Opinion ID: 777319
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: September 1997 Incident: Hunting for Hell's Angels in Hempstead

Text: 7 At trial the government produced an eyewitness, Evan Rain Rosenthal, a former Pagan who testified that he and Laduca spent an evening in September 1997 following a group of Hell's Angels. Laduca was charged with committing a violent crime in aid of racketeering activity in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(6) (1994), and using or carrying a firearm in connection with that violent crime in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924(c) (1994), for the events of that evening. According to Rosenthal, their immediate goal was to avenge injuries sustained by Gabriel Gary Giordano, a fellow Pagan said to have been shot by a Hell's Angel. 8 Rosenthal testified that he drove around town while Laduca was armed with a 9 millimeter handgun. They spotted a group of six to eight Hell's Angels on motorcycles. Laduca loaded his gun and directed Rosenthal to follow them, saying he wanted to shoot one of the Hell's Angels and especially to get the prospect who had shot Giordano. They followed the group to a gas station and parked nearby. Although Laduca pointed his gun out the open car window, Rosenthal explained that no shooting occurred because the Hell's Angels pulled out from an exit on the other side of the station and did not drive by Rosenthal and Laduca. Rosenthal and Laduca later contacted two other Pagans, Orlando Ripcord Placido and Keith Conan Richter, who joined them in their pursuit. Richter was also armed. After following the Hell's Angels to several bars, Laduca again rolled down the passenger window of Rosenthal's vehicle and pointed his gun, but a vehicle came between them and his target. After nine hours of this hunt, Richter called the mission off for the night. 9 Giordano also testified for the prosecution and corroborated Rosenthal's testimony. While hospitalized for his injuries, Giordano was visited by Laduca, who allegedly told him that he, along with Rosenthal, Placido and Richter, had followed a group of Hell's Angels and tried to shoot one of them to avenge him. Appellant told Giordano he had not been successful because the police had been present at one point and at a later point a vehicle had blocked his view.