20-03-2025
Santana Row homicide victim's family demands justice
SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON) — Dozens of people chanted 'justice for David' Tuesday in San Jose outside a juvenile hall facility. The crowd included family members of 15-year-old David Gutierrez, who was slain along Santana Row on Valentine's Day.
The victim wore red-colored clothing on Valentine's Day while he was on a dinner date with his girlfriend, detectives wrote in a police report. He lived in Redwood City and had no ties to gangs, police said.
Gutierrez's accused killer is a 13-year-old boy and a Sureno gang member, police said.
A group of Sureno gang members was actively seeking confrontations on February 14 while Santana Row was bustling with people walking to restaurants and shopping, San Jose Police Chief Paul Joseph said.
The group attacked and robbed multiple random victims before they attacked Gutierrez, a police report shows. A security guard heard the group saying, 'F**k your colors' to Gutierrez. The youngest member of the group brutally stabbed the 15-year-old boy to death in front of his girlfriend, detectives wrote.
Surveillance images show what happened before Santana Row Valentine's Day killing
On Tuesday, Gutierrez's family said they are outraged that his alleged killer may only serve a few months in custody.
His aunt, Diana Gutierrez, cried as she said, 'These cowards decided to attack my favorite person in the entire world. How many more families need to be destroyed until violent gang members are held accountable for their heinous crimes? When will we see fair sentences for murderers, regardless of their age?'
At the rally, people held up signs reading ''Adult crime. Adult Consequences,' and, 'If David can't come home, neither should he.'
Police arrested the 13-year-old boy on suspicion of murder. California law bars anyone who is younger than 16 from standing trial as an adult, even in murder cases. Three 16-year-old San Jose boys who were in the group are charged with assault. The trio appeared in front of a Santa Clara County juvenile court judge on Tuesday.
To the dismay of David Gutierrez's loved ones, the judge allowed one of the 16-year-old boys to be released from custody and go home with an electronic ankle monitor.
The only adult arrested in the Valentine's case, 18-year-old Emanuel Sanchez-Damian of Campbell, is being held in an adult jail without bail. Sanchez-Damian is charged with assaulting Gutierrez moments before he was slain. Prosecutors added gang enhancements to the charges.
Surenos gang members wear blue, while their rivals, Nortenos, wear red, the police report states. The victim's family member said he lost his life 'simply because he wanted to be festive and wear red clothing like most of us did on Valentine's Day. How many more families need to be destroyed until violent gang members are held accountable for their heinous crimes?'
Police Chief Joseph said Gutierrez was 'tragically just in the wrong place at the wrong time.'
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