A Salinas man accused of shooting a man in Gilroy because he
didn’t speak English went to trial Monday, more than two years
after his arrest for attempted murder.
Gilroy – A Salinas man accused of shooting a man in Gilroy because he didn’t speak English went to trial Monday, more than two years after his arrest for attempted murder.
Witnesses say Leon Martinez, 22, drove up to a Forest Street apartment complex Sunday, Aug. 1, 2004, and asked three unfamiliar men standing in the parking lot for directions. The men didn’t understand, and asked Martinez if he spoke Spanish. Martinez pulled a 44-caliber revolver and fired four shots, wounding Abelino Hernandez, 22. Despite taking two hits, one to his side and one to his thigh, Hernandez survived.
After Martinez tore away in his SUV, police pursued him in vehicles and on foot, searching 13 homes before they found him, locked in a bathroom at an IOOF Avenue home. The unsuspecting homeowners, confronted by police, didn’t even realize he was there. Martinez was booked into jail in San Jose on a staggering $10.02 million bail.
Police suspect the crime was gang-motivated: Speaking Spanish is one characteristic of Mexican-born Surenos, who wear blue. At the time of the shooting, Martinez wore red, the hallmark of Surenos’ enemies, the English-speaking, U.S.-born Nortenos. A witness, Alicia Hinojosa, said the three Spanish-speaking men didn’t run with gangs, but Martinez may have targeted them because he assumed they were Surenos. Police say they have no evidence that Hernandez was involved in gangs.
Martinez has pleaded not guilty to the charges of attempted murder, injury by discharging a firearm, and doing so for “the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with a criminal street gang,” said Judge Kenneth Shapero said. The gang enhancement may add up to 10 years to Martinez’ prison sentence, if he’s convicted of the crime.
His trial began Monday with a grueling jury selection process. To thin a crowd of nearly 100 could-be jurors, Shapero, deputy district attorney Stuart Scott and defense attorney Steve DeFillipis quizzed potential jurors about their biases, friendships and feelings toward gangs and police. A San Jose firefighter confessed he favored police; a Gilroy city employee said he was friendly with a possible witness. Nearly a quarter of the jury pool was eliminated by hardship claims, with students citing heavy course loads and single parents begging off to care for their kids.
Both the prosecution and the defense can strike up to 20 juror candidates without explanation; there is no limit on cause-based challenges, which require a specific reason. Jury selection will continue today in county court.
