Monrovia Gang Member Who Paralyzed Teen in Drive-By To Be Sentenced

A Monrovia gang member convicted of wounding and paralyzing a 16-year-old boy in a drive-by shooting is scheduled to be sentenced Thursday in what marks one of the last prosecutions from a rash of gang violence in the city that erupted in late 2007 and early 2008.

A jury found Jimmy Santana, 23, guilty of attempted murder in February for shooting a teenager while he rode his bicycle in the 2500 block of Peck Road in unincorporated Monrovia on Jan. 29, 2008. The shooting came during a period of gang violence that left four people dead in late 2007 and early 2008.

The shooting was investigated by Los Angeles Sheriff's Department Homicide Bureau detectives, but detectives and officers "played a major part in the conviction of this suspect in testimony regarding gang affiliation," .

Santana, a member of the Monrovia Nuevo Varrio (MNV) street gang, yelled out a "gang-related statement" before opening fire, prosecutors said. He was also convicted of shooting a firearm from a moving vehicle, assault with a firearm, and intentionally discharging a firearm to cause great bodily injury.

Along with the Duroc Crips, MNV is one of two street gangs in Monrovia that city officials obtained a gang injunction against.