SANTA ANA — Tears and smiles. Anger and cries of bias.
A second-degree murder conviction Thursday against two teen-agers in the paint roller spearing death of Steve Woods provoked strong reaction in a case that had already touched a nerve in Orange County, sparking rallies against gang violence and claims of racial divisions.
Outside the courtroom, Woods' mother, Kathy, said she was satisfied with the verdict, especially the judge's finding of gang involvement in the case that could add more time to the teens' prison terms.
"We need to stop these gangs from controlling our streets," she said. "We can't go for an evening stroll anymore. We have to get some deterrents to prevent it from getting to this point. That's really my message. That's what I pray for."
But others decried the verdicts as an injustice for Julio Perez Bonilla, 18, and Hector Penuelas, 17, the two Latino defendants convicted of second-degree murder and nine other felonies for their roles in the death of the white youth.
Arturo Montez of the League of United Latin America Citizens said he hopes the verdicts will be appealed.
"My concern is how quickly the court system moves to incarcerate Latinos," he said. "I think the whole court system is one-sided and lopsided. Justice is definitely colored behind the Orange Curtain."
As they waited for the verdicts, the friends and family of the teen-agers on trial huddled in prayer. After Superior Court Judge Everett W. Dickey had declared Bonilla and Penuelas guilty on all charges, family members rushed from the courtroom.
His eyes brimming with tears, Bonilla's father said he did not want to speak about the verdict. Neither did other family members.
Bonilla and Penuelas were among six defendants charged in the death of the 17-year-old San Clemente High School student.
Woods was a passenger in a vehicle that was pelted by bottles, rocks, beer cans, blocks of wood and other items including the paint-roller rod that lodged in his head as the vehicle was driven toward the only exit at Calafia Beach County Park in San Clemente.
Friends of Woods testified that they were trying to flee the beach and did nothing to provoke the confrontation. The defendants said they threw items in self-defense because they thought they were going to be run over.
On Thursday, Shellie Woods, the victim's sister, said she was afraid the judge would go along with the defense request for leniency.
