Can a defendant who is charged with a charge of membership of a criminal gang commit one or more of the "two or more" predicate offenses necessary to establish a pattern of criminal gang activity?
California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Loeun, 17 Cal.4th 1, 69 Cal.Rptr.2d 776, 947 P.2d 1313 (Cal. 1997):
Defendant contends that even if the crime charged can constitute one of the statutorily required "two or more" predicate offenses to establish the requisite "pattern of criminal gang activity," as we held in People v. Gardeley, supra, 14 Cal.4th 605, 625, 59 Cal.Rptr.2d 356, 927 P.2d 713, the statutory requirement is met only if there has been at least one prior offense committed on a separate occasion. Otherwise, he argues, a defendant could not "know" that commission of the current offense would provide the second of the "two or more" predicate offenses necessary to establish a "pattern of criminal gang activity." Not so.
"The most advanced legal research software ever built."
The above passage should not be considered legal advice. Reliable answers to complex legal questions require comprehensive research memos. To learn more visit www.alexi.com.
