What is required to sustain criminal charges under Californias anti-gang statutes?

In 1988 the California Legislature enacted the Street Terrorism Enforcement and Prevention Act (“the STEP Act”) for the express purpose of eradicating criminal activity by street gangs.  Most pertinent to your situation is the fact that the STEP Act imposes additional penalties for felony offenses committed “for the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with any criminal street gang.”  Penal Code section § 186.22, subd. (a) provides that: “[a]ny person who actively participates in any criminal street gang with knowledge that its members engage in or have engaged in a pattern of criminal gang activity, and who willfully promotes, furthers, or assists in any felonious criminal conduct by members of that gang, shall be punished by imprisonment in a county jail for a period not to exceed one year, or by imprisonment in the state prison for 16 months, or two or three years.”

A “criminal street gang” is defined as an ongoing association of three or more persons – with a common name or identifying sign or symbol – that commits certain enumerated criminal offenses as primary activities and whose members engage in a pattern of criminal gang activity.  A gang engages in a “pattern of criminal gang activity” when its members participate in two or more predicate offenses that are committed within a certain time frame and “on separate occasions, or by two or more persons.” (Id., subd. (e).)

The California Supreme Court has also held that held that requisite pattern of criminal gang activity can be established by evidence of the instant offense with which defendant is charged, plus proof of another offense committed on the same occasion by a fellow gang member.

Thus, under the latter standard, if as a result of your participation in a gang-related fight involving two or more of your friends you are convicted of two or more felonies – hypothetically, let’s say multiple counts of assault with intent to create great bodily injury – a judge or jury could find that the prosecution has also satisfied its burden of proving that you and your friends were engaged in a “pattern of criminal gang activity.”   It would be advisable for you not to get involved in your friends’ conflicts.  If you do and find yourself under arrest, it would behoove you to consult with an experienced criminal defense attorney as soon as possible.