Smiley Martin, a suspect in the gang related mass shooting in Sacramento California that Killed six people and injured a dozen more, appeared in court on Friday.
Martin showed up to the Sacramento Superior Court with a bandage on his left arm.
He is being charged with possession of a machine gun and possession of a firearm by a felon. He did not speak during his brief appearance, did not enter a plea and only nodded when the judge asked to confirm his name.
Smiley Martin is being held without bail.
Martin, a self proclaimed member of the Crips, has a “life-time commitment to violence,” prosecutors say and fired at least 28 bullets during the shootout with rival gang members.
Police say at least five people fired off shots in the shooting that happened on a crowded intersection in downtown Sacramento earlier this month. Police have identified four of those suspects: Smiley Martin; his brother, Dandrae Martin; 27-year-old Mtula Payton; and 29-year-old Devazia Turner.
Turner died in the shooting. The Martin brothers are both in jail. Police are still searching for Payton.
While authorities say both Martin brothers fired guns, they have not charged either with murder. Instead, both men face charges about having guns when they weren’t supposed to while Dandrae Martin is also charged with assault with a deadly weapon.
Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert depicted Martin as a dangerous, unrepentant gang member in a 13-page motion filed with the court, Pointing to Martin’s lengthy criminal history which includes prostituting his girlfriend and beating her with closed fists in the head and face area, dragging her out of the house by her hair, then whipping her with a belt.
Martin was sentenced to 10 years in prison for that crime. While he was incarcerated prosecutors say he “committed battery on another prisoner.” Despite the objections of the Deputy District Attorney he was released from prison in February after serving less than 5 years.
Just two months after he was released from prison, Aguayo News obtained video of Martin shot hours before the mass shooting in which Martin was flashing guns, drinking, bragging about shooting rival gang members, hiding his firearms from police that drove by and talking about going to downtown Sacramento to stand outside of the clubs.
Authorities say he went downtown later that night with a Glock 19 handgun equipped with an extended 30-round magazine, a tactical laser sight and a full-automatic selector switch, which is a device that turned the weapon into an illegal machine gun.
Investigators reviewed video from multiple cameras near the intersection in Sacramento, which showed about 80 people on the streets as bars and clubs closed. But just before 2 a.m., something happened that caused people to run away.
As the streets cleared, videos show two groups of men remained, slowly walking toward each other. On one side was Smiley Martin with his brother Dandrae Martin, as well as Joshua Hoye-Lucchesi and an unidentified man. On the other side was Payton, Turner and Sergio Harris. Most of them are affiliated with gangs, prosecutors said.
Minutes later, Johntaya Alexander pulled up and parked her car. Her sister was standing near Harris, and prosecutors say Alexander walked toward the men trying to get her out of there. But she was too late. Seconds later, prosecutors say Turner and Smiley Martin started “exchanging gunfire.” They say Martin fired at least 28 bullets.
Alexander, Harris, Turner and Hoye-Lucchesi were all killed in the shooting, as well as Yamile Martinez-Andrade, 21, and Melinda Davis, a 57-year-old woman who had been living on the street.
Investigators found Davis’ body a block away from the shooting.
Another court hearing is scheduled April 26th for both Smiley and Dandrae Martin.
Aguayo News Previously Reported:
Smiley Martin, who was named as one of the five suspects in the gang related Sacramento Mass Shooting was released from the hospital, and arrested by Police.
Martin was hospitalized with serious injuries from the K Street shooting that killed six people and injured a dozen others.
Jail records show that Martin has been booked into jail. Police say Martin has been booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail and is facing charges of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and possession of a machine gun.
Martin is not eligible for bail.
Court documents filed by Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert allege that Martin fired off about 28 rounds during the gunfight that happened between two local gangs. Martin is associated with a the Garden Blocc Crips.
The documents also detail how a dispute happened between Smiley and Joshua Hoye-Lucchesi, and rival gang members DeVazia Turner, Mtula Payton and Sergio Harris. That dispute is what led up to the shooting.
Payton and Turner are with G-Mobb. While Harris was with the Del Paso Heights Bloods, and ally gang of G-Mobb.
Court documents show that everything started around 1:57 a.m. Surveillance video shows that someone standing next to Martin was pointing a gun in the direction of Payton and Turner. Seconds Later, Payton reached in his waistband and started walking, with Turner, to the corner where the Martin brothers and Hoye-Lucchesi were standing.
At 1:58 Harris joined Payton and Turner. Two minutes later Smiley Martin can be seen holding a gun with an extended magazine. After 17 rounds were fired Turner, Hoye-Lucchesi and Yamile Martinez-Andrade, who was walking by, were all hit.
Smiley is seen on surveillance video shooting off multiple rounds, according to the documents, and a preliminary ballistics analysis indicates that he fired 28 rounds. Martin is then seen getting rid of the gun, just before officers stop him.
According to Investigators the gun they found is a Glock 19 handgun with an extended 30-round magazine, a tactical laser sight and a full-automatic selector switch.
Hoye-Lucchesi, Turner and Harris were among those killed. Payton is wanted on multiple felony warrants that include domestic violence and gun charges.
Smiley is the brother of the first suspect arrested, Dandrae Martin
Aguayo News Previous EXCLUSIVE UPDATE: One of the brothers that was arrested in connection with the Sacramento Mass Shooting appears to be a Gang member associated with the Crips.
The Aguayo News Investigative Team obtained an Exclusive video of Smiley Martin recorded just hours before the shooting took place.
In the video Smiley can be seen with his younger brother Dandrae Martin and Joschua Hoye-Lucchesi A.K.A. Jay Cee – who was killed in the shooting. The group was drinking, waving guns around, talking about drugs and making threats. In that video Smiley also made references to his gang affiliation
At two different points in the 15 minute video the police pulled up, the first time Smiley and his friends waved them off. The second time the cops rode up Smiley hid his gun in front of a red mini van and talked about hiding it saying ‘this is the tuck,’ and ‘they need to stop playin with his Crippin.’
After the police were gone Smiley went back and grabbed his gun from the same place he hid it. All the while the group continued to drink and show off their fire arms. At one point in the video Jay Cee could be heard daying that he was ready to start shooting people.
Smiley was injured in the shooting, and faces charges of being in possession of a machine gun and being in possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.
The Aguayo News I-Team was able to find multiple social media accounts which appear to belong to Smiley, each labeled with a different alias. The posts show numerous pictures and videos of Smiley doing drugs and brandishing weapons. We also found more than 100 posts that show Smiley claiming Crips.
According to documents obtained by the Sacramento Bee, Smiley has a lengthy criminal history and was sentenced to 10 years in 2018, for Domestic Violence. Those documents say Smiley Martin beat his girlfriend in the face and head with a closed fist, dragged her out of the house by her hair, then continued to assault her with a belt.
Smiley was up for early release in 2021, However The Deputy District Attorney opposed his release saying that Martin was violent and would break the law again.
We also found videos of Smiley from 2020 in which it appears he is in his jail cell posting messages to his friends on the ‘outside.’
Smiley Martin was released early despite the Deputy DA’s pleas.
Smiley’s brother, 26-year-old Dandrae Martin, was the first to be arrested in connection with the mass shooting and faces charges of assault with a firearm and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.
Dandrae appeared in court this week. He is being represented by a private attorney as the public defenders office has declared a case overload.
Dandrae Martin also has a lengthy criminal history and was released from an Arizona prison in 2020 after serving about 1.5 years for violating probation in two separate cases. One of which involved a felony conviction for aggravated assault. Court records show he plead guilty to beating, kicking and choking a woman in a hotel room after she refused to work for him as a prostitute.
The Aguayo News I-Team did a little more digging and was able to find video’s posted to social media of the Martin brothers that go back as far as 2015 giving us a glimpse of the pattern of behavior from the brothers. The videos showcase guns, drugs and gang affiliations.
Officials say they recovered more than 100 shell casings at the scene, that multiple shooters were involved and confirmed that a handgun had been altered into a machine gun.
Six people were killed and a dozen others injured in the Sunday morning shooting.
Smiley was hospitalized with serious injuries.
The Aguayo News I-Team will continue to bring you any new updates on this developing story
America’s Report Exclusive Previously Reported:
The sixth victim in the Sacramento Mass Shooing has been identified by the Sacramento County Coroner’s office as 32-Year-Old Joshua Hoye-Lucchesi.
Aguayo News has located a video that was posted hours before the shooting by an account that appears to belong to Joahua Hoye-Lucchesi.
Officials have confirmed that 6 people were killed and a dozen others injured in the mass shooting that happened early Sunday morning in Downtown Sacramento. They also say that multiple shooters were involved, that they have recovered a stolen gun at the scene and have taken one person, Dandrae Martin into custody.
Friends and Family of the the latest victim to be identified – Joshua Hoye – Luchesi – sent tributes out on social media using the nickname Jay-Cee and posting his picture along with RIP messages saying goodbye.
The Aguayo News Investigative team was able to locate social media pages that appear to belong to Joshua Hoye-Lucchesi -Which use the nicknames of Jay-Cee and JC Loco.
On those pages are pictures and Videos of Hoye-Luccesi, the person who is referred to online as Jay-Cee that match those posted online by his friends and family.
In one particular video posted to the social media account of Jay Cee – obtained exclusively by Aguayo News – a person who appears to be Jay Cee can be seen drinking and partying with his friends. The video also shows Jay Cee brandishing numerous weapons’ including one with a red laser and another that looked like a pump shot gun.
In The video Jay Cee can be heard making threats and flashing what appear to be gang signs associated with the Crips.
At another point in the nearly 7 minute video Jay-Cee indicates that either somebody is looking for him or he is on the run.
The Aguayo News I-Team was then able to locate a post made to social media in December of 2020 by the account belonging to Jay-Cee. it appears as though Jay-Cee is about to turn himself in saying,
“I just signed by deal for 8 years man, this is exhausting. I turn myself in February 9th to all my loved ones, y’all stay dangerous. make sure y’all stll here when I come home.”
Upon digging a little further we found that a Joshua-Hoye – whose picture matches those associated with Jay Cee – was listed on California’s Wanted Fugitives list.
The posting says that Joshua Hoye is wanted on charges of criminal threats, and unlawful possession of a controlled substance. The posting hashtag’s the city of Sacramento.
Witnesses indicate that a fight broke out before the Mass Shooting took place.
There have been reports that two victims involved in the mass shooting were associated with the Bloods, one of which was recently released from prison and the other was well known in the streets of Sacramento, indicating that the mass shooting could possibly be gang related.
We then found a video in which Jay-Cee appears to claim his gang affiliation and could be heard saying “I’m a grown A** Crip.”
Police have not yet confirmed the motive for the shooting.
Nationwide there has been 120 mass shootings since the start of the year, averaging out to more than 1 a day – this was the 2nd mass shooting in Sacramento in just 5 weeks.
Aguayo News Original Report:
Police in California are searching for at least one suspect after a mass shooting took place early Sunday morning in downtown Sacramento.
Police have confirmed that 6 people were killed and 10 were transported to area hospitals.
Kathy Lester, the Sacramento Police Chief said at a news conference that police were patrolling the area at about 2 a.m. when they heard gunfire erupt. When they arrived at the scene, they found a large crowd gathered on the street and six people dead. Another 10 either took themselves or were transported to hospitals. No information was given on their conditions.
Authorities say there is a possibility that more than one suspect was involved and that it is a ‘very complex scene.’ They are asking that any witnesses, anyone with any information or recordings of the shooting contact the police.
After shooting took place, a video was posted to Twitter. In the video you could hear rapid gunfire while people in the street are fighting. Another Video shows people running in the streets and multiple ambulances arrive to the scene.
The shooting took place in an area that is packed with restaurants and bars, including the London nightclub. Residents have been asked to avoid the area.
The streets around the London Club have been closed and taped off by police.
One witness described the scene to the AP shortly after the shooting,
“The first thing I saw was like victims. I saw a young girl with a whole bunch of blood in her body, a girl taking off glass from her, a young girl screaming saying, ‘They killed my sister.’ A mother running up, ‘Where’s my son, has my son been shot?’“
California, which is run by Democrat Governor Gavin Newsome has one of the highest crime rates in the country. The murder rate in California spiked by 30% in 2020 and, according to crime statistics, continues to rise in 2021 and 2022.
According to the latest data from the State of California Department of Justice in 2020 there were 173,864 Violent Crimes, 2,202 Homicides, 13,439 Rapes, and 44,684 Robberies.
California’s murder rate climbed 30% from 2020 to 2021 and continues to rise in 2022.
As for the city of Sacramento, which is run by Democrat Mayor Darrell Steinberg, the crime statistics of the City of Sacramento’s monthly chief report for November 2021 indicates Crime is on the rise in the city.
- Number of homicides: 57
- Highest amount since the 59 homicides in 2016
- Number of victims shot: 240
- 25% increase over 2020
- Total number of firearms seized: 1,512
- 25% more than 2020
- Number of incidents involving an officer being assaulted or resisted: 690
- Calls for service- mental health-related: 12,478
- Sacramento PD averaged 37.5 mental health-related calls for service every day
- Number of fatal traffic collisions: 53
- Highest amount since at least 1990
- Number of injury collisions: Over 2,200
- Median response time to emergency calls for service: 10:48 minutes
- 8.9% increase over 2020
California has the strictest gun laws in the nation. The state also has the most robust system in the country for taking firearms away from people who are not allowed to have them.
California is also the first state in the country to create a database identifying people who legally purchased guns but were subsequently deemed too dangerous to be armed.
California State Attorney General . Rob Bonta has come under fire as of late and has become known to many in California as an “anticop politician”
In fact one billboard in the state says,
“How can someone who cares more about criminals’ rights than victims’ rights, and is routinely at odds with law enforcement, serve as our state’s top cop? It’s time for a change.”
According to a recent UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll, two thirds of registered voters in California say crime is a major problem, with more than half saying Governor Newsom is doing a poor job on public safety.
However these same voters are approving measures like Proposition 47, a voter-approved ballot measure that Newsom supported which lowers felony drug and theft offenses to misdemeanors and says that theft under $950 cannot be prosecuted.
Voters also approved Proposition 57, a measure that allows prisoners to be released earlier then their assigned sentences.
Republican politicians are demanding an end to the liberal policies that are viewed as soft on crime and blamed for the spiking crime in the state.
Assembly Member Kevin Kiley (R-Rocklin), who is running for Congress in Sacramento called Proposition 47 a “failed policy” that has inflicted “disastrous consequences” on Californians.
According to the L.A. Times, Kiley along with more than 12 other Republican legislators have introduced Assembly Bill 1599 to repeal the law.
“I believe Californians are fed up with this sort of lawlessness,” Kiley said. “They are ready to have a rational public safety policy again.”
