Jose's Story

Jose Guzman was born in Durango, Mexico, on June 14, 1991.  In 2002, he moved to La Puente, CA at the age of 11. Guzman describes the choices that he faced shortly after moving to the US as choosing either to be “a victim or a gangster.”  He describes his US education as follows: “I learned all about racism, I learned how to fight, I learned about being an outcast, I learned that fear, insecurity, anger and helplessness were common events even outside of the family structure.”

The circumstances of Guzman’s conviction took place in 2010, when he was just 19 years old. On December 24, 2010, what began as a routine drug transaction turned into a nightmare for Guzman. Guzman was hanging out with his friend, Castro, when decided to order some weed from a dealer named Jackson. When the dealer showed up to Guzman’s residence, a confrontation ensued between Castro and Jackson, because Castro owed Jackson money from a previous transaction. During the confrontation, Jackson shot Castro in the leg. Jackson was tried and convicted shortly after the shooting. 

Approximately one year after Jackson’s conviction, Guzman was prosecuted as an accomplice under the natural and probable consequences theory, based upon a gang allegation, which allows the state to treat an accomplice as a principal. The arresting officer testified as the state’s prime witness and gang expert, along with another officer from the Rampart Division. Guzman was convicted primarily based upon the officer testimony and sentenced to life in prison, plus 25 years for the gang and gun enhancement, despite the absence of any corroborating evidence to the officer testimony, and despite the fact that he was not armed and did not shoot anyone. 

Guzman is now committed to personal transformation and helping others:

I’m aware of the damage that was done not only to me but to thousands of other people just like me. Now I am empathetic and I understand people when they are going through some issues and I try to be of assistance and share with them what I have learned along the journey.  Now I’m grateful for even though it was a dark dark place and it was dark what I went through, I survived all of that and I am grateful that I am where I am now.  Now that I have learned to understand my emotions and I am currently learning to express them and project them within myself and other people there are ample opportunities to help others and try to help them understand them because they might be where I was once and I wish I could have had the help that I will be able to provide for them. 

Guzman reflects that he was “in the wrong place at the wrong time,” and was convicted with police officer testimony under the natural and probable consequences theory - a theory that is no longer legally viable in murder prosecutions. Guzman was convicted in the Antelope Valley Courthouse - a region that has a long history of racially discriminatory law enforcement and deputy gangs. Ultimately, the Federal Department of Justice investigated the Lancaster and Antelope Valley area police departments in 2013 for allegations of racial biased policing and related civil rights violations and came to a settlement to address the widespread civil rights violations committed by law enforcement in 2015. 

Guzman has been incarcerated for 13 years, serving a life sentence for a crime that he never imagined, nor committed.  Guzman is now represented by the People’s Commission for Integrity in Criminal Justice who are fighting his wrongful conviction, citing racial bias as a main factor in his conviction.