Gang Member Tattoos Murder Scene on Chest, Gets Convicted
In large cities across the country, prior to release, police officers photograph tattoos on the bodies of suspected gang members.
These identifying marks have helped solve dozens of crimes over the years, but no one has ever seen a case like this.
Anthony Garcia, a member of Los Angeles' Pico Rivera gang, tattooed his confession on his chest.
LA County Sheriff's homicide investigator Kevin Lloyd was flipping through a book of gang tattoos in 2008 when he came across a photo of Anthony Garcia, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Tattooed across the gang member's chest was an eerily accurate depiction of a 2004 gang-related murder that Lloyd had investigated.
(Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department)
The murder scene tattoo pictured above details, with some help from gang slang, the murder of John Juarez, who, according to the Los Angeles Times, was shot outside a local liquor store.
It's so accurate, that the murder scene tattoo includes the direction in which the body fell, the curved street lamp and street signs, and even the Christmas lights on the liquor store, reports the paper.
And no, Anthony Garcia did not kill Mr. Peanut--"peanut" is slang for a rival gang member.
If you're wondering if a tattoo can be admitted into evidence, it's not out of the question.
Tattoos are treated like any other evidence--so long as evidence of their existence was not obtained in an unconstitutional manner, and the showing of the tattoos is not unduly prejudicial, they can be presented to a jury (usually in photo form).
In fact, with the help of the murder scene tattoo and a confession made to undercover detectives, Garcia was convicted of first degree murder earlier this week, according to KTLA News. His sentencing is in May.
Related Resources:
- Gang member's tattoo told story of 2004 murder (Associated Press)
- Criminal Evidence Law (FindLaw)
- Thief's 'I'm Me' Forehead Tattoo Helps with Arrest (FindLaw's Legally Weird)