SAN FRANCISCO — A man in his 20s was sentenced to a year in federal prison for possessing ammunition on the day he barely survived a shooting that killed his friend, court records show.
Marco Martinez, 28, was smoking marijuana at a bus stop near 24th and Mission Streets in 2021 when a man identified as Keshon Wilson approached and sprayed the area with bullets. Martinez was struck five times; his friend, 26-year-old Isaiah Cardenas, was killed, court records show. Wilson, 24, was later convicted of first degree murder.
But while Martinez made it out of the harrowing incident alive, his legal problems were just beginning. He was carrying a loaded, unregistered pistol that day, and a prior robbery conviction made his gun possession illegal. He was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm later that year.
Earlier this month, Senior U.S. District Judge Edward Chen sentenced Martinez to a year in federal prison, to run concurrently with a five-year prison term he’s serving for carjacking. Martinez was also convicted of first degree burglary in 2024, court records show.
As part of a plea agreement, Martinez also admitted to having a gun in 2022, when authorities raided his home, court records show. A prosecution sentencing memo describes him as a gang member who pointed a gun at his robbery victim in 2020, earning him his first felony.
But prosecutors added that the 2021 shooting was the second time in his life he survived gunfire.
“That Martinez and his friend may have been shot in an unprovoked manner gives some credence to Martinez’s claim that possessed a firearm to feel safe, as he was previously shot in the leg when he was 17 or 18,” the sentencing memo says.
In an interview with a probation officer, Martinez took responsibility for the offense, according to court records.
“I know having a gun makes my community less safe and I know that’s bad,” he said, according to the sentencing memo. “I felt like I needed to have a gun because I had been shot. I know I need to have another way to feel safe.”
Martinez’s attorney asked Chen for a sentence of no additional jail time, arguing that he’s already spent a lengthy time period in jail for the carjacking case and is looking to turn a corner in life.
“He has been thinking through his goals while in custody, and is extremely interested in becoming an HVAC technician, a job that is available to felons, and would enable him to support his family,” Martinez’s lawyer, Assistant Federal Public Defender Samantha Jaffe, wrote in court filings.