Shooting victim in stable condition; second attacker still at large

A 15-year-old girl shot in the back in a gang-related attack remained hospitalized Monday, while Santa Rosa police looked for a second man involved in the shooting.

One gang member is in custody, suspected of trying to kill the girl and two companions.

Detectives were locating witnesses Monday, hoping to identify the second suspect, Santa Rosa Police Sgt. Steve Bair said.

The girl was hit once in the back. The wound was not believed to be life threatening, police said. She was listed in stable condition, Bair said.

Her name was not been released by police because of concerns that the shooting was gang related, Bair said.

She and two men were together in a car when the shooting occurred, at about 12:45 a.m. Sunday on Stony Point Road near West Third Street. Two men in another car riddled their Ford Mustang with bullets, hitting the girl as she sat in the front passenger seat.

An officer patrolling in the area heard about 15 shots and saw flashes of gunfire. He went to investigate and spotted the two cars.

While detectives continue to piece together what happened, the issue had to do with rival gangs, Bair said.

The suspect arrested, Alberto Carlos Gonzalez, 24, is a documented gang member and the two men with the girl are gang members, Bair said. Whether the girl was a gang member remained unknown.

Gonzalez is being held in Sonoma County Jail without bail on suspicion of attempted homicide and being a gang member with a loaded gun. He is due in court Monday for arraignment.

Gonzalez was arrested after a brief chase by police. The other man in his car escaped.