Sacramento prosecutors have filed an amended complaint on the fatal New Year's Eve shooting in Old Sacramento charging that the killing of two victims that resulted from a spilled beer was gang-related.
Deputy District Attorney Anthony Ortiz said in Sacramento Superior Court today that the alleged shooter in the Dec. 31 incident, Carlito Montoya, 22, is a Norteno gang member.
Ortiz also identified Charles Wesley Fowler-Scholz, 34, as a Norteno. Fowler-Scholz is accused of an assault with a deadly weapon during the fracas at the Sports Corner Cafe in which Daniel Ferrier, 36, and Gabriel Cordova, 35, were shot and killed.
Under the state's three-strikes law, Fowler-Scholz is facing a possible 25-to-life term if he is convicted of the assault on Cordova. The initial complaint said he had two prior robbery convictions. Ortiz said in court today that additional investigation by his office discovered that Fowler-Scholz has been convicted on 12 counts of robbery.
Judge John P. Winn ordered the two defendants back to court for further arraignment on March 5.
Fowler-Scholz' wife, Amber Scholz, who is charged with aiding and abetting her husband's assault on Cordova, also made a brief appearance in court today. She will return on Friday in a motion to have her $1 million bail reduced.
Police and prosecutors say the shooting took place after Cordova accidentally spilled beer on Amber Scholz, and her husband responded by hitting Cordova in the head with a beer bottle.
Authorities say Montoya shot Ferrier, a security employee at the bar, when he tried to break up the fight between Cordova and Fowler-Scholz. They say Montoya then took aim at Cordova and fatally shot him.
Two other people also were injured in the bar shooting.
The shooting took place less than an hour after a 9 p.m. fireworks show that had drawn thousands of people to Old Sacramento.
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