“Horrible and eye-opening.”
That's how street vendor advocate Wendy Lujan described this past year. She and seven other activists, including her fiancé and known street vendor defender, Edin Alex Enamordo, fought charges that included conspiracy, assault, and false imprisonment following their arrest by the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department last December.
As of last week, only Enamorado remains in jail and is being held at the High Desert Detention Center.
“Our whole life was turned upside down and everything changed,” said Lujan, a day before she returned to Victorville for court.
The arrests came after altercations at protests held in 2023 by the activists themselves. There were two particular incidents, one in Victorville and one in Pomona, where a dispute happened between a security guard and, on a separate occasion, in an altercation with a man at a car wash.
In June, Lujan and five other defendants took plea deals and were convicted of a single felony assault charge. The women, Wendy, Stephanie Amesquita, and Vanessa Carrasco, were released earlier that month with credits for time served. At the time, the only other defendant who was out on bail was Gullit Acevedo, who was out with a misdemeanor assault charge.
This past Thursday, the remaining defendants, David Chavez, Fernando Lopez, and Edwin Peña, were sentenced and released with credit for time served. They are expected to be on parole.
Lujan admitted that she had to think long and hard about taking a guilty plea deal, which was not easy. She explained that pleading guilty not only put a felony charge on her record but also had a ripple effect.
“I unfortunately lost my job; I had my job for 17 years as a bus driver for the city,” she said. “Honestly, it (taking the plea deal) went against all of my beliefs and principles because I know we aren't guilty.”
Since coming out of jail, Lujan has mostly kept a low profile but is still invested in fighting for injustices in her community. Her focus has now been on her family and supporting Enamorado.
As for him, the group's alleged leader, he is not backing down and seeks to continue fighting his charges.
His lawyer, Damon Alimouri, said Enamorado is “staying strong, and he's going to fight at every turn.”
“A lot of folks have been commenting on that he has faced many 'no's.' But despite that, he's going to go all the way,” he added.
Regarding his client's immigration status, he said he seeks to work out an “immigration safe” deal with the District Attorney’s office.
“Because of the threats to civil liberties, because of the threats to marginalized folks and immigrants, we are very concerned with the outcome of this case, myself, Edin,” said Alimouri. “And it's absolutely paramount that we resolve this case in such a way that we avoid a potential for deportation.”
Now, as the rest of those who were dubbed the "Justice 8" return to their families and try to acclimate to life after spending a year incarcerated, Enamorado and his attorney prepare for their next court date on January 24th.
When asked why he thinks this case is still important, Enamorado’s attorney told L.A. TACO, “In my opinion, should this fly out here, and should it fly unnoticed and without any push-back, it could occur anywhere in this country.”
KVCR reporter Anthony Victoria contributed to this story.
