Judge Dismissed Wrongful Death Lawsuit in the Jamiel Shaw Murder
By Alex Alonso
STREETGANGS.COM STAFF WRITER
May 31, 2010 | 2:27 p.m.
LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Last week a judge dismissed the wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of Jamiel Shaw Jr. against the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and Sheriff Lee Baca. The Shaw family filed the lawsuit after learning that their son’s alleged killer was released from Los Angeles County custody as an illegal citizen. They contend that Pedro Espinoza, then 19 and an alleged gang member, should have been turned over to federal authorities upon his release. Superior Court Judge Charles Palmer ruled last Wednesday that the law does not support the wrongful death case filed by the family.
In 2008, Espinoza was arrested for the murder of Shaw II in a gang-related dispute which occurred on 5th Avenue, just feet from Shaw II’s house. In November of 2007, Espinoza was arrested by Culver City Police and charged with assault with a deadly weapon after an incident at McManus Park where Espinoza along with his cousin attempted to assault members of Helms gang. Police responded and after a short foot pursuit, Espinoza was taken into custody and his .380 semi-automatic weapon was recovered. Six months later he was released from custody and on the following day, May 2, 2008 he confronted Shaw II after visiting a friend that lived on Shaw II’s block, and shot him. Shaw II was shot twice, once in the abdominal area and then once in the head after walking home from a friends house that lived just south of the 10 Freeway, minutes from his Washington Heights home.
The lawsuit was dismissed because the law states that the government has immunity in such cases. The suit suggested that Espinoza shot and killed Shaw II because he was black, but evidence at the preliminary hearing in June 2008 stated that Espinoza was an 18th Street gang member and that he targeted Shaw II because he perceived him to be a Blood gang member, one of the main rivals to Espinoza’s gang. Javier Espinoza, the cousin to the defendant and an alleged member of the Alcase click of 18th Street testified that he went to Los Angeles High School with the victim and that everyone knew he was a Blood. Officer Rueben Gonzales testified that the victim was in possession of gang photos and graffiti, including his moniker when he was shot and killed. Another cousin, Pablo Espinoza, told investigators back in 2008 that Pedro bragged about killing a Blood and according to LAPD Detective John Shafia, Pedro admitted to his cousin Pablo that he shot and killed a Blood.
Shaw II was a football standout and had no criminal record. The trial for Espinoza is expected to begin this September.
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I hope pedro. get death penalty.Im Latino I get along with everyone.I hate all this “oh you black” “oh you mexican”
Man were all the fen same!
but yeah god bless shaw Family stay up!
i sooo agree with u.. we r all the same!! When Jesus lives on the cross he didnt just live for Mexicans or Blacks he lived for all of us and in my opinion we should all love each other regardless of the color and live for JESUS!!!
Chorro de puerco, u not me
There is no one to blame on what happened here.. you LIVE by the gun you live by the gun, Jamiel Shaw Jr, wasn’t an innocent person, he was a BLOOD gang member, all of you need to stop making it seem like he was just an innocent person who was shot by a gang member when he wasn’t, that’s what happens when you choose to gang bang, but anyway god bless the shaw family for such a tragic loss
i hate when these levas try covering this ish up.. nah i heard about this ish and serio dude was a slob. im sick of seein families swear up and down that there son who wore a red hat, walkin his PITBULL through a nortaco neighborhood that he lived in, with a shaved head and loc’s on WAS NOT PART OF THE NORTENOS!! lmfaoo get the f outta here your kid was a banger and got what was comin to him. you play you pay stop cryin
What the f does walking a pitbull have anything to do with it? I mean you put it in all caps like it means something that the kid was walking a pitbull. I swear, fen Bs get smarter by the day, on da real.
I dont like SEWER RATS 13k
f you sloBk CKrabk!
AND NIIGGAkLA!
Gang member or not, the County screwed up by not turning Espinoza over to ICE for deportation. If that had happened, Jamiel Shaw would not have been ked.
We are not sure if ICE dropped the ball, because they have an office in the County and could have placed the hold themselves. SO right now we are not sure if it was LA County’s fault or ICE’s fault. Someone should find out.
Im born and raised in L.A. and Im amazed that his parents have their head SO FAR up their ASS (when he sees the gang photos he says “oh my son is throwing up a piece sign…and the Mr Spock sign” what a Crock of ish) On his MySpace page he is throwing up the sign for Rolling 20s NHB (neighborhood blood) and the B in the other hand. He LIVES in NHB neighborhood (where the 18 Streets and 20 were beefing and even go to the same high school)
EVERYBODY knows he recently got “put on”…and SADLY…PAID FOR IT….obviously he didnt have what it TAKES to bang (when he was confronted and asked “where you from” he was like “oh ish what have i gotten myself into and didnt answer…EVEN though the kers cousin went to school with him and KNEW he was FROM twenties…which is WHY he confronted) .
Its a SHAME that they lost their son..but they should devote the rest of their LIFE MISSION to ending GANG VIOLENCE and warning parents on NOT TO MISS THE SIGNS when your kids are doing “things” instead of pretending that boy was innocent.
The Gang Violence SHOULD stop…and illegal criminals SHOULD be deported.
Spend more time realizing where they went wrong and dont repeat it with their NEXT son or start using their son as an example to ALREADY GOOD KIDS…NOT to go the route their son went.
guess Bs can get away with that n smell A,..wetay cuzz woodve nevrer made it off the block where im from locc..1 of da neighbors woodve chipped dat faketeen,onn in$ane gan$ta creeiip..F#@K mescans
f insane u crab ass Ni66ah.. That why the chongos be straight riding on you chumps..
those authorities in L.A. should know that the mexican/AA violence is spreading to other parts of the country, and as far as the east coast. you know that whites in latin america controlled their black and brown slaves by making sure that they disliked each other. it would seem the same thing is happening here – divide and conquer.
Sad to say how sometimes the own family knows how their kids live and yet can never say the truth that they are gang bangers. I hate that they always say my kids were good kids when they were the opposite.