WOODLAND — Trial proceedings for the six alleged gang members charged with a downtown Davis stabbing death will begin Nov. 7.
Maybe.
Once again, coordinating court dates among the defendants’ seven lawyers proved challenging Monday as Yolo Superior Court Judge David Rosenberg attempted to schedule the trial before the end of the calendar year.
“December is not a good time to be setting a six-week jury trial,” as it’s difficult to select jurors during the holidays, Rosenberg told the defense team, which favored trial dates in late 2016 or early 2017. Neither option sat well with prosecutor Garrett Hamilton, who wanted the case tried in late September.
But conflicting trials in other jurisdictions and one defense attorney’s scheduled vacation left Rosenberg looking at the November calendar. At least two defense lawyers said they have other trials set that month, and Rosenberg said he would consider motions to reschedule the Yolo County proceedings.
Several defense attorneys have indicated they plan to file motions to dismiss the charges outlined in a grand jury indictment handed down in May. That hearing is set for Aug. 26.
Carlos Biviescas, Martyn Contreras, Anthony Rivera, Joseph Sandeno, Zackary Sandeno and Victor Vergara have pleaded not guilty to charges of murder and criminal-street gang activity for their alleged roles in the Sept. 19, 2015, stabbing death of Los Angeles college student Peter Gonzales at the KetMoRee nightclub at Third and G streets.
Gonzales, 23, had been in Davis to celebrate his sister’s wedding when the fatal altercation broke out inside the club. Davis police have said all six defendants are members of Norteño-affiliated street gangs in Vacaville.
Vergara, identified by authorities as the person who allegedly stabbed Gonzales, also faces several charging enhancements and special-circumstance allegations that, if proven, would send him to prison for life without the possibility of parole. Prosecutors have said they do not plan to pursue the death penalty.
— Reach Lauren Keene at lkeene@davisenterprise.net or 530-747-8048. Follow her on Twitter at @laurenkeene