Local News in Brief : Gang-Linked Killing Brings 25-Year Term
A Pacoima man convicted of first degree murder for what police called a gang-related shooting was sentenced Wednesday to 25 years to life in state prison and a one-year term for using a firearm.
Ernesto Jaime Tellez, 19, killed James Michael Calloway with a shotgun blast to the head on Sept. 26, 1984, to “gain acceptance into the 18th Street gang,” according to a probation report. The gang is one of the largest in the San Fernando Valley, Deputy Dist. Atty. Kenneth A. Loveman said.
The victim was a former member of “Sol Trece,” a rival gang from Sun Valley, Loveman said.
Last month, another 18th Street gang member, Juan Zuniga, 19, was sentenced to 26 years to life for the fatal shooting of Jose Venegas Jr., a member of a third gang based in Pacoima.
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