Edel Gonzalez Case Summary

“Three gang members were found guilty by a jury today for the 2013 killing of a 21-year-old Pasadena man, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced. Deputy District Attorney Stefan Mrakich of the Hardcore Gang Division said Peter Parra, 37, of Pasadena; Kevin Jessie Cabrera, 27, of North Hollywood; and Raymond Frank Conchas, 26, of Covina were all found guilty of one count each of first-degree murder, attempted second-degree robbery and conspiracy to commit a crime.”(Santiago) The defendants in the case are facing life in prison without the possibility of parole. All men involved in the case were of a minority background and involved heavily in the gang culture and lifestyle, but unlike sixteen-year-old Edel Gomez they were

Edel had never met his father and had a history of abuse. As a result, Edel turned to alcohol to help deal with the pain in his life, and to the gang, which was the only form of family he had come to know. At age sixteen, a “thoroughly drunk” Edel became involved in the theft of a vehicle with his gang that went horribly wrong. During the incident, a woman was shot and killed at the hands of another gang member involved. Sixteen-year-old Edel, along with the others involved was arrested and sentenced to life in prison without

After all, as mentioned in the article written on Edel, “critical brain development continues into the mid-20s for functions essential to evaluating risks, understanding consequences and the ability to resist peer pressure.”(Calvin) But, when looking at both Couch’s and Edel’s case side by side injustice is quite visible. It is unfair to use one's background and economic status as a defense and not use the others. This is clearly seen in the defense of Couch which used his background and economic status as causing his supposed disorder Affluenza. Whereas, neither the background nor economic status were taken into account in the ruling of Edel’s case where he was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison without parole at