The rapper denied this new accusation. They need their cut, he said. Sanchez was laying low, but Ramirez expected him to pop up again. [Gratton] said he was sick and tired of going to prison, he didnt want to go back, he wants to be legitimate, Dyno recalls, so he wants to sell cars and start a record company. Three leaders soon emerged at Pelican Bay, filling the ranks of the gang's mesa, or board of directors: David "DC" Cervantes of Chino, Jose "Huerito" Gonzalez and James "Conejo" Perez. The idea was that rap music could unite and galvanize young Norteo soldiers across the state, and it did. A federal grand jury in San Francisco handed down 21 indictments against gang members, including the three generals and captain Gerald Cuete Rubalcaba. Ramiro Goose Garcia from Stockton complained that the gang wasnt sufficiently exploiting the Central Valley drug market. But a year into the case, the governments complaint against Sir Dyno shifted course. Otherwise, he was free to go about his business. Its the life story of a petty hood who reached his full criminal potential only afterentering the California prison system. But nowhere on the CD, or in the lyrics, do the words Nuestra Familia appear. Within minutes, the gang member confessed his role in Nuestra Familia and offered to trade information for leniency. Daniel Lizard Hernandez was awakened by an FBI agent at 4 a.m. a few weeks ago. And with an ever-increasing prison population that only assures the continued growth of it and other gangs, the very segregation that bolstered the gangs strength appears irrevocable. I know theres some things you dont ask., Dyno claims thats the moment he realized hed been duped and would never see his cash. gang activity in Northern California about six years ago. He told Ramirez there should be no bloodshed. But then he added: If something comes at us, you cant help it. Im not sure you can undo it.. One by one, the street commanders paid their respects. Zilversmit represents Armando Suave Heredia, a gang member arrested for ordering a successful hit on Salinas heroin dealer Ray Sanchez. Not with NF.. Helton checked out Grattons business licenses, and learned of Sir Dynos involvement through the music distributor. When he entered Corcoran State Prison in 1989 for selling cocaine, he joined Nuestra Raza, a recruiting gang for the more esteemed Nuestra Familia. I didnt care, he said later. He folded up the missive, stuck it to a piece of gum, and dangled it into Smileys cell using a thread of elastic hed plucked from his waistband. Hed began his criminal career as a teenage norteo gang member, pulling off smash-and-grab robberies of jewelry stores. If they come for him, he said, he worries only for them, his enemies. Like all Latino males incarcerated in California for the past three decades, Lizard was forced to choose a gang allegiance once inside prison. Lizard said Bob was marked because hed stuck his nose into matters that didnt concern him. That was their fuck-up. Hernandez never belonged to either group until he ended up in prison. His most recent, Engrave These Words on My Stone, is probably his most cathartic, if not authentic. Sir Dyno accepts this rivalry, and its where many of his raps come from. When the cheerleading coach broke the news to Katrina Kohel that she was the only one left on the cheer squad, Kohel was determined to compete anyway. In total, aside from the five convictions and twenty guilty pleas credited to Lizards grand jury testimony and undercover work, federal officials said Operation Black Widow led to a total of 75 Nuestra Familia convictions. Almost two decades later, Lizard still recalls the clarity of that moment. Arnold Schwarzenegger protested the fact that the five were not scattered across the federal prison system, as former U.S. Attorney Robert Mueller's staff had promised. Everyone says they want to rap, says they want to make CDs, but David was really doing it. Daniel "Lizard" Hernandez helped Nuestra Familia run a criminal empire from inside state prison. After he was expelled, his parents sent him back north to live with an aunt in Pittsburg, where he continued to carouse. A general named Art Big Smiley Ramirez was transferred from Pelican Bay to the cell directly below his own. While awaiting sentencing for armed robbery, he said, he knifed a member of the Aryan Brotherhood in self-defense. Then in late April 2001, more than two years since hed last spoken to Robert Gratton, he was summoned to a meeting with his parole officer. Whites joined the Aryan Brotherhood or Nazi Low Riders for protection. Request a quote for the most accurate & reliable non-lethal training, Get Curious Before Getting Furious: How Cynicism Impacts Behavior On Scene, Authorities say Nuestra Familia's revisions mean more violence in streets By Julia ReynoldsThe Monterey County HeraldMONTEREY COUNTY, Calif. Monterey County's deadliest gang has new leadership and a new constitution, forcing changes that law enforcement officers say is translating to increased violence in the streets. I fear no man, he said. with prosecutors for reduced sentences, The Press Democrat reported Gratton, Sir Dyno says, wanted him to aim his lyrics at bringing together norteos. When Lizard arrived in January of 1995, he checked in with the ranking gang member. Operation Knockout Jan 27, 2005. As he awaits his new sentence, Lizard also awaits his new identity. Cuete arranged for the new hotshot to move into his cell. Citing the First Amendment, the DA chose not to pursue the case. One such order last year told Norte-os across Northern California to clean the streets of Sure-os. Lizard had made other deals, too. Up to that point, Lizard had identified himself as a Sureo, but only when pressed. The prosecutors revealed that Gratton would testify Sir Dyno dealt meth on his behalf. Or were they? Jared Lewis, a former Modesto gang investigator, says the impact of G.U.N. He reiterated that he told Martinez clearly: no bloodshed., How could I order the hit? he asked. 305. Lizard claimed Norteo. While Nuestra Familia is primarily a Chicano gang, membership sometimes extends to other Latinos as well as non-Latinos. Time to go, the agent said. Arresting the majority of the defendants was easy; they were already in prison. The system certainly creates you, makes you decide. Were moving your ass. Holguin and his team came up empty that night. At the end of the day he gets to go home.. What if you get away with it? The large XIV across his throat represented the fourteenth letter of the alphabet, N, for Norte. That was enough to send Holguin back to Lizards hotel room to make an arrest. Whatever it is, you gotta go to the extreme. Rocha was asked, Do you want to speak to an attorney? Rocha did not respond, and went on to state, Im a musician. He also stated something to the effect, If you have a landscaper work on your yard, you dont care where the equipment comes from.'. I dont rattle, he said. Ramirez bragged to Lizard that hed already chased Sanchez out of Salinas Chinatown at least once, and had warned him that he needed to pay taxes if he wanted to deal in Salinas. He always offered to learn more and do more to serve the organization. In November 1986, Lizard tried out these new skills on another inmate and was transferred to San Quentin. He suggested that gang members cook our own shit to gain control, saying he could make twenty pounds of raw meth in one batch. Sir Dyno was born. But the state prison guards union and correctional officials have argued that to mix inmates now would only bring more violence. New soldiers became captains and generals by stabbing or killing people. Theres no denying Sir Dyno is norteo, but hes careful to explain that a norteo isnt necessarily a gang member, just a Chicano proud of his provenance. In the aftermath of Operation Black Widow, the five highest-ranking leaders of Nuestra Familia, James "Tibbs" Morado, Joseph "Pinky" Hernandez, Gerald "Cuete" Rubalcaba, Cornelio Tristan, and Tex Marin Hernandez, were transferred to the United States Penitentiary, Florence ADX, the federal supermax prison in Colorado. And frankly, heres a guy whos committed numerous violent crimes, and hes getting a free pass. In the logic of the Chicano intrastate rivalry, there are norteos and sureos, and even if youre not running with the corner gang, youre still vulnerable to getting whacked by your enemy. 15 year old Carlos "Casper" Silva a Preston parolee is arrested murders 3 people witin a seven week span on behalf of Nuestra familia. In the aftermath of Operation Black Widow, the five highest-ranking leaders of Nuestra Familia, James "Tibbs" Morado, Joseph "Pinky" Hernandez, Gerald "Cuete" Rubalcaba, Cornelio . This time, Goose brought bar charts to show drug production and expected net profits. Finally, he was going to San Francisco to testify. Its not like her life used to be.. Gratton is the guy whos going to make the entire case against David; its his word against Davids. Nuestra Familia (Spanish for "our family") is a criminal organization of Mexican American (Chicano) prison gangs with origins in Northern California. Sir Dyno believed hed just made a wise career choice. He recorded From the Barrio with Love, taking his name outside California and into pockets of Chicano markets in places such as Phoenix, Denver, and Albuquerque. He took the gangs oath, Blood in, blood out, and rose to the rank of captain within a few years. All Gratton needed was a rapper. A small minority within the gang has not transferred loyalty to Cervantes, Santa Cruz County's Morales said. In 1968, in response to La Emes overwhelming power, a group of Norteos bonded together in the exercise yard of what was then named Soledad State Prison. Consider this reasoning using an unrelated example: All chickens are bipeds; John Ashcroft is a biped. Now, nearly all Norte-o soldiers and Nuestra Familia regiment captains across California answer to Cervantes, gang experts say, but re-establishing the gang's control over the streets has not been easy. The only way to sell was to shock, he says. She was nicknamed Crazy Girl and had the moniker tattooed over her right kneecap, according to FBI documents. But witnesses corralled by police later refused to work with the district attorney. Even though he was broke and sleeping on friends couches, Sir Dyno felt he was on the cusp of the big time, ready to break. Nearby cops heard the shots and pulled in quickly. In August 1998, the CD appeared on the radar of Tim Helton, an investigator on Modestos Street Terrorism and Apprehension Team. But the feds believe his relationship with Gratton ran deeper than words on wax. In his FBI interrogation, Gratton never makes it clear whether Sir Dyno knew he was rapping for the mob, or that North Star Records had been set up to launder money. The largest and most feared Latino prison gang was the Sureo-based Mexican Mafia, or La Eme. I was showing them everything., Today, Lizard said he flipped because he was tired of people pushing their own agendas. dozens of murders while imprisoned at Pelican Bay, including They were much smaller than the Mexican Mafia, so they used it to their advantage, gang expert Jared Lewis said. Years earlier, a young Norteo paroled from Pelican Bay had given a Santa Rosa detective a lead into the prison gang. There were three-way calls, where inmates from two different prisons called a gang member known as a gente on the outside, who held the phones together so they could talk. It gives you a sense of purpose. Lizard first went to prison when he was nineteen. But Lizard hadnt exactly gone straight. F. FuckScrapz209. The gang's new constitution says the five should still be respected as former leaders, but has stripped them of their power in California. A judge will decide in December whether his cooperation as an informant outweighs his considerable criminal past. Its estimated for every NF member, there are seven La Eme. Lizard said he attacked Huero-T as he slept, pummeling him into a bloody mess until guards pulled him off. If he stayed in Corcoran, hed have to watch his back for young Norteos. interacts online and researches product purchases None of these other [Nuestra Familia members] have a thing to say about [Sir Dyno], Manson says. As a kid growing up in this small town, David Rocha was a freestyle BMXer who bounced along on one wheel during Fourth of July parades. Today, the real Sir Dyno has five kids, a home in Tracy, and makes a living off CD sales, which he estimates at beyond 100,000 nationwide. The history of that hit calls into question the governments handling of Lizard. They spent the next two days debriefing their new informant. He complained again that his overhead was too high; he had to charge $3,200 per pound of meth, while his competitors were selling it at $2,600 to $2,800. CD, Lewis and Helton say. It gives you something to do. gang's leaders communicated by some form of secret code within the Read another way, hes merely been persistent in denying his role. , Just as knowledge can be the key, there is strength in numbers; therefore, we norteos can no longer continue to fight against one another. [21] Besides directing the tone of the project, Gratton asked to narrate the intro. But paid parking could return, in some form, this year, as the city works to pu. But government agents said that Brown Bob actually had pulled away from the gang. David Rochas arrest report depicts a guy caught off guard. To test his allegiance, he was ordered to move on his cellmate, Johnny Huero-T Fernandez. But while prosecutors were assembling their final case against the gang, Lizard was drug-tested as part of the terms of his release. It is a form of psychological torture." Perez says that, after the initial arrests of the five, attempts were made to persuade them to plead guilty or inform on their co-defendants and on Cuba by . You cant smoke everybody that sells dope.. You gotta understand, all these guys made their own choices, he said. You wouldnt isolate an inmate and make him a target for the other side., But some criminologists now acknowledge that this practice strengthened the gangs. In June, one California prison experimented with another solution to the Norteo-Sureo war. They pulled in young guys by the bushel.. SAN JOSE - A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging 17 defendants with racketeering conspiracy, including acts involving murder, robbery, drug trafficking, and money laundering, and charging five others with drug trafficking-related crimes. If the underbosses suspected that he was the target of an investigation, they might shun him or worse. uncovered a hierarchy at Pelican Bay State Prison responsible for Sir Dyno claims Gratton stiffed him on payments a few months after the CD hit the streets, and that he never worked with the dude again. But one day on the yard, he was approached by Juan Nato Gurule, a long-lost cousin from the East Bay. Membership. Daniel Hernandez sends a red line to several imprisoned (NF) leaders recommeding the impeachment of (NF) General Gerald "Cuete" Rubalcaba and lieutenant Sheldon Villanueva. Then, several weeks later, a Pelican Bay investigator intercepted a letter penned by Lizard to one of his superiors. According to Ribotas report, when he asked about the rappers affiliation, Rocha denied having any gang involvement but is a norteo. The CD includes Nuestra Familia artwork and a statement that the success of this project has resulted from true Norteo unity we applaud the Carnalismo we would also like to give a special thanks to our family [emphasis theirs] and all the warriors. Trial witness R.G. Rubalcaba is accused in court papers of ordering Even though theyd heard about the hit in advance, FBI agents never told Sanchez he was marked for violence. They formed their own gang: Nuestra Familia our family. It's the most comprehensive and trusted online destination for law enforcement agencies and police departments worldwide. Ribota declined comment for this story, in light of the upcoming trial. OUR PUBLICATIONSCannabis ChronicleEast BayGilroy DispatchGood Times Santa CruzHollister Free LanceKing City RustlerMarin Pacific SunMetro Silicon ValleyMorgan Hill TimesNorth Bay BohemianPress BannerSalinas Valley TribuneSouth ValleyWatsonville Pajaronian, ADVERTISINGAdvertiseLegal NoticesObituariesSponsored ContentWriting An ObituarySubmit an Obituary, COMPANY INFOJob OpportunitiesPrivacy Policy. The boss reminded Gratton that the money belonged to the gang, and demanded more deposits into Nuestra Familia bank accounts. Till Eternity which most people simply call the G.U.N. You wont catch me slipping. Investigators ended Operation Black Widow in June of 2001. Snow-locked Highway 29 between Calistoga and the Lake County border will likely stay closed through the weekend, CHP announced Friday afternoon. Hed picked up an ounce of weed at Rohnert Park and smoked a few joints with his buddy Israel Silent Mendoza. Even now, he talks about the incident with the distance that soldiers put between themselves and their wartime deeds. Gang affiliation in California is often a matter of geography, but for Daniel Hernandez it wasnt that simple. Nato had worked his way up in the ranks from Norteo street thug to membership in the Nuestra Familia prison gang. The job seemed like a good fit. Special Agent Kelly explained to Rocha that he was being placed under arrest for violation of RICO conspiracy, the report states. Since his first arrest, hes produced a new CD nearly every month. It sold, and he knew why. Natos harsh sentence made Lizard rethink his lifes path. The young guys trying to make their name were always the craziest, just as Lizard once had been. In his interview with FBI agents the next day, Gratton confessed hed concocted the idea for G.U.N. You have entered an incorrect email address! Rapper David Rocha thought a norteo gangsta CD was his ticket to glory -- not life in prison. Holguin also was searching for evidence that connected Lizard to a larger operation. In the eyes of the law, that would make Sir Dyno a real-life gangster. crimes from Salinas to the Oregon border. He was a micro-manager. Its getting airtime on radio stations in the Central Valley, and Sir Dyno has gone into super-marketing campaign mode, making a goal to get the ballad single Daddys Home in rotation on 75 radio stations nationwide. For the cover art, Sir Dyno says he told all his friends to tell their friends to show up at a park wearing their reds. No one who got whacked was an innocent man. He has since repudiated his former gang life, and spends his time writing and speaking to law enforcement gatherings about prison gangs. On the back cover, he stands next to Gratton, flashing XIV signs. The theory went, if we separated the two gangs, wed have less problems, Vasquez said. Nuestra Familia prestige is now generational, passed from father to son, uncle to nephew. Any Nuestra Familia member who betrayed his fellow carnals was subject to article two, section five of the groups constitution: AN AUTOMATIC DEATH SENTENCE WILL BE PUT ON FAMILIANO THAT TURNS TRAITOR, COWARD, OR DESSERTER [sic]. finds relevant news, identifies important training information, Gratton stands only five foot seven, but his bold tattoos did the talking. Napa's downtown parking meters were removed three decades ago. But the rapper has faith the judicial process will work in his favor. Lizard reminded his brothers about the warriors in Pelican Bay. slated for Sept. 13 in San Francisco, is Gerald "Cuete" Rubalcaba If he went back to Pelican Bay, his elders would be upset to see him. In the eyes of the law, that would make Sir Dyno a real-life gangster. Orders from the generals were arriving on the streets within weeks, if not days. FBI reports show that while on the federal payroll, Lizard performed unauthorized drug deals. Ramirez confided to Lizard that his own boss, Heredia, who would later be Zilversmits client, wanted to go to war. What to do? After a few weeks of writing and recording, the CD was released on Cinco de Mayo of 1998 and found its audience immediately. On seven of the CDs fourteen tracks, Sir Dyno raps as hired: Hes a heartless gangsta with a nihilistic agenda. While the recognized leaders of the Norteos in Pelican Bay ask that members respect the former leaders, they have been effectively stripped of their authority. Shes not liking it too much. The images leave no doubt the rapper supports norteos. Monday. Cuete was among the final holdouts. And he had better news: Nuestra Familia pot and speed were piping through Modesto, Stockton, and Sacramento. Therefore John Ashcroft is a chicken.. Lizard has a thick handlebar mustache, broad shoulders, and is engraved with prison tattoos in Old English script. At any one time, an estimated two to three hundred members are incarcerated there, including the gangs top three generals. Silent also provided Lizard with a stolen Dodge Durango to test-drive. To the broke and ambitious rapper, the deal sounded too good to refuse. From inside Pelican Bay State Prison, Lizard had served as the brutally violent gangs principal secretary, helping inmates in solitary confinement set up bank accounts in Idaho, direct drug sales across Northern California, and even order murders. I spoke to a classification officer at the San Joaquin County jail who confirmed that Rocha claimed to be norteo but didnt claim a particular set of a gang.. But Lizard played it cool. Police dogs sniffed through his car and came up with three ounces of crystal meth. I was ready to go, he recalled. Prison gang members set to testify against Nuestra Familia leaders. Roy Morales. had pulled down between $50,000 and $80,000. Weeks later, the general was attacked by Sureos and landed in solitary confinement. He smoked pot and tasted alcohol. The next rung of leaders in Pelican Bay includes Daniel "Stork" Perez of Salinas; Anthony "Chuco" Guillen of San Jose, who was involved in the murder of a Nuestra Familia member there and is serving a 25-year sentence; and George "Puppet" Franco, 39, from San Jose, responsible for the gang's activities in Stockton, Tracy and Fresno. The rapper arrived dressed in neatly pressed beige Dickies pants, spotless work boots, and an untucked flannel-print shirt a vato in his Sunday best, mumbling his apologies. Despite the governor's complaints, all five are still housed in the same supermax unit. Again, he uses a kernel of truth to anchor his rhyme, and a metaphor to exaggerate his reality. Grattons information cast a domino effect, eventually leading to 21 cooperating witnesses for the government. That night, Holguin led a three-car caravan of police investigators, federal agents, and prison investigators to meet Lizard. The rapper says hed press Gratton for cash, but the label owner always had an excuse. He already was serving a life sentence for murder in Pelican Bay State Prison, but now he was under indictment for ordering a hit on an underboss named Miguel Mikio Castillo. In an interview last year, Zilversmit said Lizard and his FBI handlers were culpable in the death of Sanchez. They dont want guys to get close; it blurs the lines. The consequences that the gangs have caused in society have given rise to two effects, which are the most outstanding: gang violence and citizen insecurity. He did not return letters seeking comment for this article. Of course, once the hit list is reactivated, Lizard knows that his name will sit at the very top. Hes had plenty of time to contemplate. If it read Hello Love!, it was every eighth word. At the time of Operation Black Widow, law enforcement officials had estimated that Nuestra Familia was responsible for at least 600 murders in the previous 30 years. Though vastly outnumbered, Nuestra Familia distinguished itself by organizing its troops along strict paramilitary lines. "He's trying to regroup these guys. Nuestra Familia is organized in a military-like hierarchy, with generals running the gang from inside prison and paroled regiment captains running the streets outside. In a memo to his colleagues, Helton talks about spotting G.U.N. He arrived on time, with one of his friends waiting in the lobby. According to an FBI report, Cuete and his cohorts have continued to manage the gang while awaiting transfer to federal prisons from Alameda Countys Santa Rita Jail. According to court documents, Gratton says he regularly fronted Sir Dyno four ounces at a time. Lizard himself adamantly denied Zilversmits claims, insisting that he pressed for peace in the case of Sanchez. CD turned out to be one of about fifty disks the prolific rapper has appeared on in the past ten years, and the most militant in its norteo ideology. The DA was forced to offer Lizard a six-year deal, which he happily accepted. At the time, the $5 million price tag and networking of thirty different law enforcement agencies made it the most expensive and largest investigation into a California prison gang. But recently, Lizard spoke on the phone with her, discussing their new lives. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Now youre in the gang., Lizard still recalls what Nato told him on that day back in San Quentin: Primo, if the North and South go to war, I cant protect you just because youre my blood. Using racketeering statutes to bust the organized crime ring, the indictment carried six charges of murder or attempted murder, as well as charges of assault, conspiracy, drug trafficking, and arms dealing. Lizard wrote Big Smiley a wila, or small letter the size of a gum wrapper. It is here that the stories begin to diverge: Rocha claims that in the eleven or so months he knew Gratton, the parolee never discussed his ties to the highly secretive prison gang. If you continue to listen to them, then youll be in there for life, too.'. Still, the gang has been dealt a serious wound with Lizards help. Lizard said that whenever brothers were allowed into the law library, they used sign language to swap information, trade intelligence reports, and even assign homework. Most importantly, he showed a willingness to draw sureo blood. To avoid raising suspicion as a frequent mailer, she set up post-office boxes and had inmates write to other Norteos, who forwarded the correspondence to her. All norteos must unite with the determination to fight and challenge all those who oppose our unity and advancement toward equal justice. All rights reserved. But life was still rough, he says, and drug deals and violence went down in front of his eyes, even if it was what he calls mostly high school stuff, kid stuff, stupid stuff. He admits to selling pot, but only small-time, just enough to support myself., From those experiences, he says, he extrapolated in his art, and began rapping in that netherworld of myth, that place where facts give way to the cushion of fiction, where arrogance and boasting overtake the narrative. Right after the CD came out, red-on-red violence all but ended, he says. Police surmise that the order was responsible for many of the shootings in Salinas in 2007, which increased by 50 percent over 2006 levels. Not far from Tristan sat Rico Smiley Garcia, facing the death penalty for carrying out his bosses orders and putting two bullets in the back of Castillos head. was felt on the streets. Thousands bought the album in the major record chains like Sam Goody's. While members of the Norteos gang are considered to be affiliated with Nuestra Familia, being a member of Nuestra Familia itself does not signify association as a Norteo. That what I decided to do.. In the weeks leading up to Lizards arrest, Kayln Santiagos apartment had been stormed by FBI agents. That report, based on information from another snitch, revealed that Cuete was demoted by the generals to the lowest rank for skimming funds and gossiping. In the aftermath, some of the gang's thousands of Norte-o associates -- street-level soldiers who answer to Nuestra Familia -- stayed loyal to the exiled generals and captains, while others looked to Pelican Bay because the gang's written constitution said its leaders must reside there. Lizard was charged with attempted murder, and sent back to jail. And when that rhyme ran out, as it usually does, he went where other rappers go to make up for the sudden loss of material: He started making shit up. 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