| For Immediate Release Case # 07WF1894September 12, 2007 |
Contact: Farrah Emami Spokesperson Office: 714-347-8405 Cell: 714-323-4486 |
THREE MEN CHARGED WITH HATE CRIME FOR ATTACKING LATINO MAN AFTER NIGHT OF DRINKING AT STRIP CLUB
WESTMINSTER – Three men were charged this morning with a hate crime for assaulting a Latino man after yelling racial slurs at him. James Joseph Kelly, 26, California City, Justin Louis Mullins 23, Garden Grove, and Cheyne Danica Wilson, 25, Hesperia, are charged with one felony count of aggravated assault with a sentencing enhancement for committing a hate crime in concert with others. Wilson is also charged with one misdemeanor count of carrying a loaded firearm in public. Mullins is also charged with misdemeanor driving under the influence of alcohol and driving with a blood alcohol of .08 percent or more. Kelly and Wilson face a maximum sentence of eight years in prison if convicted. Mullins has a prior strike for a 2005 criminal threats conviction and faces a maximum of 12 years in prison. They are scheduled to be arraigned this morning, September 12, 2007 in Department W-15, West Justice Center, Westminster.
On August 9, 2007, Kelly, Mullins, and Wilson were driving in two separate cars after a night of drinking at the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim game and Larry Flynt’s Hustler Club in Westminster. At approximately 2:00 a.m., Kelly and Mullins, who were in the same car, are accused of pulling up to a red light next to Felipe Alvarado, who was on his way to work as the night shift janitor at In-N-Out Burger in Garden Grove. Wilson was in a second car. Kelly and Mullins are accused of yelling at the victim and taunting him with racial slurs. The victim attempted to avoid a confrontation by rolling up his window and driving away. The defendants are accused of following him into the In-N-Out Burger parking lot, pulling Alvarado from his car, beating and kicking him as he was lying on the ground, and continuing to yell racial insults.
A citizen witnessed the attack and flagged down a police officer. Alvarado collapsed in the street as police arrived and was rushed to the hospital. The defendants attempted to flee the scene but were stopped by officers, who found a loaded handgun in Wilson’s car. Mullins, who was driving the car, had a .14 percent blood alcohol level.
Deputy District Attorney Scott Steiner of the Special Prosecutions Unit is prosecuting this case.
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