By Glenn Puit
Review - Journal
Dozens of well-to-do northwest Las Vegas teens are part of a gang that has carried out multiple assaults over the summer in the Las Vegas Valley, some of which have been videotaped, police said Monday.
In one of the crimes linked to the 311 Boyz gang, a teen was nearly killed when a rock was thrown through the window of a truck being driven away from a party in an exclusive northwest Las Vegas neighborhood, police Sgt. Dave Stansbury said.
Stansbury said the victim, Stephen Tanner Hansen, 17, had titanium plates inserted in his face as part of reconstructive surgery and may lose sight in one eye.
"It shattered his face ... the rock was a little bit bigger than a softball," Stansbury said.
That incident prompted the filing of felony charges against nine teenagers on Monday. Most of the suspects are students or former students at Centennial High School.
In another incident attributed to the gang, members sought out an individual for a beating earlier this summer, Stansbury said. The group went to a northwest Las Vegas home and assaulted a young man, only to find out later that the victim was not the individual they were seeking.
"They beat him up real bad and it was the wrong house," the sergeant said.
A police investigation has linked a summer crime spree involving at least six felony crimes to the gang, most of them batteries, Stansbury said. Some of those crimes were videotaped and police have the evidence in their possession.
"It's completely different and unique," Stansbury said of the investigation.
Stansbury described gang members as "middle to upper class."
"Kids going to church, going to school ... involved in sports," he said.
Early Monday, Clark County prosecutor Christopher Laurent confirmed the approval of felony charges against the teens who police say participated in the rock throwing incident that injured Hansen.
The suspects were identified as Ernest Bradley Aguilar, 17; Steven Gazley, 18; Jeff E. Hart, 17; Anthony and Brandon Gallion, both 16; Matthew Costello, 17; Christopher Farley, 18; Dominic Harriman, 18; and Scott Morse, 18.
Farley, Morse, Hart and the Gallion twins face charges of attempted murder. Gazley and Harriman face charges of coercion, and Costello and Aguilar are charged with battery.
According to school district records, Aguilar is a senior at Centennial; Gazley was a freshman at Centennial in 2001; Hart is identified as a senior at Centennial; the Gallions are listed as juniors at Shadow Ridge High School; Costello was a junior at Centennial as of January 2003; Farley was listed as a Centennial junior as of January 2003; and Morse was a junior at Centennial as of August 2001.
According to police reports, the charges stem from a July 18 incident during a party for teens in the Canyon Terrace gated community. The party was at a home under construction in the 9200 block of Canyon Mesa Drive, according to court records and Stansbury.
Stansbury said Hansen had gone out that night with no intent of attending the party, but he ended up there with his friends, Craig Lefevre, 18, and Joseph Grill, 18. The most recent records available from the school district show the trio are students at Cimarron Memorial; Hansen is listed as a senior.
The party in Canyon Terrace was a large one, police said, and Hansen, Lefevre, and Grill ended up being targeted by others in attendance.
"(They) were singled out for not being members of the 311 Boyz Gang and (they) became targets for being with one of the 311 Boyz' girlfriends," according to an affidavit filled out by Las Vegas police officer Peter Calos.
Calos wrote that the three boys immediately tried to leave.
"A large crowd, estimated between 40 and 80 kids, got behind their vehicle to prevent them from leaving," Calos wrote.
His report said Gazley and Harriman pulled down the tailgate and sat on it, preventing the victims from leaving, and Costello started punching Lefevre in the face.
"The crowd surrounding Lefevre's vehicle starts throwing beer bottles and rocks at his truck," Calos wrote.
Eventually, Lefevre was able to speed out of the area and he struck an individual identified in the police affidavit as T.J. Carter. Lefevre then had to wait for a gate to open to exit the community. At that point, his truck was rammed by a vehicle driven by Aguilar, according to court records.
Lefevre rammed the exit gate and headed east on Canyon Run Drive with vehicles chasing him from behind. Calos wrote that Farley, Morse, Hart and the Gallion twins picked up rocks and jumped a nearby fence, "waiting for Lefevre to drive past."
"As they pass through the gauntlet of individuals lining the roadway, they start throwing rocks at his truck," he wrote.
A rock went through the windshield of the truck and struck Hansen in the arm, then the face.
"Hansen suffered a shattered compound fracture of the left (arm) and extensive facial injuries to the left side of his face," Calos wrote.
Stansbury said this incident led to an investigation that uncovered at least five other felonies committed by 311 Boyz members or associates. Stansbury said the investigation has identified 36 members or associates of the 311 gang.
"Some of the kids say there may be as many as 100," Stansbury said.
Of the nine charged with wounding Hansen, Stansbury said they are viewed as either 311 members or associates.
Defense attorneys for many of the suspects dispute the contention their clients have any gang affiliation, and said police accounts of Hansen's injuries don't tell the whole story.
"This is just a bunch of well-to-do kids who hung out together," said James "Bucky" Buchanan, who represents Gazley.
Buchanan said Gazley was present when Hansen was struck by the rock but his client had nothing to do with it.
"All upper middle income kids, good families, clean cut, nice people," Buchanan said. "The district attorney is in for a little hellfire on this case."
Attorney Shawn Sullivan, who represents Hart, said the truck Hansen was in had struck someone before Hansen was struck by the rock. "There are self-defense issues" associated with the case, Sullivan said.
"He did not throw a rock or take part in any act of violence," Sullivan said.
Attorney Doug Crawford represents the Gallion brothers.
"My clients were completely unaware of this quote 'gang affiliation,' " Crawford said.
"I feel that many of the facts have been exaggerated and that this is more in the nature of a high school party out of control," Crawford said.
Of the attempted murder allegations, Crawford said, "This appears to be a case of overcharging."
Attorney Robert Draskovich, who represents Farley, said his client was the subject of a grand jury proceeding that commenced before Farley ever received paperwork stating a grand jury hearing was under way. The notice is a legal requirement.
"I will be filing a motion to dismiss very shortly," Draskovich said.
Of the gang allegations, Draskovich said "the state is trying to shove a square peg in a round hole. I'm confident the courts and the district attorney's office will see it for what it is."
School Police Spokesman Darnell Couthen said that their gang advisory team works in conjunction with local law enforcement entities, which provide intelligence on any conflicts that might move from the street to school campuses. Couthen said that there have been no episodes or recent violence involving gangs at district schools.
Stansbury said he believes with a few prosecutions, 311 Boyz will be put out of business.
Review-Journal writer Lisa Kim Bach contributed to this report.
