LOS ANGELES — A California judge has delivered a blow to a decadelong effort by federal prosecutors to strip the Mongols motorcycle gang of its trademarked logo, ruling such a move would be unconstitutional.
U.S. District Judge David Carter in Santa Ana nullified a first-of-its-kind jury verdict that would have given the government control of the logo of a Mongol warrior astride a chopper-style motorcycle and two other trademarks.
Ordering forfeiture of the trademarks would violate the First Amendment rights to freedom of association and Eighth Amendment protections against excessive penalties, Carter ruled Thursday.
