The Los Angeles-based Mongols motorcycle club will not be stripped of its trademarked logo any time soon, after a federal judge essentially overruled a jury‘s decision to deprive the group of its collective symbol.
U.S. District Judge David O. Carter in Santa Ana said Thursday that the jury ruling violated club members‘ 1st Amendment rights to free association and expression and their 8th Amendment protection against excessive penalties.
“It is beyond question that the Government has a legitimate interest in attacking the economic roots of a criminal organization like the Mongol Nation,” Carter wrote in his 51-page ruling. But he said forcing the club to forfeit its rights associated with the symbol the group has used since 1969 “is unjustified and grossly disproportionate.”
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In January, a jury, in a , agreed with federal prosecutors to strip the Mongols of the logo – an image of a goateed Genghis Khan-like figure wearing sunglasses and a ponytail riding a chopper, below the club name. Prosecutors that the Mongols are a criminal gang and their logo is central to their outlaw identity which “they wear like armor.”
A month earlier, the same jury had convicted Mongols leadership group, the Mongol Nation, of racketeering and conspiracy charges associated with drug dealing and violent crimes by individual members.
Club leaders say their group is not a criminal operation and that any crimes were committed were the work of rogue members who had been expelled from the organization.
Attorneys for the motorcycle club say the jury‘s ruling was a case of government overreach.
“It‘s an attempt at collective guilt, which has never been the law here in this country,” Mongols attorney Joe Yanny said, as quoted by the . “You don‘t hold people guilty or punish folks simply because they know people that may be related in some fashion to people who are alleged to have done something wrong.”
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A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney‘s Office said in a that prosecutors are disappointed with the ruling and is “definitely considering an appeal.”
Carter‘s ruling is “spot on,” said Marsha Gentner, an intellectual property attorney in Washington, D.C.
“The judge recognizes that although intangible property may be the subject of a seizure or forfeiture, a trademark, particularly a collective membership mark, is a unique type of property, tied both to actual use and the goodwill it symbolizes, that just doesn‘t fit, in this particular circumstance with the remedy the government seeks,” said Gentner in an email to NPR.
Prosecutors have been trying to seize control of the Mongols‘ logo .
That was the same year that nearly 80 members were convicted for a series of drug and assault crimes.
The Mongols, founded in 1969 by a group of Latino men, have a long and sometimes violent rivalry with other biker clubs, such as the Hell‘s Angels.
Why are we reading this again. Any new news on it?
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Too bad a good article was spoiled by such poor grammar.
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That was Mainstream Press, not us, we can’t change the article.
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First and foremost with all these ONE HIT WONDERS of millinal doing investigations n press HOLLYWOOD IS BY FAR THE BEST IN SPOT FAIR 100% REAL
Your welcome
As far as me this shit all sucks and the profiling?fuk trump is being profiled so why are we all banding together and throwing OUR BRAS in the fire(women’s rights movement)and marching to those steps to make changes like our past shows!!hell have HD come out of ther cauffers to support movement! I mean didn’t AMF help them!idk I totally get today’s media but when it comes to TRUTH how much longer do we all wanna allow marshal law!!
Now the time with trump there!! Look what’s good for the goose has to be fair everywhere meaning RV CLUBS (airstreams same monikers)LEs,Christians, ext ext our own kids can’t wear same skater garb and roll wearing pants low with out grabbing first offense ticket second office fuk these are our kids how about the knitting clubs making same blankets are they reco
I’ve been in Texas sense Mother’s Day and caught fukin case!!evrytime I’m on my fat boy I’m jacked up by cops just for the pattern of penilton!!!
Idk I’m not judging I’m just saying
Quit sitting around and arguing about past vs present and action needed
Back in day you never ever talked about this kinda stuff to press!! And trust me I’ve spent most of my life in institutions and now again at 50 again so when I achieve my dreams of radio tv n film I know all about discrimination and propaganda!!!if you ever seen GOOD MORNING VIETNAM the tella texts machine were there crossing off what not to say!!!fuk if you know anything know this DICK CLARK American bandstand got its strips
Wolfman Jack tryed with midnight show but got blackballed ending up with only gig in T.J Mexico
So give Mr.HOLLYWOOD BIG FUKIN PROPS HEs the ONLY REAL MOTHER FUKr telling truth
Spikestevens
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One last thing I wanna say
I was there!!yep little ms13 and 18streets wearing mongols supporter shirts WAR SHIRTS with flying skull and a pistol pointing at it…what happen was they beat up my family friend who was pumping gas with his tile setting gear 6on 1 and he help his mud by graphing a 2×4 and going to town!!he never called the cops!!but week later inside grocery store one supporter seen him called others and stab him second time !!he lived!!they brought him to me for OLE SKOOL ADVISE!!!my advice was get in your truck and get the fuk out of town now!!dont wait go now!!!so tell me was that gang stuff or was it youth with no greybeards education or young Skool and MC didn’t care?? Don’t know just know I was there for the lad!and as far as I’m concerned He was a training mma family hang around who had no family yet never once was he the type to pump his chest just becuz!!he trained to keep his demons at rest!!that day he just did what some would do help his mud!!and they caught him twice and took away his mma by crippling him
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This is why the save the patch movement is so important to the entire MC community, To assume that this won’t happen to your club is plain stupidity, The federal government will always associate crime with 2 wheel’s, The hypocrisy with in it, is what about the lame ass COP MC, that rides around pretending to be apart of the battle, only when its convenient, right, If you worked at Macdonald’s and you were a uniform that has the arch on it and your co workers sell drugs and commit crimes out side of work yet haven’t took off there uniforms dose that give the feds the right to cease the arch and indiscriminately arrest everyone that works at Macdonald’s across the country? ya its that simple, freedom to associate, to gather, and to live are becoming more and more of a thing of the past, harassment and intimidation by law enforcement is the trend that is taking place these days. A real revolution needs to take place, a truce between all clubs needs to be the idea to come together as a collective to take on every indictment, across the country because if we spend all our club dues on bull shit, when we should be throwing it towards a “court fighting fund “the 3 piece patch will be nothing more than a camp fire tale to our great grand kids,
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Good to know
Sure wish all BIKERS wrre at
COVENTRY MALL POTTSTOWN PA this SATURDAY NOV 30 2019
BIKERS ARE DOING A
FUND RAISER for my Great Grandson who is TERMINAL with
JUVENILE HUNTINGTON’S DISEASE
only about 1 year left of life. JUVENILE HUNTINGTON’S is a ver HORRIFIC DEATH. DUE to the SHORT LIFE SPAN of ZAAVAN the BIKERS instead of toys have gutted a 4 foot Teddy Bear and are now Hoping to fill it with MONEY for ZAAVAN and FAMILY. This
MOTORCYCLE RIDE IS CALLED
ZAAVAN’S RIDE
BIKERS DO GOOD THINGS
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All praises prayers and blessings. My daughter has osteosarcoma i know hands on working on my fat boy hopefully it will be ready by morning for the ride once again peace & blessings
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Much love and respect for the patch..my other half sports a 3PP…He and his brothers do alot of good..Toy runs yearly..and a successful Yearly Breast Cancer Awareness run…they get a bad rap.. not fair..If people wouldn’t “judge” the world would be a better place. This is not coming from Liberal logic…hell No! Trumperthumper right here!
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