Posted on 05/31/2015 5:20:38 PM PDT by don-o
WACO, TEXAS—After a gunfight between rival motorcycle gangs outside a crowded restaurant left nine dead, police rounded up everyone on the scene wearing biker vests. Now, as 174 people sit in jail on organized crime charges, legal experts say prosecutors face a difficult challenge, and that many of those arrested could end up going free.
“They have bitten off more than they can chew,” said Robert Draskovich, a Las Vegas criminal defence lawyer who represents bikers. “Prosecutors often overreach and charge too many people, but I’ve never seen it to this extent.”
To prove the current charges, which have capital murder as the underlying crime, prosecutors must show each defendant took part in the shootout. Although the law allows for broad interpretation of participation, experts say the case is muddled by Texas’ strong self-defence and gun rights, as well as issues with witness credibility and a lack of co-operation.
snip
The last mass biker arrest in the U.S. occurred in 2002 in Las Vegas after a brawl broke out between the Hells Angels and the Mongols at Harrah’s Casino. Three people were killed and about a dozen others were wounded. Authorities rounded up 120 people. Only six of 44 Hells Angels indicted in federal court were convicted; six Mongols members were convicted in state court.
Draskovich represented one of the Hells Angels defendants whose charges were dismissed. He sees parallels between that case and the one in Waco.
“There’s generally a smaller group who, if a law was broken, they broke it,” he said. “So that’s why I say the majority of the people they arrested (in Waco) are going to walk.”
(Excerpt) Read more at thestar.com ...
yes, it is called “concert of action”.
How many of the dead were killed by police?
The police will have to prove that each individual participated in the shootout. With the confusion in a fight that large, the prosecutor will have a difficult time of it.
When I Google "concert of action" I cannot see how that applies.
http://definitions.uslegal.com/c/concert-of-action-rule/
Concert of action rule is a principle of criminal law that an agreement by two or more persons to commit a particular crime cannot be prosecuted as a conspiracy if the crime could not be committed except by the actual number of participants involved.
“How many of the dead were killed by police?”
*****************************************************************************
The government agencies KNOW the answer to this already but they are NOT SAYING. And, to me anyhow, this in itself speaks volumes. There are many similar questions to which they know the answers, but they’re keeping quite lips on them.
Obama’s corrupt DOJ agencies (e.g., ATF) no doubt have the lead for this and they will be directing withholding of information as long as they can.
My cousin was involved in a bar fight. Some one else stabbed and killed a person and was killed himself. My cousin, spent 8 years in prison for the murder.
The applicable Penal Code would be Texas 71.02. It brings in an organized crime section that basicly says if you were wearing gang colors, bike jackets, etc.... You are just as responsible as the guy who pulled the trigger. Even if you were sitting inside.
Sorry, I didn’t mean for that to PM. I’m half asleep.
Prosecutors have charged and prosecuted multiple members of urban street gangs such as the Crips and Bloods for one murder.
No reason why the biker gangs should be treated any different.
They will be sitting on this information so tight, the various government spokesmen will get hemorrhoids.
All of them as far as we know. Police set up an ambush, kill a bunch of people, and charge the rest with murder.
Welcome to 21st century America.
http://www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/docs/PE/htm/PE.71.HTM
Here is the law for reference.
You are getting that from the definitions section. I call attention to another definition...
“(b) “Conspires to commit” means that a person agrees with one or more persons that they or one or more of them engage in conduct that would constitute the offense and that person and one or more of them perform an overt act in pursuance of the agreement. An agreement constituting conspiring to commit may be inferred from the acts of the parties.>
What is the overt act here?
Assuming facts not in evidence is not a really strong opening for an article, IMO.
the govt won’t dare do this with MS13/Crips/Bloods etc but they’ll go after bikers...something isn’t right with this.
(d) “Criminal street gang” means three or more persons having a common identifying sign or symbol or an identifiable leadership who continuously or regularly associate in the commission of criminal activities.
Yeah. There’s a wife who said her husband took his antique bike there to show it off. I’m sure he’s a murderer!
I’m just saying I think the DA will use 71.02 to go after them. Most will probably plead out and the DA will target 4 or 5 of the people that were there.
I don’t agree with it, just saying I think that’s what will happen.
Also I’ve personally never been able to finish reading all of 71.02 and it’s sub-chapters. Way too much legaleze.
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