Grandview gun battle nets Pasco man six years in prison

YAKIMA — A Pasco man was ordered Friday to serve six years in prison for his part in a gang-related gun battle in Grandview in which he was shot.

Juan Zepeda, who was convicted in 1997 of the stabbing death of a teenager in Grandview, was given a midrange sentence by Yakima County Superior Court Judge James Gavin.

Zepeda was convicted by a jury in September of second-degree assault, intimidating a witness and unlawful possession of a firearm.

Authorities said Zepeda was one of three known suspects who took part in a May 27 exchange of gunfire between gang rivals in a residential neighborhood near the corner of Crescent Avenue and West Fifth Street in Grandview. As many as 25 shots were fired, police said.

Zepeda, who testified at the trial, maintained his innocence throughout the case and said at Friday’s hearing that he hoped the evidence would have swayed the jury in his favor.

Deputy prosecutor Gary Hintze read a letter from the intimidation victim.

The man lived near the scene and was taking pictures of the car Zepeda was riding in as he left the area following the shooting, investigators said.

“He pointed a gun at me and he threatened to kill me because I chose not to be a silent victim that day and since,” the man wrote.

The defense argued that Zepeda was not armed and that the witness confused Zepeda’s cell phone for a gun.

“I didn’t point a gun at him. I’m the one that got shot,” Zepeda told Gavin.

Zepeda was shot in the leg during the gunfire.

Relatives who spoke in his support Friday said he was a good person who was trying to improve his life and help raise his 2-year-old daughter. Zepeda and his relatives said he had distanced himself from the gang life and was only caught up in the shooting by accident. He was dealing with a funeral for a relative of his child’s mother, who has family members involved with gangs, they said.

Zepeda has been inaccurately cast as a “cold-hearted killer” for his role in the stabbing death of Shaun Owsley, said his sister, Sandra Zepeda.

Owsley, 18, was stabbed to death in a January 1997 brawl at a party in Grandview. Zepeda was convicted of second-degree murder. He was 15 years old at the time.

Defense attorney William Schuler of Naches said Zepeda had often shown remorse for that incident during conversations. He said Zepeda describes that encounter as an attempt to defend a friend against a bully.

Hintze had asked for the maximum sentence — which would have added another five months to the sentence.

“The community is sick to death of what’s been happening in recent times,” Hintze said, referring to an increase in gang violence.

As part of the sentence, Zepeda must avoid associating with known criminals and must not get any more gang-related tattoos during three years of probation after his prison time.

Two other defendants were charged in connection with the incident.

Santiago Barrera Brito, 17, awaits trial on charges of first-degree assault and second-degree illegal firearm possession. Police say he fired toward Zepeda, who suffered a leg wound in the shooting.

An arrest warrant is outstanding for Victor Flores Garcia, 21, on charges of first-degree assault and unlawful firearm possession

http://www.tdn.com/articles/2009/10/12/breaking_news/doc4ad3b29f2b6c3603619029.txt