Jury Acquits 4 Reputed Gang Members : Thousand Oaks: They were charged in a drive-by shooting. Deliberations for four others continue. Authorities contend that the prosecution shut down a gang.

A Ventura County jury acquitted four of eight reputed Thousand Oaks gang members Monday of conspiracy and assault charges, a setback to prosecutors’ hopes that a major conspiracy trial would send a strong warning to county gangs.

Before the Superior Court trial, prosecutors had proclaimed that the arrest, grand jury indictment and trial of eight members of the Small-Town Hoods had “shut down the gang.”

But the jury acquitted the four of charges that they had committed conspiracy and assault with a firearm in an April 27 drive-by incident in which shots were fired into a house. No one was injured in the shooting.

The jury found George Avina, 18, Marc Dean, 22, Tam Nguyen, 19, and John Pinkham, 21, not guilty.

But jurors have continued their weeklong deliberations regarding the remaining four defendants--Scott Kastan, 18, Joseph Cruz, 23, Wade Caddin, 19, and Adolfo Alvarez, 18.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Peter Brown declined to comment on the verdicts because of a gag order that Judge Allan Steele imposed early in the trial.

Outside the courtroom, the acquitted men hugged their families and rejoiced over the end of the six-week trial.

Avina, an admitted former member of the Small-Town Hoods, said the trial has cost him his girlfriend, his reputation and job prospects.

He said newspaper articles and photographs of his arraignment damaged his image.

“I can’t get a job in Thousand Oaks,” Avina said. “A lot of people that trusted me hate me now. . . . I had some of my relatives who had no idea about the case, they saw it in L.A. and called my home.”

Avina said he has stopped hanging out with gangs. “It’s not worth it, ‘cause you don’t get paid for it,” he said. “All you do is, you either go to prison or you’re dead.”

Pinkham’s attorney, Carl Osborne, said his client was merely a guest at a party that authorities had targeted for a mass sweep of gang members after receiving word that the shooters had attended the party.

“They just went back and decided all the defendants were involved,” he said.

Pinkham declined to comment on the case except to say, “It’s stupid.”

The county grand jury handed up its indictment June 26 against the eight defendants and two others, Nicholas Pupich and Aaron Jensen, 21.

The indictment said the 10 met at the Newbury Park house of fellow gang member Daniel Tillman to discuss, plan and organize an attack on rival gang members. Witnesses testified during the trial that the defendants planned to retaliate against members of the Houston Hoods, whom they believed had shot Tillman.

The indictment said the 10 piled into cars provided by Alvarez, Dean and Nguyen, drove past a house in the 600 block of Greenwich Drive and fired into the house with handguns.

The indictment also alleged that Kastan was one of the shooters.

Kastan is the only one of the four remaining defendants being held in County Jail. He is awaiting trial on a charge of murder in the May 31 drive-by shooting of Jennifer Jordan.

The 20-year-old mother was struck by a bullet fired at members of a rival gang.

Alvarez, Caddin and Cruz are free on bail pending the jury’s return.

Pupich and Jensen pleaded guilty to charges of assault with a firearm. Jensen was sentenced to one year in County Jail and five years probation. Pupich was sentenced in this case and an unrelated burglary case to three years and four months in state prison.