5 Gang Members Arraigned After Brawl; 1 Youth Dead

Five gang members from San Pedro were arraigned Wednesday on suspicion of murder and attempted murder after a brawl last weekend that left a 24-year-old man dead and several of his companions injured.

Three youths, also linked to the gang, were scheduled to be arraigned today on the same charges, authorities said.

The charges stem from an attack Saturday morning that began when a carload of San Pedro youths, who are not gang members, arrived at Royal Palms State Beach in San Pedro and were confronted by members of an area gang, according to Los Angeles police.

Homicide Detective Evangelyn Nathan said the 1:30 a.m. attack was apparently prompted by the gang members’ mistaken belief that the youth’s car had struck a car belonging to someone in the gang. “It basically started over nothing,” Nathan said.

Nathan said that after arguing at the park, the gang members chased the youths by car to an alley near Pacific Avenue and 40th Street where the youths met some friends and the brawl began.

During the fight, Robert Chartier, who was not involved in the original argument at the park, was repeatedly struck by a baseball bat wielded by a gang member, Nathan said. Chartier was later taken to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in critical condition and died early Tuesday morning after he was removed from a life-support system.

Three of Chartier’s companions were also reportedly injured in the attack, one of them seriously; police refused to release their identities.

Los Angeles police arrested eight gang members who were leaving the alley just as officers arrived, Nathan said.

Arraigned Wednesday in San Pedro Municipal Court were Cirilo Brambila, 22, Octaviano Saucedo, 21, Paul Bolta, 18, and Paco Saldana and Antonio Hernandez, both 19. The five, who remain in custody without bail, were each charged with one count of murder and three counts of attempted murder.

Authorities expect today to arraign three youths--ages 14, 16 and 17--on the same charges.