• Parents Accused of Murdering Daughter’s Pimp After Authorities Refused to Help
    36 replies, posted
[quote] A San Francisco couple whose teenage daughter was allegedly being pimped by a Southern California man tracked him around the state, failing at one attempt to kill him before shooting him to death near Candlestick Park, authorities said Wednesday. Attorneys for the couple say that they tried everything to rescue their daughter from Calvin Sneed, a 22-year-old alleged gang member from Compton (Los Angeles County), but that they didn't kill him. Prosecutors, however, say that when Barry Gilton and his longtime girlfriend, Lupe Mercado, couldn't get their 17-year-old daughter back through legitimate means, they turned to premeditated murder. Gilton, 38, and Mercado, 37, appeared in court Wednesday on murder and other charges for allegedly shooting Sneed in the Bayview neighborhood in the early hours of June 4. The couple have been together since middle school and live with their three other children in San Francisco. Their daughter disappeared some time ago and after searching for her, Gilton and Mercado discovered that she was turning tricks and that Sneed was her pimp, their attorneys said. "They had gone out to local police agencies, agencies in Southern California - they had even tried talking to national organizations," said Eric Safire, Gilton's attorney. "Every place they turned to turned them away." L.A. shooting Eventually, they found out that the girl and Sneed were in North Hollywood, San Francisco police Officer David Nakasu said in the criminal complaint. On May 27, someone fired a 9 mm pistol into Sneed's car, and police believe that it was either Gilton or Mercado. The complaint says Sneed was hit at least once. However, Los Angeles police Detective Thomas Townsend said Wednesday that none of the several rounds a single shooter fired into the car hit Sneed. The shooter escaped, police said. The couple's lawyers say their daughter accompanied Sneed to the hospital after the May 27 incident. On June 4, Sneed was in San Francisco, driving his Toyota Camry at Meade and LeConte avenues at 2 a.m., when someone - prosecutors say it was Gilton - shot him with a .40-caliber handgun. Sneed crashed into a parked car and died a short time later at San Francisco General Hospital. A few hours later, police questioned the girl at the Bayview Station, Safire said. On Saturday, her parents were arrested. The daughter is staying with family members, as are Gilton and Mercado's three other children. Sneed was a victim of a drive-by shooting in South Los Angeles last year, according to Los Angeles police. An appeal filed in a murder case involving a friend of his said that both the friend and Sneed were members of the Nutty Block Crip street gang. Sneed's family could not be reached for comment. Court appearance Gilton and Mercado appeared in San Francisco Superior Court on Wednesday as at least 15 relatives and friends, many weeping, looked on. Mercado's dark hair was in braids and her eyes large and fearful as the couple's arraignments were postponed to next week. Their family declined to comment outside court, but their attorneys described the couple as lifelong San Francisco residents who have been dating since their teens. "The motive is all they (prosecutors) have, as far as we're concerned," said Tony Tamburello, Mercado's attorney. "This would not be the first time the police and prosecutors got it wrong." Gilton, a former high school basketball star, was convicted in 1995 of drug dealing and possession. He and Mercado face charges of murder, conspiracy to commit murder and one count of discharging a firearm at an occupied vehicle. Gilton was also charged with possession of a firearm as a felon. D.A. confident Alex Bastian, a spokesman for the district attorney, denied that the charges were based purely on motive. "San Francisco police have thoroughly investigated this case, and the investigation is not limited to San Francisco," he said. "We would not charge a case unless we had a good-faith basis that we could prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt." If convicted, Mercado faces 25 years to life in prison. Gilton could be sentenced to life without parole. They are each held being held in lieu of $2 million bail. [/quote] Read more: [url]http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/06/13/BAF01P1GIH.DTL#ixzz1xybfRkC9[/url]
Not saying it's the right thing to do, but can't say I wouldn't do the same.
And nothing of value was lost, except a pimp's hand :v:
under the same circumstances, i'd do the same
I wouldn't exactly support this kind of action normally, but seeing how the law failed to do its job, i think it was about time the parents took matters into their own hands.
Why do I hear so many stories about the police refusing to help people? It's kind of sad, since it's their job they chose to do.
[quote]If convicted, Mercado faces 25 years to life in prison. Gilton could be sentenced to life without parole.[/quote] Gotta love that sexual equality.
[QUOTE=Forumaster;36355918]Gotta love that sexual equality.[/QUOTE] what
its sad they are getting really harsh sentences. Just parents protecting their children.
[QUOTE=Zambies!;36355943]what[/QUOTE] The woman could get as little as 25 years. The man is automatically going to get life without parole. They're both being charged with exactly the same crimes.
[QUOTE=Forumaster;36355918]Gotta love that sexual equality.[/QUOTE] [t]http://i.imgur.com/dgFpg.jpg[/t] you're truly a paragon of sexual equality
[QUOTE=Sanius;36356046][img]http://i.imgur.com/dgFpg.jpg[/img] you're truly a paragon of sexual equality[/QUOTE] [IMG]http://i.imgur.com/dEGpu.png[/IMG]
[QUOTE=Sanius;36356046][t]http://i.imgur.com/dgFpg.jpg[/t] you're truly a paragon of sexual equality[/QUOTE] [img]https://dl.dropbox.com/u/11648828/1339875728169%20%281%29.jpg[/img]
Well, this thread's off to a great start people. :suicide:
Documented evidence that pimping ain't easy.
I hope they are found innocent on a fluke or at least don't get that much time. If I was on the jury, I'd be very lenient towards them even if they were guilty of murder.
[QUOTE=Forumaster;36356021]The woman could get as little as 25 years. The man is automatically going to get life without parole. They're both being charged with exactly the same crimes.[/QUOTE] I think the guy's getting life without parole because of all the [b]other charges[/b]. You know, like [b]felony possession of a firearm as a felon.[/b] Or did you just selectively not read the fact that he was previously arrested on [b]felony drug charges.[/b]? [quote=article]Gilton, a former high school basketball star, [b]was convicted in 1995 of drug dealing and possession.[/b] He and Mercado face charges of murder, conspiracy to commit murder and one count of discharging a firearm at an occupied vehicle. [b]Gilton was also charged with possession of a firearm as a felon.[/b][/quote] Possession of a firearm as a felon is an incredibly strong crime, and has an extremely long sentence by itself. They are [b]not[/b] getting charged with the same crimes. The judicial system is incredibly harsh on repeat felonies. The man was already convicted of one felony - if he gets convicted of another felony, since it is the second time he's been convicted of one, he gets a multiplier on his sentence. Get off the fucking high horse.
[QUOTE=Sanius;36356046][t]http://i.imgur.com/dgFpg.jpg[/t] you're truly a paragon of sexual equality[/QUOTE] I don't really see the sexual inequality there, he's just making a point about something that women do sometimes [editline]16th June 2012[/editline] [QUOTE=Gmod4ever;36357372]I think the guy's getting life without parole because of all the [b]other charges[/b]. You know, like [b]felony possession of a firearm as a felon.[/b] Or did you just selectively not read the fact that he was previously arrested on [b]felony drug charges.[/b]? Possession of a firearm as a felon is an incredibly strong crime, and has an extremely long sentence by itself. They are [b]not[/b] getting charged with the same crimes. Get off the fucking high horse.[/QUOTE] lol calm down he was just confused, I'd say you should get off your high horse because you're bashing this dude when it was obviously just a misunderstanding
Is the father Robert de Niro by any chance?
That being said, I don't think I can really support what the parents allegedly did. We don't really know enough about the story. Did the daughter run away, or was she kidnapped? Did she choose to become a prostitute, or was she forced into it? If the parents wanted to get her back, but she didn't want to go back, then there's damn well not much that can be done about it - and if that is the case, then I can't support the parents doing this. If, on the other hand, she was snagged off the street and forced to become a prostitute, and the police still refused to help them, then I can suddenly see a lot more justification in the parents' alleged actions - they were trying to defend their daughter. As it stands, though, I can't really support what they allegedly did.
Can't really say I blame 'em.
Reminds of Liam Neeson in Taken, except not as badass.
did they also steal his cocaine and take it to LA to sell it
The only reason these people are being prosecuted, is because of their initial involvement with the police. It is because of those documented encounters that the police are able to pin them as the ones with 'motive' Lesson Learned. Don't go to the police for help.
[img]http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JniQ2dUcI7M/Tylc9dXJO6I/AAAAAAAADLE/B9bxK4n0Nx0/s1600/taxi1bloodyfinger1.jpg[/img]
I'd call this a killing and not a murder, morality is subjective and hopefully the courts will respect that in this case. On another note, why exactly did the police refuse to help? Unless the Parents' claims had no evidence behind it.
[QUOTE=U.S.S.R;36360629]I'd call this a killing and not a murder, morality is subjective and hopefully the courts will respect that in this case. On another note, why exactly did the police refuse to help? Unless the Parents' claims had no evidence behind it.[/QUOTE] Killing somebody else (Outside of service) is considered murder, hands down. Courts don't respect morality. They're supposed to just look at the case and decide from there. You don't know what you're talking about. But now that I know that he was a repeated felon, I don't feel so bad for him...
[QUOTE=Mrs. Moon;36360669]Killing somebody else (Outside of service) is considered murder, hands down. Courts don't respect morality. They're supposed to just look at the case and decide from there. You don't know what you're talking about. But now that I know that he was a repeated felon, I don't feel so bad for him...[/QUOTE] Well, the mitigating factors which make for the entire framework of the murder are based on morality. I suppose 'respect' for those factors wouldn't be correct. More so that they will use the motive as a factor behind the murder, and lessen or dissolve the charges based on that. There is always the possibility that the murder was done for a completely different reason and the Parents are simply lying as a cover, as the article did say the daughter was 'allegedly' being pimped.
Who here is hoping for jury nullification?
[QUOTE=BuffaloBill;36355472]Not saying it's the right thing to do, but can't say I wouldn't do the same.[/QUOTE] Fuck yes it's the right thing to do; some people deserve to die.
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