Judge advances gang-related assault case against three defendants
Prosecutors say the defendants repeatedly kicked, punched, and stomped an unconscious victim
– Three co-defendants will face trial on assault charges following a preliminary hearing in San Luis Obispo County Superior Court, District Attorney Dan Dow announced.
Judge Michael Duffy ordered Alex LopezRamirez, Miguel Mendez, and Brian RamirezLopez to answer all charges and allegations contained in the complaint.
The three defendants allegedly participated in a group assault near Hotel Cerro in downtown San Luis Obispo on Oct. 6, 2024.
According to evidence presented during the preliminary hearing, the defendants acted as a group and repeatedly stomped, kicked, and punched the victim in the middle of the road. The group allegedly continued stomping and kicking the victim in the face after he lay motionless and unconscious in the street.
Emergency personnel transported the victim to a hospital for treatment of severe injuries. Video captured the assault, and the court also received additional recordings of the defendants made after the attack as evidence.
Authorities identified the three defendants as members of a Santa Maria criminal street gang and identified the victim as a member of a rival Santa Maria criminal street gang.
Each defendant faces a charge of assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury. Prosecutors also allege that each defendant personally inflicted great bodily injury and committed the crime for the benefit of a criminal street gang.
The court found sufficient evidence at this stage of the proceedings to support all charges and allegations.
“Gang violence has no place in San Luis Obispo County,” District Attorney Dan Dow said. “This was a brutal group attack that continued even after the victim was unconscious and defenseless in the middle of a public street. Our community is safer when those who bring this kind of violence here are held fully accountable, and this office will continue to pursue that accountability alongside our law enforcement partners.”
The San Luis Obispo Police Department, the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office Bureau of Investigators, and the Santa Maria Police Department investigated the case. Deputy District Attorney Cameron Simoes is prosecuting it.
Victim Advocate Dona Reed and Witness Coordinator Kellie Navarro provided victim-witness services.
All three defendants remain out of custody. They are scheduled for arraignment at 8:30 a.m. Sept. 17 in Department 6 of San Luis Obispo County Superior Court.
All defendants are legally presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
