People v. Meza CA3

FACTS

In an interview with police three days after the killing, defendant described what happened.1 He was formerly a member of the Brown Pride Sureño gang but was “jumped out” his senior year of high school. On May 5, 2008, he and codefendant Luis Serrato drove to a liquor store and purchased some beer. Defendant was carrying a Smith & Wesson .38 Special revolver in his waistband. As the two left the store, a yellow car pulled up and stopped. Its occupants started yelling at them, calling them “scraps” and “fucking scrap.” Defendant saw four people in the yellow car, three males and one female. He recognized the male driver as a Norteño gang member. Defendant and Serrato got into their own car. Defendant looked at the other car’s occupants, and it appeared to him that “they started to reach for something.” While telling Serrato to go, defendant pointed his gun towards the yellow car: “I seen a couple of ‘em tryin to reach for something. I don’t know if they were -- what they were tryin to reach for, so I was like man you sit there and laugh at my knife I can trump that right now and I just shot.” “All I heard is scraps and I just got the gun out. I just pointed the gun at ‘em…