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Crime & Safety

No Contest Plea in 2009 Killing

Six- and nine-year sentences for 2009 incident involving two alleged gang members.

Rebecca Rosen Lum, Neighbor
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Two alleged gang members have pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter charges for fatally shooting a rival gang member's brother in East Palo Alto in July 2009, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney's Office.

Oliver Ware, 27, and Donell Webster, 24, admitted that they were riding bicycles in East Palo Alto on July 2 of that year when they saw 31-year-old Derrick Powell sitting in a taxicab on Hunter Street at about 11:30 p.m., District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said.

Wagstaffe said the two men stood on opposite sides of the taxi and fired several shots into the vehicle, killing Powell. Webster and Ware -- who the district attorney's office alleges are members of the Taliban street gang -- pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter charges on Monday. Ware received a six-year prison sentence. Webster also pleaded no contest to a firearm enhancement and was sentenced to nine years in state prison.

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