WHO’S WHO IN GANG-SHOOTING TRIALS

THE VICTIMS Frank Fernandez Jr., 4, was killed during the shootings as he sat in a car. It was his murder that prompted witnesses to come forward and testify.

Miguel (Smokey) Navarro, 18, a member of the rival 17th Street Gang, was also killed in the drive-by shooting.

Wounded: Inez Hernandez, 18; Richard Rendon, 26, who later had to have his left leg amputated above the knee; Anthony Carmona, 26; Jenny Hernandez, 21; Irene Fernandez, 23; Christopher Fernandez, 2, younger brother of slain boy.

THE DEFENDANTS Louis P. Valadez, 28, a member of the 5th Street Gang, is suspected of being the driver during the shootings; his red truck with the row of amber lights across the top was identified by several witnesses.

Robert P. Figueroa, 20, a member of the 5th Street Gang, was allegedly sitting on the passenger side of the truck.

Roman G. Menchaca, 19, another 5th Street member, was accused of being one of the gunmen, but a jury found him guilty only of conspiracy and could not reach a verdict on murder charges.

An unidentified 14-year-old member of the gang is accused of being another gunman. He is too young to be tried as an adult but is scheduled to be tried later as a juvenile.

THE INTIMIDATORS Richard Ramirez tried to run down Ralph Paul Rodriguez; he pleaded guilty to witness-intimidation charges and was sentenced to 10 months in County Jail.

Joel Delarosa threw a Molotov cocktail at the Rodriguez house and on another occasion stopped his car in front out of the house, yelled out Rodriguez’s name and told him, “I’m going to kill you.” Delarosa plead guilty to witness-intimidation charges and was given two years in prison.

Randy Martinez is alleged to have pointed a gun at Ralph Paul Rodriguez and threatened, “I’m going to kill you,” a few days after the Delarosa incident. His case is pending.

THE JUDGE Tully H. Seymour of the Superior Court ordered that a second jury hear the case concurrently when Menchaca was included as a last-minute defendant after a jury had been selected in the trial of Valadez and Figueroa. The two juries sat together almost until closing arguments, when defense strategies forced Seymour to have arguments for the Valadez-Figueroa case presented one day and the Menchaca case the next.

THE WITNESSES Ralph Rodriguez reached a breaking point at the hospital trying to console his cousin, Frank Fernandez, over the death of his 4-year-old son. Rodriguez was instrumental in getting eyewitnesses to break the gang “code of silence” and testify. For his trouble, he was relentlessly harassed and threatened, his house bombarded nightly with glass bottles. He had a $3,000 contract on his head and a constant stream of 5th Street Gang members driving by and shouting, “I’m gonna kill you.” When he buckled under the stress, he got his gun and began shooting into the air in frustration; police handcuffed him and took him to jail, much to the delight of gang members who were looking on; the district attorney’s office later apologized.

Ralph Paul Rodriguez, 12-year-old son of Ralph, told police that he and his 13-year-old sister, Linda, had seen Valadez’s pickup truck on the street while they were staying at their grandmother’s house. He also told officers that he heard Menchaca yell “We got them!”

Irene Fernandez, an ex-17th Street Gang member and cousin of slain Frank Jr., declared, “It was no longer gang against gang, it was them against the family.” She testified at the trial and identified Louis P. Valadez as driver of the truck, Roman G. Menchaca as one of the shooters and Robert Figueroa as a passenger.

Jenny Hernandez, Irene’s cousin, also testified at the trial and implicated Menchaca and Figueroa.

Rebecca Mercado, a close family friend, also pointed a finger at Menchaca.

THE LAWYERS C. Thomas McDonald, Menchaca’s attorney, put on the most aggressive defense and boldly proclaimed that he would name the real killers. It was partly that strategy that caused David A. Zimmerman and Julian W. Bailey, attorneys for Valadez and Figueroa respectively, to split ranks with McDonald. That led to the juries hearing closing arguments separately.

Thomas Avdeef, a deputy district attorney, prosecuted Valadez, Figueroa and Menchaca for conspiracy, first-degree murder and attempted murder in connection with the Sept. 16 drive-by shooting in Garden Grove. He was also instrumental in prosecuting three gang members who threatened the life of witness Ralph Rodriguez.