R. drove M.G. to the hospital, where both men were treated for stab wounds. According to GPS data, Ramirez left the apartment complex in a car at 11:51 p.m.
Deputy Steven Salmeron of the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department was on duty in a marked patrol vehicle in the early morning hours of March 18, 2016. Just after midnight, Salmeron attempted a vehicle stop on a car on Florin Road and 55th Street. The car took off at high speed, and Salmeron gave
