Is gang membership admissible in a criminal case?

and should be excluded if its probative value is minimal. (People v. Hernandez (2004) 33 Cal.4th 1040, 1049.) Evidence of gang membership, however, is often relevant to and admissible regarding the charged offense. (Ibid.) "Evidence of the defendant's gang affiliation - including evidence of the gang's territory, membership, signs, symbols, beliefs and practices, criminal enterprises, rivalries, and the like - can help prove identity, motive, modus operandi, specific intent, means of applying force or fear, or other issues pertinent to guilt of the charged crime." (Ibid.)