By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
CHEHALIS – Juan Valentino Vasquez was released from jail yesterday after Lewis County prosecutors asked a judge to drop the charges against the accused drive-by shooter.
Vasquez, also known by his street name “Grover” according to police, was one of four individuals believed to be inside a Chevrolet Blazer from which somebody fired a round in August on Southwest William Street in Chehalis.
Juan Valentino Vasquez
Deputy Prosecutor Colin Hayes told a judge yesterday afternoon he had insufficient evidence to prove the case.
The Centralia man had been scheduled to go to trial next week in Lewis County Superior Court on charges of drive-by shooting and first-degree assault.
Outside the courtroom yesterday, Hayes declined to elaborate on the details behind the dismissal.
Vasquez is the second original suspect against whom charges have been dropped.
Last fall, similar charges were dismissed against Ruben Alberto Palomares because his wife’s statements against him would be inadmissible since her information came from privileged marital communications.
Centralia defense attorney Don Blair represented both men.
Andrew Morales-Loberg
The individual fingered as the actual shooter by the alleged target in the incident remains at large. A $500,000 warrant was issued last summer for Andrew Morales-Loberg, 19, of Chehalis.
He still hasn’t been found, Hayes said yesterday.
Authorities describe the shooting as related to a debt owed to somebody called “Candy man” and perpetrated by the LVL gang.
A .45 caliber round was found at the scene after the Aug. 7 incident on the 400 block of Southwest William Street. It missed several people standing outside but struck an unoccupied parked vehicle.
Chehalis police at the time described witnesses as reluctant to talk because of fear of gang retaliation.
LVL stands for Little Valley Locos or Little Valley Lokotes a gang locally made up mostly of individuals who grew up in Centralia when it was particularly active in the summer of 2007.
Chehalis police initially said the occupants of the SUV were Morales-Loberg, Vasquez, 24, Palomares, 25, of Tenino, and his wife, Christina Palomares, formerly Alaniz, 24.
The mother of three remains charged with drive-by shooting, however, she was released from jail in September on an unsecured bond.
Chehalis police said they believed Christina Palomares was the driver. Her trial is still scheduled for the week of April 18.
Drive-by shooting is a class B felony, with a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine.
Vasquez was jailed only about two months ago after police found him at a trailer home on Windsor Avenue.
A search of the trailer turned up a fully automatic Chinese SKS firearm, described by police as a shortened rifle, and illegal for anyone to possess. It was not believed to be the gun used in August.
Hayes yesterday said the order Judge Richard Brosey signed dismissing the charges against Vasquez were “without prejudice”, meaning they could be filed again at a later time.
•••
Read background on the case:
• “Mother of three charged in Chehalis drive-by shooting, husband turns self in” from Wednesday Aug. 11, 2010, here
• “Tenino couple’s arraignment for Chehalis drive-by shooting set for today” from Thursday Aug. 12, 2010, here
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter
“Drive-by shooting is a class B felony, with a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine.”
I thought there was a 16 year old boy who ended up getting a 99 year sentence recently for a drive by where 6 shots were fired and no one was hit.
On appeal, the judge reaffirmed the sentence.
I am confused.
Allow me to paraphrase your last statement:
Wow, you people are really lost. LvL is not about shooting people from moving vehicles. The origin of LvL is Los Angeles. LvL have had all the same opportunities that other successful people from inner-cities have had, but those opportunites were missed. LvL is a boxing organization that uses only hand to hand combat. I have been residing in Sunnyside, but I still act like I’m from a neighborhood in Mexico. Please don’t make me go back to Mexico.
Wtf? You guys are fucking shit up. LvL aint about drive byes and shootings ese. The roots of LVL come from Los Angeles. LVL had the chance that all the chavalitos messed up in LA. And u fucking up holmes. LVL fights one on one. Mano to mano. Its about business ese thats it. Been along time since. I been in Sunnyside but i still true to the barrio. Dont make me go up there.