Ortiz

FACTS

Events Precipitating the Lawsuit

At around 1:00 a.m. on January 19, 2008, Samuel Pinto and Carlton Benson drove to a 7-Eleven located at 1519 N. Gaffey in San Pedro in a white van. Pinto was the driver of the van and parked directly in front of the store in a 10-minute parking zone. Pinto and Benson purchased beer, cigarettes, and soda. After departing the store, they remained parked in the van for a few minutes. Pinto and Benson may have been drinking alcohol and/or smoking marijuana in the van. While Pinto and Benson were parked in the lot, a group of approximately 10-15 people, including Francisco and plaintiffs Jamie and Jorge, arrived at the 7-Eleven in a limousine bus. The bus was parked on Capital Drive, north of the 7-Eleven. Gene Solano and Delilah Smith got out of the bus, went into the 7-Eleven, and almost immediately exited the store. On their way out, they had a brief verbal exchange with Pinto and Benson. Neither Pinto nor Benson got out of the vehicle. Upon returning to the bus, Solano and Smith warned the rest of the group that the men in the van might cause trouble. Jaime and Jorge left the bus and could hear yelling or arguing as they walked across the…