ADMINISTRATIONOF

JUSTICE

STREET GANGS

I. INTRODUCTION

A. The increase in gang violence and its deep - rooted social problems pose a massive challenge to law enforcement.

1. In the combined jurisdictions of Los Angeles County there exists over 1300 street gangs with an estimated membership of 140,000 to 150,000.

2. Studies have shown that in Los Angeles County, a criminal incident involving a gang member will occur approximately every 35 minutes.

a. These incidents range from petty theft and public drunkenness to armed robbery, felonious assault and murder.

(1) In 2002 there were 592 gang related murders in Los Angeles County

II. DEFINITION

A. A street gang is a group of youthsfrom the same neighborhood andgenerally from the same race, banded together for anti-social and criminal activities. Gang members vary in their affiliation with the gang.

1. The most widely accepted definition of the term "gang" is -- a group of similar individuals sharing a number of common interests.

a. Expanded further, it usually characterizes youth gang activities as, at the least, not in the good interest of the community and, at the most, outright criminal.

b. Tales of ancient gangs have existed for ages in places like China (i.e., the Tongs), and throughout medieval Europe.

c. Gangs, even today, terrorize areas of Great Britain in unorganized, but army - like groups.

d. Ku Klux Klan, Skinheads and other similar groups are gangs bent on terrorism and activist violence today.

2. Society has had to contend with various forms of gangs throughout history.

B. The classifications of gangs which appear most relevant are:

1. Hard - core members:

a. The totally involved and unchanging.

b. Generally the leaders, the most violent and the most legal and street wise.

c. Those who need and thrive on any and all activity by the gang.

2. Affiliate or associate members:

a. Those who socialize with the gang for status, recognition and protection.

3. Peripheral members:

a. Those who "back up" the neighborhood but join and leave as their need for the gang arises.

1. Gang members share a common motivation that leads to their joining a neighborhood gang.

a. A need to be accepted by someone -- anyone.

III. THE GANG MEMBER

A. Acceptance into the gang

(1) self - esteem -- results from a lack of encouragement from friends and family.

(2) esteem is how one looks at one's self.

b. Primary reason street gangs exist is they offer young individuals one very important element which is usually missing in their lives:

2. Peer pressure is another term we use when discussing youthful behavior.

a. When there is no self - esteem, young people are easily pressured

by their peers (friends) into becoming members of an organization that

offers esteem and recognition.

b. To transform quickly from a “nobody” to a “somebody” is hard to ignore and easy to accept.

3. The status as an appreciated and recognizable member of a neighborhood street gang attracts young individuals.

a. The fact that gang members are routinely wounded and often killed does not deter the enthusiastic "wannabe" (want-to-be) from the desire to become a "Homeboy"

(a full - fledged street gangster).

IV. STREET GANG INTIMIDATION AND WARFARE

A. Gang membership has increased dramatically to the point that many teachers and parents are afraid.

1. Some teachers have left the profession entirely to seek other options.

2. Parents are distraught that otherwise really nice children have become the victims of this emerging element of society.

a. Today's youth are joining the ranks of the “gang bangers” for the sheer excitement offered by their bizarre way of life.

3. The adult population is at the mercy of street gangs and the gang mentality.

B. Street gangs are a phenomena that has evolved in part as the result of the easy access to illegal drugs and guns in the metropolitan areas.

1. The mobility resulting from the availability of motor vehicles well as the over - abundance of the amenities that accompany gang activity, has led to an alarming increase in total numbers of gangs.

2. The tremendous profit in the sale of drugs and lack of gun control allows gangs to arm themselves with every type of weapon available.

3. Hospital emergency rooms are filled with the victims of gang violence and, as a result, have increased security in the emergency areas.

a. In September 1992, a gang followed their victims directly into the emergency room of White Memorial Hospital, located in a Southern California gang

neighborhood and a gun battle ensued.

b. In March 1993, gang members, bent on revenge, mistakenly murdered an entire sleeping family of five in the notorious gang-infested "Gardens" housing complex in Watts, California.

(It was the wrong address.)

a. It is fought in the suburbs, prisons, and school sporting events.

(1) The school of one black high school football team, was forced to cancel a championship game because of street gang gunfire.

4. The war is fought over "turf" claimed by

each gang in their own neighborhoods and public streets.

V. STREET GANG MENTALITY

A. The main purpose of the street gang is to gain status.

1. Accomplished by waging war against other neighborhood gangs.

a. Children and adults in these communities become

innocent victims of this warfare.

2. Another war exists between street gangs and law enforcement.

a. Most metropolitan police departments have gang units and train officers to cope with street gang activity.

b. Increased numbers of officers have been assigned to gang units to combat the uprising of gangs.

c. As the methods of operation by the gangs change, the police response is changing to meet them.

VI. RACIAL MAKE-UP OF GANGS

A. The racial make - up of the common street gang differs according to the specific area of the country.

1. At one time gang activity in New York City involved primarily Blacks but included a large element of Puerto Rican nationals.

a. The dominant Hispanic gangs had not yet arrived.

2. Los Angeles, is called the "mother of all gang cities."

3. As gang activity has spread throughout many regions, the ethnic make-up has evolved from primarily Black in the 1980's, to now predominantly Hispanic gang membership.

a. The influx of native Mexicans across the southern border has magnified the size of present Hispanic street gangs.

(1) Although the vast majority of these immigrants are honest people.

(2) The Hispanic gangs have grown to become veritable armies.

b. Black gangs are second.

c. Asian gangs and Skin Heads running third and fourth.

4. Few Caucasians are members of gangs

with the exception of organized crime, outlaw bikers, Ku Klux Klan and the neo - Nazis.

a. They look upon the police as a referee in their war with rival hood gangs.

(1) Gangs commonly refer to their neighborhood, turf, territory

or protected boundaries as "the hood."

5. Each gang considers themselvesto be the "soldiers of the hood."

VII. GANG IDENTIFICATION

A. Being identified as a gang member

1. Members enjoy the ultimate position in the most important element of their community,

they are "in" and not "out."

2. Recognition of this new status to their peers is necessary and is achieved in many ways and forms.

a. Gang members identify themselves to each other, and to the community, through the use of graffiti, attire, tattoos,

hand signals and "marked“ possessions.

3. Eye contact also serves as identification as signals are flashed with meaningful stares.

B. Tattoos

1. Gang members are proud of their association with the gang and freely admit their membership in the organization.

2. They proudly display identification tattoos openly, in addition to dressing in the styles associated with their particular street gang.

a. Tattoos are a permanent form of identification that will be the possession of the gang banger forever.

3. The most important thing to gang members is their "moniker" (the term the gang members are known by).

a. It may often be tattooed on their bodies, and their personal possessions.

b. Often, a gang member is only known by his moniker and members of his group may never be aware of his true name.

4. Common areas for displaying a tattoo are the neck, face, arms, back and stomach.

a. The palm of the hand also is often a choice site for a tattoo.

b. Many gang bangers tattoo letters

on all of their fingers, in the ring area, to spell out messages.

d. A teardrop tattooed at the outside corner of the right eye may indicate that:

(1) The gang member has spent at least one year (one bullet) in C.Y.A. or State prison.

(2) The gang member has committed a murder.

c. Even the web of skin between the thumb and fingers is often tattooed.

5. Female gang members, as well asmales, are utilizing this body graffiti.

a. The use of Old English style lettering has become the mode of expression for gangs.

a. Some are accomplished without touching other gang members.

b. These are unlike the elaborate handshakes utilized by fraternal organizations of the "straight" community.

C. Hand signals

1. There are hand signals employed by each gang.

2. The hand signal is visual and meant only for rapid recognition in the event the signaler is new at the game.

3. The use of hand signals by gang members has practically become another language with meanings transmitted more rapidly than with spoken words.

a. Gang members "shoot" or "toss“ signs with their fingers positioned ingestures that identify the particular neighborhood gang with which they are affiliated.

This is very important because the lack of a proper "shoot", may result in disastrous consequences.

(1) Gang attacks and shootings are often preceded by sign flashing.

b. When a gang member employs the hand signal, it is called "flashing."

D. Gang attire

1. The early days of street gang prominence.

a. Clothing worn was the primary, if not the sole, method of identification.

b. Gang attire eventually evolved intotwo predominant colors that represented the status quo of the main gangs of each "hood":

(1) Red meant you were a "Blood",

(2) while blue indicated the wearer was a "Crip."

c. Time has not altered the mentality of the street gang but it has transformed the dress codes.

(1) Today's gang world activists all wear, interestingly, the color of death -- black.

(2) Bright colors are "out."

(3) The Los Angeles Raiders' professional football team emblems with the fierce eye - patched pirate are “in.”

2. While many young people on school campuses all look like gang members, a great number are only wanting to be.

3. Hand signals have replaced clothing worn as the meaningful form of street gang identification.

E. Graffiti

1. To the gang members, graffiti is the clear marking of territorial limits, pride in his associations with the gang, and a warning to other gangs to keep out “this territory is ours.”

2. The turf boundaries are marked by spray painting their personal letters and numbers which dates their organization.

3. Graffiti also used as a temporarily written history of the gangs and their accomplishments.

a. Young gang members see legendary figures glorified and will bemotivated to emulate a fallen hero.

b. Many deaths and injuries have resulted from disputes over these wall adornments.

4. In many cases, the gang youth will have minimal financial or worldly assets.

a. His most important possession becomes his reputation within his own gang as well as other gangs.

(1) He proudly and defiantly writes his name and gang association anywhere it can be seen.

a. This act is one that must be avenged.

This threatens not only his own self esteem but his standing within the gang and by extension, his identity.

5. A major insult by a rival gang directed at a gang member is to "cross out his name"

(1) It is this attitude that results in the blood baths often seen on our city streets.

VIII. PRISON GANGS A. In the 1960's a new experience

was born in the Nation’s prison system -- highly organized prison gangs.

1. These groups were so secret and well organized that the prison system was undermined and control was taken from prison officials before the authorities were aware of their existence.

a. One factor that promoted the growth and spread of such gangs is the inbred violence that caged men perpetrated on each other.

b. Racial violence has always been a serious problem within prisons, and gang organizers encouraged racial segregation to facilitate the growth of gangs.

B. The Mexican Mafia

1. The first and most notorious prison gang is the Mexican Mafia (EME).

a. Organized in the late 1950's by a group of Mexican - Americans, its purpose was to protect fellow Hispanic prisoners from racial violence within the prison system.

b. They are responsible for the majority of narcotics trafficking in the prisons they control, and employ time - honored racketeering techniques such as protection and loan sharking to develop its strength in the prison system.

(1) born in California prisons

(2) major distributor of heroin

(3) will eliminate its competition in any manner possible

c. The Mexican Mafia also operates outside prison walls, primarily in the urban areas of the south western United States.

C. Nuestra Familia

1. The Mexican Mafia's most dreaded enemy.

a. The Nuestra Familia means ("OUR FAMILY")

2. Born in the California prison system.

a. Was organized in 1967 at Soledad Prison.

b. It began as a political organization to push for prison reform.

3. Unlike its mortal enemy the Mexican Mafia, it has a written constitution and an identified rank structure.

4. The Nuestra Familia openly wars with the Mexican Mafia in and out of the prison system.

a. Violence has escalated to such a degree that prison officials attempt to segregate Nuestra Familia and Mexican Mafia from one another by assigning members to separate prisons.

5. The majority of Nuestra Familia recruits are prisoners committed to the prison system from rural areas.

a. They tend to control the narcotics and organized criminal activity in the rural areas of California.

b. Their counterparts in the Mexican Mafia generally come from the urban areas and control criminal activities in the cities.

D. The Black Guerilla Family (BGF)

1. A gang whose beginnings in prison were motivated by political ideas.

a. Inside the prison, the BGF is linked to the Black Liberation Army (BLA) which operates as a Communist terrorist organization on the streets

of America.

2. The BGF is responsible for most of the assaults on prison officials, and on several occasions has murdered prison staff.

3. Even though the BGF is very strong inside prison, it is not as well - organized on the outside.

4. The organization is now almost totally a criminal group trafficking in narcotics both within and outside prison walls.

E. The Aryan Brotherhood (AB)

1. The most important white gang in the prison system.

2. Originally it called itself the Blue Bird Gang, later changing its name to Aryan Brotherhood.

a. The members can be identified by a tattoo of the anti - Christ symbol in the form of the triple six (666) contained within a cloverleaf.

3. Formed in the early 1960's as a white supremacy group whose purpose was to protect white inmates from other racially - oriented, non - white gangs.

4. The feeling of the gang comes from Nazi idealism which exists among white power groups that afflict certain segments of society.

5. Composed primarily of individuals who, on the outside, associate with or belong to various white racist groups.

a. Particularly violent and holds a strong attraction for the

violence - prone individual.

6. Many of the inter -- racial murders committed in the prison system are directly related to the Aryan Brotherhood and the Mexican Mafia.

7. The gang is not particularly strong outside prison because upon release, members to tend to rejoin their original white power groups or resume former criminal associations.

IX. PRISON GANG PHILOSOPHY

A. Prison gang philosophy is very often directly opposedto that of the street gang.

1. Although loyalty is a prime value for both groups disagreements among prison gang members are many times settled by the murder of the offending member or members of his family.

a. The killing of a "homeboy" on the other hand is alien to most street gangs;

(1) When a street gang makes raids on rival gangs the intent is not to commit murder per se but to terrorize rivals.

(2) If a street gang must kill to fulfill its aims it will - but the killing itself

is secondary to the intent.

2. In a prison gang the killing is of primary importance, with the terror, which the killing generates, an added extra.

3. The prison gang prefers to advance its own goals.

a. Turf and neighborhood are, forobvious reasons of no concern.

b. Unlike the prison gang member, the street gang member forsakes everything and places his own interests second to the gang that identifies with the neighborhood from which he gains his identity.

(1) For the street gang member, the neighborhood and the gang which protects it are entities from which he draws substance.

4. The prison gang is different than the street gang:

a. It is cold, calculating and purposeful.

b. Individuals who break prison gang rules are punished ruthlessly and swiftly.

c. The street gang, on the other hand, operates on pure emotion.

(2) There may not be a specific person selected as a victim.

(3) The strike will be against any memberof the opposing gang as the target is

not an individual but the gang itself.

(1) Its planning is usually simple, its actions spontaneous.

(4) An attack on any gang member, therefore, is an attack on the gang as a whole. Any member will do.

this concludes

Street Gangs