Luis Felipe (gang leader)
Luis Felipe | |
|---|---|
 Felipe in an interview | |
| Born | May 6, 1962 Havana, Cuba |
| Other names | King Blood |
| Occupation | Former street gang leader |
| Criminal status | Imprisoned at ADX Florence supermax prison in Fremont County, Colorado |
| Conviction(s) | 1995 |
| Criminal charge | Multiple counts of first-degree murder |
| Penalty | Life imprisonment plus 45 years without parole |
Luis Felipe, also known as "King Blood", is a Cuban-American former gang leader and is the founder of the New York chapter of the Latin Kings (ALKN) street gang.
Born in Havana, Cuba, Felipe emigrated to the United States in the Mariel Boatlift in 1980. Six years later, in 1986, after fleeing Chicago, he founded the New York chapter of the Latin Kings.[1]
In 1995, he was convicted of ordering multiple murders from prison by writing to members of the Latin Kings on the outside. Judge John S. Martin Jr. sentenced him to life imprisonment plus 45 years. Furthermore, the judge added extraordinary conditions, surprising even prosecutors. Judge Martin said Felipe must serve the sentence in solitary confinement. He forbade him to write or be visited by anyone except his lawyer and close relatives, of whom Felipe has none. Finally, the judge said that he himself, rather than the Federal Bureau of Prisons, would control the case.[2] However, the appellate court recognized that federal statutes generally allow only the attorney general, through the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to determine the conditions of confinement imposed on federal prisoners,[3] but that other statutes,[4] allow district courts to set special conditions of confinement on defendants convicted of racketeering.[5]
Felipe is currently incarcerated at ADX Florence.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ Federal Prison Reform- Super Jail and Solitary Confinement Policy Esquire, March 2nd 2009
- ^ Testing the Limits of Punishment; Unusually Severe Life Sentence vs. Society's Need for Safety NY Times, October 26, 1997
- ^ 18 U.S.C. § 3621, 4001(b)
- ^ 18 U.S.C. § 3582(d)
- ^ United States v. Felipe, 148 F.3d 101 (2nd Cir. 1998)
- ^ "Federal Bureau of Prisons". Bop.gov. Retrieved 2012-11-26.
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