Open primary chopped Harley-Davidson Motorcycle, Bates headlight and girder front end
Thursday, November 22, 2018
Feds attempt to seize Mongols MC trademarked logo
Los Angeles, CA (November
21, 2018) BTN — For many years, federal
law enforcement authorities have been trying to take down the Mongols, a motorcycle club they consider one of the most dangerous criminal enterprises in the
country.
The pursuit of the patch was part of a criminal indictment against 79 Mongols that ultimately resulted in 77 guilty pleas. Over the years, the trademark part of the case has been punctuated by conflicting interpretations of intellectual property law, judges overruling their own orders and confusion over who even owns the rights to the logo.
In a 2016 letter to one of the prosecutors, Fritz Clapp, a lawyer for the Diciples, said that if the government gained ownership of the trademark, it would face a quandary because owners must periodically demonstrate that the mark is still in active use for the purpose registered.
They have infiltrated it with undercover agents. They have
hammered members with charges ranging from drug dealing to money laundering to
murder. They have conducted mass arrests that resulted in dozens of guilty
pleas, including one by a past president.
But after a decade of trying, they have failed to deliver
what they view as the coup de grâce: seizing control of the Mongols’
trademarked logo, a drawing of a brawny Genghis Khan-like figure sporting a
queue and sunglasses, riding a chopper while brandishing a sword.
Federal prosecutors want to seize the rights to the logo of
the Mongols Motorcycle Club
Now, in a racketeering trial underway in Orange County,
Calif., federal prosecutors believe they have their best chance yet to take the
Mongols’ intellectual property, using a novel approach to asset forfeiture law,
which allows the seizure of goods used in the commission of crimes.
Prosecutors argue that taking the logo will deprive the
group of its “unifying symbol” — the banner under which prosecutors say the
group marauds.
If federal prosecutors have their way, one of them boasted
at an earlier point in the court battle, the police could stop any Mongol and
“literally take the jacket right off his back.”
But legal experts question the prosecutors’ grasp of
intellectual property law. “Trademark rights are not tangible personal property
like a jacket. They are intangible rights,” said Evan Gourvitz, an intellectual
property lawyer with the law firm Ropes & Gray in New York. “But
prosecutors are treating a trademark like a jacket.”
The Mongols are equally mystified. The logo — also called a
patch — is emblazoned on the vests, T-shirts and motorcycles of hundreds of
members. “Lots of brothers have tattoos of the marks on their necks
and heads and everywhere,” David Santillan, the national president of the club,
said. “How do you regulate that?”
For bikers, the patch is key to belonging and the optics of
appearing tough, and members can spend months or even years proving themselves
before they earn the right to wear it.
“The patch is like the American flag to these guys and
speaks to the identity of the club, the individual and the culture,” said
William Dulaney, a retired associate professor who is an expert on motorcycle
groups. “Some clubs have the rule that if the colors even touch the ground,
they have to be destroyed.”
Mongols MC trial in California
The Mongols’ marks, like those of other biker groups, are registered
with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Clubs have aggressively
protected their patches from unauthorized use.
The Hells Angels have gone after large corporations
including Toys “R” Us, the Alexander McQueen fashion line, Amazon, Saks, and
Walt Disney, accusing them of infringement on its death’s head logo — a skull
in a winged helmet — and other club symbols. They have usually been successful, reaching settlements that
require defendants to cease using the trademarks and to recall and destroy
merchandise, among other concessions.
The Mongols have had their share of run-ins with the law.
The group was founded in Montebello, Calif., in 1969 and has about 1,000
members in the United States, most of whom are Hispanic. About half of the
club’s membership is in California, though Mr. Santillan said 11 new chapters
were recently established in Texas.
In 2012 Christopher Ablett, a suspected member of the
Modesto, Calif., chapter, was sentenced to life in prison for the 2008 murder
of the president of the San Francisco chapter of the Hells Angels, Mark
Guardado. In 2014 David Martinez, a Mongols member in San Gabriel, Calif., was
charged with murder in the shooting death of a Pomona police officer.
Five months ago, 21 members and associates of the Mongols
chapter in Clarksville, Tenn., were charged with a host of crimes including
racketeering conspiracy, murder, kidnapping and robbery. The Mongols say that they are not a criminal operation and
that such crimes were largely the work of rogue members who are no longer in
the organization. They further contend that some violent acts were committed in
self-defense or in defense of others. Mongols, they say, are simply part of a
brotherhood who are exercising their constitutional rights by wearing the
patch.
“This is a case of guilt by association, an attempt to put
the liability on all members,” said Joseph A. Yanny, the Mongols’ lead lawyer.
“This is one of the most absurd cases I have seen the government pursue.”
But prosecutors argue that the patch is the flag under which
Mongols carry out unlawful acts and intimidate the public.
“The government will show that the marks served as unifying
symbols of an enterprise dedicated to intimidating and terrorizing everyone who
is not a member,” they wrote in a court filing, “and assaulting and killing
those who have sworn their loyalty to other outlaw motorcycle gangs.” A spokesman for the United States attorney’s office for the
Central District of California said he could not comment on the case.
The quest to gain control of the Mongols’ colors began in
2008, when the tactic was suggested by members of the prosecution team at the
United States attorney’s office, said Thomas P. O’Brien, who led the office at
the time. “We were looking for a way to have real impact and we knew this was
going to be a test case,” he said.
David Santillan, Mongols’ National President CreditJenna Schoenefeld for The New York Times
The pursuit of the patch was part of a criminal indictment against 79 Mongols that ultimately resulted in 77 guilty pleas. Over the years, the trademark part of the case has been punctuated by conflicting interpretations of intellectual property law, judges overruling their own orders and confusion over who even owns the rights to the logo.
“Justice is often a long and bumpy road and this case has
been particularly long and bumpy,” Mr. O’Brien acknowledged. During an early stretch of the case, Judge Florence-Marie
Cooper of Federal District Court in Los Angeles granted a sweeping order that
authorized the seizure of “products, clothing, vehicles, motorcycles, books,
posters, merchandise, stationery, or other materials bearing the Mongols
trademark” from members, their relatives and any associates.
In response, some members defiantly flaunted the marks while
others wore alternative Mongols logos. After further litigation, Judge Cooper
would then rule that the Mongols’ marks were not subject to confiscation. In
2009, Ramon Rivera, a Mongols member who had not been charged with a crime,
filed a lawsuit with the help of the American Civil Liberties Union.
Mr. Rivera argued that his First Amendment and due process
rights had been violated by the order, and asked that law enforcement
authorities be blocked from confiscating his property. He ultimately prevailed
and was awarded $252,466 in lawyers’ fees. In 2010, another federal judge, Otis Wright, preliminarily
forfeited the logo to the government after the lead defendant and former club
president, Ruben Cavazos, reached a plea deal with prosecutors.
But the Mongols argued that the club, not Mr. Cavazos, owned
the rights to the images. Judge Wright sided with the Mongols, “regrettably”
concluding that the marks were not forfeitable since they belonged to the
organization.
In a somewhat similar case in Michigan, prosecutors withdrew
their bid for the Devils Diciples trademark after six members were convicted at
trial for firearms offenses, drug trafficking, illegal gambling and other
crimes. The individual who owned the trademark, prosecutors had discovered, was
not among the defendants.
In a 2016 letter to one of the prosecutors, Fritz Clapp, a lawyer for the Diciples, said that if the government gained ownership of the trademark, it would face a quandary because owners must periodically demonstrate that the mark is still in active use for the purpose registered.
“Unless the government were to use the collective membership
mark to operate a motorcycle club, then it could not satisfy the requirement,”
Mr. Clapp wrote. “Trademarks, unlike copyrights and patents, have no enduring
value apart from their use.”
But in Los Angeles, prosecutors did not give up. In 2013,
they came back with a new indictment, this time against Mongol Nation, for many
of the same racketeering offenses as were in the 2008 indictments, plus some
newer ones. Again, they asked for the forfeiture of the trademarks. The trial
is expected to continue for several more weeks.
The Mongols are watching closely, saying they know theirs is
a test case. “They take our patch,” Mr. Santillan, the president, said.
“And then they take all the clubs’ patches.”
By Serge F. Kovaleski
SOURCE: The New York Times
Wednesday, November 21, 2018
Pagan MC member files lawsuit against City and Police
Pittsburgh, PA (November
21, 2018) BTN — A member of the Pagans motorcycle
club who was injured in a bar fight with undercover Pittsburgh police officers
last month has sued the city and the officers on excessive force and false
imprisonment grounds.
Photo: Frank DeLuca after drunk cops beat him in Kopy's Bar
Frank DeLuca, 38, and his lawyer, James DePasquale, say in
their federal complaint that the officers were drunk and aggressive in
provoking the brawl at Kopy’s Bar on the South Side on Oct. 12. Mr. DeLuca, of Greenfield, is the man seen being punched
repeatedly in the head in a video of the incident.
Related | FBI investigating Pagans MC bar fight
In the suit, he says he suffered head and face trauma and a
dislocated elbow, among other injuries.
The suit names detectives Brian Burgunder, David Honick and
David Lincoln as well as the city of Pittsburgh and claims they violated his
civil rights by beating him and then accusing him of assault. Police had charged Mr. DeLuca and three other Pagans after
the fight but the Allegheny County district attorney’s office dropped the
charges. The U.S. attorney’s office and the FBI are examining the case for
potential civil rights violations against the officers.
Mr. DeLuca said in the suit that the three plainclothes
officers plus a fourth, Brian Martin, who is not a defendant, came into the bar
at 7:30 p.m. and drank “copiously” all night. By 11:30, they were all drunk,
the suit says. Mr. DeLuca and five friends came in at 11:41 and went to the
rear to play pool. He said the officers became “fixated and agitated” towards
him and his companions. He said Detective Honick was especially drunk. Mr. DeLuca said he didn’t know the men were policemen and
thought they were what they “appeared” to be: “Four drunks in a saloon who were
becoming obnoxious in demeanor for no reason other than their visible intoxication.”
The suit says the officers began to point at the men and
told the bartender they shouldn’t be allowed in the bar. The officers told the bartender they were on-duty police
officers and that the situation with the Pagans was “dangerous,” but they didn’t
tell Mr. DeLuca or his friends they were officers, according to the suit.
Mr. DeLuca said two of his friends left, but the situation
escalated when the officers positioned themselves between the men and the exit.
The suit says the officers began to “intimidate” the bikers,
with Detective Honick repeatedly showing a gun in his waistband and gripping
the handle. At 12:40 a.m., Mr. DeLuca pushed Detective Honick because of
the “intimidation” he felt and the fact that the officers were blocking the
exit, the suit says. The brawl then erupted, which the suit labels a “police
riot.”
Mr. DeLuca said Detective Burgunder held him by his hair and
arms while Detectives Honick and Lincoln punched him and a uniformed officer
who came to assist sprayed him with pepper spray. After the fight, he said, he and his friends were arrested
on assault charges and jailed. Mr. DeLuca is seeking compensatory damages for his injuries,
punitive damages against the officers and other costs.
A spokesperson for both the city of Pittsburgh and
Pittsburgh police declined a request for comment.
SOURCE: Pittsburgh Post Gazette
Tuesday, November 20, 2018
Hells Angels MC member targeted for murder
Surrey, B.C. (November 20, 2018) BTN — A man described by
homicide investigators as a member of the Hells Angels has been identified as
the victim of a suspected targeted slaying in Metro Vancouver.
He says detectives will be working with gang enforcement
experts to avoid any retaliation.
“We will go to wherever you are, we will sit down and speak with you and we will treat you with the utmost respect. We want to solve your friend’s — your associate’s — murder as much as you do,” Jang told a news conference in Surrey.
The cause of Wilson’s death has not been released but Jang says the homicide team is working with Ridge Meadows RCMP, forensic specialists, the BC Coroners Service and gang enforcement units from across Metro Vancouver.
Five people were hurt in an exchange of gunfire. Wilson told his trial that he fired in self-defence after the Outlaws started shooting.
Cpl. Frank Jang of the Integrated Homicide Investigation
Team says the body of 43-year-old Chad Wilson was found Sunday morning in Maple
Ridge, where he was living.
Jang says Wilson was a member of the Hells Angels and
describes the killing of a member of the biker-club as “unsettling news.”
Wilson had a previous criminal conviction in the United
States stemming from a shooting in South Dakota in 2006 that injured five
affiliate members of a rival motorcycle club and Jang says officers are looking
into his past.
Police are also appealing to Wilson’s friends in the Hells
Angels to come forward.
Jang said Tuesday that members of the Hells Angels may have
“intimate knowledge” of what happened and he urged them to speak to officers,
regardless of their current involvement in criminal activity.
The cause of Wilson’s death has not been released but Jang says the homicide team is working with Ridge Meadows RCMP, forensic specialists, the BC Coroners Service and gang enforcement units from across Metro Vancouver.
Wilson’s body was found near the banks of the Fraser River
under the Golden Ears Bridge.
Five people were hurt in an exchange of gunfire. Wilson told his trial that he fired in self-defence after the Outlaws started shooting.
Following his acquittal, Wilson was subsequently convicted
by the same South Dakota court of being a non-immigrant alien in possession of
a firearm and sentenced to four years in prison.
SOURCE: The Province
FBI investigating Pagans MC bar fight
Pittsburgh, PA (November 20, 2018) BTN — The district attorney of Allegheny County has questions about several undercover Pittsburgh police officers who got in a drunken brawl while on the job. Last week, Stephen Zappala decided to withdraw all criminal charges against the members of the Pagan Motorcycle Club.
The fight, which was caught on surveillance video on Oct. 12 at Kopy’s Bar, involved members of the Pagan Motorcycle Club and undercover officers.
Related | Charges dropped against Pagans MC members in bar fight
Related | Pagans MC: The cops were drunk and started the fight
The Federal Bureau of Investigation along with the Citizens Police Review Board are investigating the incident. "We had a lot of questions and not a lot of answers. I don't think they committed a crime," Zappala said.The cops that were involved are still on duty.
SOURCE: WPXI
Bar fight scene at Kopy's Bar
The fight, which was caught on surveillance video on Oct. 12 at Kopy’s Bar, involved members of the Pagan Motorcycle Club and undercover officers.
Related | Charges dropped against Pagans MC members in bar fight
Related | Pagans MC: The cops were drunk and started the fight
The Federal Bureau of Investigation along with the Citizens Police Review Board are investigating the incident. "We had a lot of questions and not a lot of answers. I don't think they committed a crime," Zappala said.The cops that were involved are still on duty.
SOURCE: WPXI