Judge rules gang members can stand trial for downtown San Luis Obispo assault

August 11, 2026

Alex LopezRamirez, Miguel Mendez and Brian RamirezLopez

By JOSH FRIEDMAN

Enough evidence exists for three defendants to stand trial over a 2024 assault in downtown San Luis Obispo that left the victim lying unconscious in the street, a judge recently ruled.

The defendants are all members of a criminal street gang from Santa Maria. The victim was identified as a member of a rival Santa Maria gang, according to the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office.

On Oct. 6, 2024, Alex LopezRamirez, Miguel Mendez and Brian RamirezLopez were involved in a group assault in downtown San Luis Obispo near Hotel Cerro, prosecutors say. Acting as a group, the three men repeatedly stomped, kicked and punched the victim in the middle of the road, according to evidence presented at the preliminary hearing.

As the victim lay motionless and unconscious in the street, the men continued to stomp and kick him in the face. The victim was later transported to a hospital where he received treatment for severe injuries.

The assault was captured on video, and additional recordings of the defendants that were shot after the assault are also part of the evidence in the case. 

A judge ruled enough evidence exists for each defendant to stand trial on all charges and allegations they face. LopezRamirez, Mendez and RamirezLopez can stand trial for assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury, along with additional allegations that each personally inflicted great bodily injury and that the crime was committed for the benefit of a criminal street gang. 

“Gang violence has no place in San Luis Obispo County,” District Attorney Dan Dow said in a statement. “This was a brutal group attack that continued even after the victim was unconscious and defenseless in the middle of a public street. Our community is safer when those who bring this kind of violence here are held fully accountable, and this office will continue to pursue that accountability alongside our law enforcement partners.”

Each of the defendants is currently out of custody. An arraignment hearing is scheduled for Sept. 17 in San Luis Obispo County Superior Court.