3 Face Murder Charges in Fire : Jurisprudence: Suspects are ordered to stand trial for arson blaze that killed five family members in Watts.

Three ex-convicts, whom prosecutors described as habitual drug users, have been ordered to stand trial on first-degree murder charges for setting an arson fire that killed five family members and sparked racial tensions at the Jordan Downs housing project in Watts.

The three men are accused of lighting the pre-dawn blaze last September to intimidate members of the Zuniga family, who had complained about narcotics dealing around their 102nd Street apartment. Eyewitnesses testified during a preliminary hearing this week that at least two of the suspects were spotted lurking in front of the unit’s mail chute, in which they allegedly poured gasoline and then ignited it with a match.

“We’ve had testimony that they were going to scare the family away,” Deputy Dist. Atty. Sterling Norris said Wednesday. “But the actual physical fact of somebody going up and pouring a couple of gallons of gas while people were sleeping certainly reeks of death and murder.”

The defendants, who are being held without bail and are scheduled for arraignment in Superior Court on July 28, could face the death penalty if convicted. They are Harold R. Mangram, 47; Victor Spencer, 38, and Frank C. Villareal, 28. The three, who have pleaded not guilty, are all Los Angeles residents who occasionally stayed at Jordan Downs or congregated there, officials said. Attempts to reach their attorneys were unsuccessful Wednesday.

Court records show that Mangram, who is known as “Granddad,” has been convicted of heroin possession, grand theft and receiving stolen property. Spencer has convictions for involuntary manslaughter and armed robbery. Villareal, known as “Little Man,” has served time for second-degree burglary.

Officials allege that Mangram was contracted to start the blaze by drug dealers in the neighborhood who were upset that the Zunigas--now living in an undisclosed location--had been confronting the dealers and complaining about drug use. Mangram, in turn, employed the other two suspects to commit the arson, prosecutors contend.

“These are people whose constant, everyday life is using drugs,” Norris said. “I think in the end it’s going to be pretty clear that they did it for drugs . . . or to preserve the atmosphere where they could continue to get drugs.”

The fire that erupted last Sept. 7 raced quickly through the 1,200-square-foot townhouse, where 17 people--most members of the Zuniga family--had been sleeping that night. Most escaped injury, but firefighters found two adults and three children huddled in a corner of an upstairs bedroom where they had apparently gone to flee the intense flames.

Killed instantly were Martha Zuniga, 22, her two children, Juan, 5, and Claudia, 4, and their great-grandmother, Margarita Hernandez, 78. The fifth victim, 1-year-old Veronica Lopez, clung to life for nearly 48 hours--partly because of the heroics of Hernandez, who shielded the toddler between her legs.

In the confusion of the moment, the family patriarch, 65-year-old Juan Zuniga, accidentally fired a shot into the chest of Gregory Moore, 34, a neighbor who was trying to offer help. Moore eventually recovered from his wound, but Zuniga--who was hospitalized for smoke inhalation--has since suffered several minor heart attacks, officials said.

In the days that followed the fire, the predominantly African-American housing project was thick with racial tension, although residents complained that incessant questioning from news crews exacerbated the sentiments and blew the incident out of proportion.

The five victims had all immigrated from Mexico in the beginning of 1991. As rumors circulated that the suspects were black, many Latino residents expressed fear and, though the idea was never seriously considered, even talked of establishing racially segregated buildings within the 691-unit complex.

As it turned out, one of the suspects is black, another Latino, and the third is described as having both black and Latino ancestry. Authorities do not believe the incident was racially motivated.

“It’s not a hatred thing or a race thing,” said Emory Cenance, president of the Jordan Downs Residents Advisory Council. “It’s just an incident that happened. You don’t forget things like that, but we’ve been coming together, learning to trust each other. . . .”