Gang member sentenced to life in prison on probation for contract killing of Buena Park man at 39 – Orange County Register

A Pacoima gang member sentenced to life in prison for his role in the high-profile 2002 murder-for-hire of a Buena Park businessman was quietly paroled last month after nearly 18 years behind bars, the Southern California News Group has learned.

Gerardo Lopez was three months shy of his 18th birthday when he took part in the botched kidnapping of 44-year-old Buena Park businessman David Montemayor. Montemayor ran a family-owned trucking business in the unincorporated Dominguez Hills area between Carson and Long Beach.

Lopez was tried as an adult, found guilty, and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in 2006 for the shooting death of Montemayor, although his role was limited to the kidnapping, not the killing.

In 2017, California passed a law that retroactively eliminated life without parole sentences for juveniles. The new law stipulated that anyone sentenced to life without parole for a crime committed before age 18 would be eligible for parole at a juvenile offender parole hearing in the 25th year of incarceration.

As a result, Lopez was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison in April 2017 to make him eligible for parole due to his age at the time of the murder.

Another California law, Assembly Bill 1812, which took effect two years later, allowed inmates sentenced to life without parole for crimes committed as juveniles to seek a reduced sentence after serving at least 15 years. Lopez therefore petitioned the court for a reduced sentence.

The bill outlined factors that courts should consider in re-sentencing, including:

• The inmate's disciplinary record and his rehabilitation record while incarcerated. Lopez, now 39, was incarcerated in prisons in Wasco, Corcoran, Delano and Imperial counties and had two serious violations, said Mary Xjimenez, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
• Evidence as to whether the prisoner's risk of future violent acts has decreased due to his age, time already served and deteriorating physical condition.
• Evidence that circumstances have changed since the prisoner's original conviction such that the prisoner's continued detention is no longer in the interests of justice.

Despite objections from the Orange County District Attorney's Office, Superior Court Judge Vibhav Mittal resentenced Lopez on August 16, 2024, changed his criminal conviction to a juvenile conviction, and ordered his release.

Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer condemned the decision.

“California law has progressed to the point where there is no truth in sentencing and there are little to no consequences for committing the most heinous crimes,” Spitzer said in a statement. “This case is another painful example of how the rights of cold-blooded killers continue to take precedence over the rights of victims.”

Lopez essentially received a get-out-of-prison free card without a parole board ever determining that he was no longer a danger to society, Spitzer added.

Four days after his resentencing, Lopez left prison and has since deported himself to Mexico, officials said.

Montemayor's widow, Susan Montemayor, 64, of Buena Park, said she was disappointed Lopez was released. “I realize there's not much I can do,” she added. “I feel a little helpless at this point.”

Five other people were convicted in connection with Montemayor's murder, including his older sister, Deborah Perna of Anaheim, who initiated the kidnapping plan and is serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

In addition, Edelmira Corona of Pico Rivera, who worked with Perna in the trucking business, was sentenced to 14 years in prison and has since been released. Three gang members – Anthony Navarro of Canyon County, Armando Macias of Lancaster and Alberto Martinez of Castaic – remain on death row.

According to prosecutors, Perna became jealous after learning that her father wanted to transfer control of the family business to Montemayor, who she believed was robbing the company.

Perna asked Corona to help her organize the murder of Montemayor. Corona and Perna then enlisted the help of Navarro, who recruited members of his San Fernando Valley gang, including Lopez, to carry out the kidnapping and murder.

Montemayor was kidnapped from his family's trucking business in Dominguez Hills and put in a car by gang members who thought they would find a small fortune in cash hidden in coffee cans in the garage of his Buena Park home.

However, once they were on the way, Montemayor thwarted the kidnapping by storming out of the car instead of leading the gang members to his house, where his wife and two children were waiting.

Macias shot Montemayor as he tried to flee, sparking a wild police chase through the streets of Orange County that was captured by television helicopters. The gang members were arrested when the vehicle crashed.

Originally published: September 13, 2024 at 5:08 p.m.