Man Gets 6 Years in Jail for Threat

A gang member was sentenced to the maximum of six years in state prison Friday for threatening a North Hollywood mother of seven, whom the judge in the case called a “true hero.”

Maximilliano Guerrero, 20, had been convicted of making a terrorist threat against Viviana Guerra last year when he simulated a gun with his hand and said, “We’re going to get you tonight.”

Friday, the soft-spoken Guerra recounted for Van Nuys Superior Court Judge John Fisher the intimidation to which she has been subjected since she testified against Guerrero.

“Since he’s been in here, I’ve had my car ripped up,” Guerra said. “They totally destroyed it and said, ‘Mrs. Guerra, this is what happens for putting one of us away.’ He’s the defendant and I’m being completely destroyed.”

As he imposed the maximum sentence--three years for the threat and three years for his affiliation with an organized street gang--Fisher said: “The gang thinks it can get away with it, but it needs to be told it can’t. I think there’s no question here (that) the victim is a true hero.”

Guerra’s Tiara Street neighborhood is less than one block from the North Hollywood police station. Unlike most neighborhood residents, Guerra reports criminal activity to authorities, and she has testified several times against gang members. Her assistance has led to the convictions of several gang members, including Guerrero, authorities said.

For her efforts, she has been vilified in spray paint with such terms as “snitch” and “bitch of the street.” Gang members have also broken windows of her house and torn up her garden.

During Guerrero’s trial, Deputy Dist. Atty. Franco A. Baratta introduced a book compiled by police documenting more than 50 acts of vandalism and violence against Guerra and the apartment building she manages.

Guerra said Friday that she is constantly followed by young gang members, one of whom followed her to a supermarket on Father’s Day and smashed every window of her car.

Guerrero made no statement before sentencing. Dressed in a blue jail uniform and with his hands cuffed behind his back, he wore a slight smile--an expression Baratta called a smirk--throughout the proceeding.

“He may think this is some kind of a joke; he may think this is something easily passed by on the court because all he did was make a threat on a person,” Baratta said, arguing for a heavy sentence.

Guerrero has been in jail since last year. He could be eligible for parole in 2 1/2 years, Baratta said.

Defense attorney Daniel Blum urged Fisher to avoid “the temptation to punish this defendant for what the gang has done.” He asked that Guerrero be sentenced only for the “diminutive” crime of pointing his finger at Guerra.

His arguments failed to persuade the judge.

Guerra is a hero and a role model for her constant vigilance against gangs, police said.

“It’s very refreshing to see someone come forward knowing that the gang members are going to fall on her,” said Officer Gene Ferone, who is assigned to an anti-gang unit in North Hollywood. “She’s worked hard. She’s taken a lot.”

Although Guerra and police report that gang activity has decreased in her neighborhood in the past few weeks, one person was killed and another wounded in the area in gunfire earlier this week.

Nonetheless, police said increased patrols and word of Guerrero’s conviction have helped curb gang activity.

Although publicity has generated interest among film and television producers who want to tell Guerra’s story, she is hesitant to discuss her battle against gangs.

After the sentencing, Guerra was escorted from the courtroom by two police officers. Later, in an interview, she was extremely reluctant to comment on Guerrero’s prison term.

Preoccupied with the gunfire and violence that offten occur on Friday nights in her neighborhood, she said: “I’m just thinking about tonight.”