Pubdate: Sat, 22 Dec 2007
Source: Tallahassee Democrat (FL)
Copyright: 2007 Tallahassee Democrat.
Contact:  http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/democrat/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/444
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FIGHTING BACK

We Must Gang Up On Gang Terrorists

While the overall crime rate has decreased in Florida,  according to 
Attorney General Bill McCollum,  gang-related crimes are increasing 
"substantially."  That's a reality of great concern to medium-sized 
cities such as Tallahassee as well as to large urban  areas where 
gangs are regrettably more a part of the  streetscape.

The capital city saw a spike in gang activity this past  year with 
the Tallahassee Police Department reporting  some 150 to 200 young 
people thought to be involved in  gangs - including more and more 
girls. The Department of Juvenile Justice says gangs are  recruiting 
youngsters as young as 10 years old.

Statewide, reports the Florida Department of  Corrections, there has 
been a 61-percent increase in  the number of felony convictions of 
gang members over  the past three years, a figure that no doubt 
prompted  Mr. McCollum to host the two-day Gang Reduction  Strategy 
Summit in the Capitol this week. Here in  Tallahassee, the police 
have said about 10 shootings in  the last two years have been tied to gangs.

The findings of this summit about the pervasiveness and  increase of 
gang activity largely due to drug  trafficking may shock middle-class 
citizens who haven't  given much thought to gang activity. But these 
days, no  socioeconomic group is immune from gangs. They get  bolder 
in areas where they feel there is not much  competition in dealing 
drugs or committing other crimes  - the situation police say they 
find here. Home  invasions, which are far more dangerous and 
terrifying than burglaries that occur when no one is home, may 
be  one signal that bolder criminals are at work, for  example.

Combating gang activity requires not only awareness but  a broad 
battle front, including intervention and  prevention programs aimed 
at identifying youngsters who  are at risk of gang involvement. This 
is not just a  law-enforcement problem, but one in which education 
and outreach must be ignited in schools, by churches, in  youth clubs 
and recreation centers and definitely by  parents, who must be 
willing to address the reality of  their children's lives.

Tallahasseeans have organized town-hall meetings to get  parents, 
schools and neighborhoods informed and alert,  and since last year a 
Gang Intelligence Work Group that  includes law enforcement from 
various agencies from  around the region has been meeting regularly.

Gangs may be going about their business as usual, but  there is no 
time to waste in coordinating comprehensive  approaches to fighting back.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom