According to prosecutor Rick Unklesbay, Christopher Florez, 27, Dymond Acosta, 18, and Anthony "Gabriel" Altamirano Jr. , 21, got into a gang-related argument on the city's South Side in May 2006.

According to prosecutor Rick Unklesbay and court testimony, Cisco moved in with Smith and her 15-year-old daughter, Aisha, in the summer of 2006. Cisco was a distant relative to the Smiths.