Gangs and Delinquency

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• Gangs and Delinquency

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CHAPTER OBJECTIVES
After completing this chapter, you should be able
to

• Explain the difficulties in accurately defining a
  gang, gang member, and gang-related crime.
• Describe the extent of the gang problem.
• Differentiate between types of gangs.
• Identify the major characteristics of gangs.
• Explain why youths join gangs.
• Describe the major responses to gangs.
• Summarize efforts to control gang activity.

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13.1 Gangs in Society
Increasing gang violence and the media frenzy
that currently envelops juvenile delinquency has
led to widespread attention being paid to street
gangs and policies to deal with them.
This has not always been the case.
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Gangs in Society
In the 1980s, concerns about gangs grew because
of

• The emergence of youth gangs in small and rural
  communities.
• The increased diversity of gang composition.
• The increased use of highly dangerous weapons and
  the higher level of violence.
• The controversy surrounding the role of gangs in
  drug trafficking.

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Gangs in Society
The word gang has been the most commonly used
term to label certain groups considered to be
major social problems.
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Gangs in Society
The simple fact that gangs have existed for so
long tells us that there is no simple cure to the
problem of gangs.
Gangs have changed throughout history to reflect
the social and economic condition of society.
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Gangs in Society
Recently gangs have become

• More violent
• More prevalent
• Less susceptible to traditional law enforcement
  intervention

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SELF CHECK
What circumstances caused members of the juvenile
justice system to renew their concern about gangs?
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13.2 Defining Gangs
The actual definitions of the terms gang and gang
member are as varied as peoples mental images of
gangs.
However, these definitions are very important,
because gang members may receive more severe
penalties for their offenses than non-gang
members.
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What is a Gang?
While it is clear that gangs exist in todays
society, there is very little consensus about how
a gang should be defined.
gang Any denotable group of adolescents working
to unlawful or unsocial ends.
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What is a Gang?
Michael W. Klein in Street Gangs and Street
Workers defined a gang as any denotable
adolescent group who

• are generally perceived as a distinct aggregation
  by others in their neighborhood
• recognize themselves as a denotable group and
• have been involved in a sufficient number of
  delinquent incidents to call forth a consistent
  negative response from the neighborhood.

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What is a Gang?
Walter B. Miller, in Gangs, Groups, and Serious
Youth Crime, defined a gang as

• A self-formed association of peers, bound
  together by mutual interests, with identifiable
  leadership, well defined lines of authority, and
  other organizational features, who act in concert
  to achieve a specific purpose or purposes which
  generally include illegal activity and control
  over a particular territory, facility, or type of
  enterprise.

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What is a Gang?
How a gang is defined has implications for theory
and policy, and will influence how resources are
spent.
A vague definition could lead to too many youths
being targeted by police and prosecutors trying
to be tough on crime.
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What is a Gang?
Research on gangs has concluded that very few
youths are actually hard-core gang members.
gang member An individual who actively
participates in the activities of a gang.
Criteria to distinguish gang members are not very
clear-cut.
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What is a Gang?
Many individuals believe that most gang members
are peripheral, transitory, or wanna-bes.
wanna-be A youth who wants to be a gang member
and emulates the behavior of gang members.
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Why Do Youths Join Gangs?
Prominent reasons why youths join gangs include

• Gangs provide youths with an opportunity to
  associate with their peers and obtain a sense of
  belonging.
• Gangs provide the prospect of obtaining money
  through crime such as burglary and drug dealing.
• Youths are seeking protection from other youths
  in the community.

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What is Gang-Related Crime?
No matter how gangs and gang members are defined,
there is concern about what is meant by
gang-related crime.
gang-related crime Acts of delinquency in which
the offender or the victim is a gang member.
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What is Gang-Related Crime?
Differences in the definition of gang-related
crime affect public perceptions of crime
generally and the gang problem specifically in
the community.
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What is Gang-Related Crime?
These differences in definitions raise related
questions

• If an individual is a gang member, are all of the
  offenses he or she commit gang-related?
• Should only collective delinquent events be
  considered gang-related?
• If an individual uses his or her gang reputation
  to commit individual offenses, should these acts
  be considered gang-related?

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MYTH
FACT
All gangs frequently commit violent crimes.
Only 28 of gangs have a high degree of
involvement in aggravated assault, and only 13
in robbery.
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SELF CHECK

• Explain why defining gangs is so important.
• Name three reasons why young people join gangs.

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13.3 The Extent of the Gang Problem
It is difficult to accurately estimate the number
of gangs and gang members in the U.S. because of
the different ways gangs are defined.
However, the Office of Juvenile Justice and
Delinquency Prevention surveyed police and
sheriffs departments to obtain information about
the presence of youth gangs.
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Top Ten States by Number of Gangs Reported
FIGURE 13-3
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Top Ten States by Number of Gang Members
FIGURE 13-4
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The Extent of the Gang Problem
A recent study found that no state is gang free,
and youth gangs are emerging in new localities,
especially smaller and rural communities.
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MYTH
FACT
Gangs exist only in large cities.
A third of cities with population of less than
25,000 report that active youth gangs exist in
their communities.
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SELF CHECK
Which three states have the largest number of
gangs? The largest number of gang members?
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13.4 Types of Gangs
There are many different types of gangs.
Researcher C. Ronald Huff identified three major
types
hedonistic gang A type of gang that is primarily
involved in using drugs and getting high with
little involvement in crime.

• Hedonistic gangs

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Types of Gangs

• Instrumental gangs

instrumental gang A gang that is primarily
involved in committing property crime and is
actively involved in using drugs.
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Types of Gangs

• Predatory gangs

predatory gang A gang that is actively involved
in committing serious crimes including violent
crime and selling drugs.
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Types of Gangs
Predatory gangs are the most stereotypical, but
the least prevalent.
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Types of Gangs
Another typology of gangs was developed by
authors Cheryl Maxson and Malcolm Klein
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Types of Gangs

• Traditional gang

traditional gang A gang that has as many as
several hundred members and has been in existence
for over 20 years. The gang has a well-defined
territory and has members who range in age from
10 to over 30.
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Types of Gangs
neotraditional gang A gang that is smaller and
newer than the traditional gang.

• Neotraditional gang

• Compressed gang

compressed gang A gang that is relatively new,
with fewer than 50 members around the same age.
The gang does not have a defined territory.
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Types of Gangs

• Collective gang

collective gang A gang that has a short history,
limited size, and little defined territory.
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Types of Gangs

• Specialty gang

specialty gang A gang that has a defined
territory, narrow age range of members, and is
small in size. The gang is actively involved in
serious criminal activity including drug
trafficking.
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Types of Gangs
Collective and specialty gangs are the least
prevalent.
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SELF CHECK

• List the different types of gangs according to C.
  Ronald Huff.
• Which type of gangs are the least prevalent
  according to the classifications established by
  Maxson and Klein?

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13.5 Characteristics of Gangs
There are six major characteristics of gangs

• Age
• Race and ethnicity
• Gender
• Gang migration
• Communication
• Delinquent activity

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Age
Gang members have typically been seen as
juveniles.

• Juveniles first learn about gangs at age 9
• get involved in violence at 10 or 11
• and join a gang at about 12.

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Age
Recently, evidence has shown gang members
continue their gang activity into adulthood.
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Age
Two primary reasons are cited for the change in
age of gang members

• Loss of low-skilled manufacturing jobs
• Increased emphasis on drug dealing

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Race and Ethnicity
No racial or ethnic group is excluded from gang
participation.

• Typically, gangs are racially or ethnically
  homogenous
• The conflict between gangs usually involves gangs
  of the same racial or ethnic background.

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GenderFemales and Gangs
Until recently, most research on gangs focused on
male participation in gangs.
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GenderFemales and Gangs
The traditional female role would be to form a
female auxiliary gang. Females would
female auxiliary gang A female gang that is
affiliated with a male gang and generally takes
on a feminized version of the male gangs name.

• Act as lookout
• Carry guns and drugs
• Be girlfriends

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GenderFemales and Gangs

• It is now estimated that 20 to 30 of all gang
  members are female.

• Female gang members are as likely as males to
  participate in drug use and delinquent activity,
  but less frequently than males.
• Recently, females have formed autonomous gangs,
  without connection to male gangs.

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Gang Migration
Most gangs are home grown. However, the
majority of gang proliferation in recent years is
due to gang migration.
gang migration The movement of gangs from large
metropolitan areas such as Los Angeles and
Chicago to other areas of the country.
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Gang Migration
There are two perspectives on gang migration

• Established metropolitan gangs migrate to other
  areas to set up local chapters for drug
  distribution.
• Gang migration is accidental and occurs because
• A gang members family relocates.
• A group of youths decides to establish a gang and
  borrow the name, colors, and symbols of an
  established, metropolitan gang.

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Communication
Gangs want recognition from rival gangs as well
as from the larger community. Gangs primarily
communicate through

• Graffiti

graffiti Public markings used by gang members to
identify their existence.

• Tattoos
• Hand signs
• Clothing

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Communication
Gangs use graffiti to

• Identify their existence
• Mark their territory
• Challenge rival gangs
• Remember deceased gang members

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Communication
Graffiti usually contains

• The gangs name or logo

• The nickname of the gang member who wrote the
  graffiti

logo A descriptive emblem used to identify a
gang that may include a group of Roman numerals,
the gangs initials, or a picture or a symbols
such as a pitchfork, crown, or Playboy bunny.
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Communication
Many gang members will openly display their
membership through

• Tattooingused extensively by Hispanic gangs
• Flashing hand signs

hand signs A method of communication used by
gang members which identifies the user with a
particular gang.
and
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Communication

• Style of dress, including wearing colors

colors Clothing used by gang members to
demonstrate their affiliation with a particular
gang.
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Delinquent Activity
There are some common characteristics of
delinquent activity and gangs

• Gang members are more likely to commit delinquent
  acts than non-gang members.
• The majority of gangs do not participate in drug
  trafficking and violence.

and
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Delinquent Activity

• Some gangs specialize in a particular type of
  offense, such as extortion.
• Offenses such as drive-by shootings are rare.
• Gang members spend the majority of their time
  partying and hanging out.

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MYTH
FACT
All gangs actively deal drugs.
Only 42 of gangs in the U.S. are estimated to be
involved in the street sale of drugs.
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SELF CHECK

• What factors account for gang migration?
• Briefly describe the six major characteristics of
  gangs.

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13.6 Responses to Gangs
Strategies used to respond to the gang problem
can be divided into five categories

• Community organization

community organization Efforts to mobilize the
community to deal with gangs.
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Responses to Gangs

• Opportunities provision

opportunities provision Efforts to deal with
gangs through employment, job training, and
education.

• Organizational change and development

organizational change and development
Organizational adaptations that facilitate the
application of gang control strategies.
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Responses to Gangs

• Social intervention

social intervention Counseling and other direct
attempts to change the values of youth in order
to make gang involvement less likely.
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Responses to Gangs

• Suppression

suppression The use of the criminal justice
system to reduce gang behavior through the use of
formal social control including arrest and
incarceration.
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Responses to Gangs

• Suppression is the most common strategy used to
  deal with gangs.

• Opportunities provision was the least used.

• People felt opportunities provision was the most
  effective.

• However, in one survey, respondents felt
  suppression was the least effective strategy.

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SELF CHECK

• Define the five strategies used by communities to
  respond to the gang problem.
• What is the most frequently used strategy? The
  least frequently used?

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13.7 Controlling Gang Activity
Efforts to control gang activity stem from three
major parts of the juvenile justice system

• Law enforcement
• Prosecution
• Legislature

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Law Enforcement Efforts
Suppression by law enforcement includes

• Gang sweeps
• Surveillance
• Aggressive patrol
• Intelligence gathering
• Follow-up investigations

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Law Enforcement Efforts
In addition to suppressing gang crime, the police
are actively involved in attempts to prevent
individuals from participating in gangs.
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Law Enforcement Efforts
One program is G.R.E.A.T.Gang Resistance
Education and Training.
Gang Resistance Education and Training A
school-based gang prevention program that is
designed to help students set goals for
themselves, resist pressures, learn how to
resolve conflicts without violence, and
understand how gangs and youth violence impact
the quality of their lives.
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Prosecution Efforts
The primary mission of prosecutors is successful
prosecution, conviction, and incarceration of
gang offenders. Problems include

• Difficulty obtaining cooperation of victims and
  witnesses
• Intimidation by gang members of victims and
  witnesses
• The unreliability of victim and witness
  credibility

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Prosecution Efforts
Tools prosecutors can use include

• RICO
• STEP
• Nuisance Abatement laws

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RICO
The Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organization Act
(RICO) was enacted in 1970 to dismantle organized
crime.
Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organization Act
(RICO) A federal statute which is used to
prosecute gang members who participate in an
organized criminal enterprise.
Several states have enacted similar legislation.
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RICO
RICO requires that an organization

• operates with a criminal purpose over an extended
  period of time
• has an established managerial order
• restricts membership
• relies on criminal activity to generate income
• achieves its goals often through violence and
• has a power/profit motive.

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RICO
The vast majority of gangs dont fit RICO
criteria. However, RICO has been successfully
used against some drug gangs.
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STEP Acts
Street Terrorism Enforcement and Prevention
(STEP) Acts are based on the RICO model.
Street Terrorism Enforcement and Prevention
(STEP) Acts A type of statute which uses a
series of predicate crimes as the basis for
sentence enhancement and provides for civil
forfeiture of a gangs assets and the proceeds of
its criminal activities.
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STEP Acts
These acts are valuable because they turn
specific intent crimes like attempted murder
general intent A level of intent that involves
an act in which a prohibited result follows (e.g.
death) in the absence of a desire for the
particular result.
or aggravated assault into general intent crimes.
specific intent A level of intent that occurs
when the circumstances of the offense demonstrate
that the offender must have consciously desired
the result.
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STEP Acts
Under Californias STEP Act, which served as a
model for other states, if a criminal street gang
is involved in a pattern of criminal gang
activity, then the participants in the gang can
be held liable for the offenses even if the
participants did not physically commit the
offense.
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Nuisance Abatement
Prosecutors in several states are increasingly
using nuisance abatement statutes to target
street gangs.
nuisance abatement A method of dealing with
gangs that defines their behavior as a public
nuisance and forbids certain legal and illegal
behaviors.
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Nuisance Abatement

• In a nuisance abatement process, the judge issues
  a court order to instruct the gang members to
  stop their delinquent activity.
• If gang members dont stop their activities, the
  gang is classified as a nuisance.
• Each gang member is given a court order
  restricting certain activities and can be
  arrested for violating that court order.

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Nuisance Abatement
Court orders can restrict a variety of activities
including

• Fighting
• Possessing weapons
• Spraying graffiti
• Trespassing
• Possessing gang associated paraphernalia,
  including pagers
• Associating with other gang members

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Nuisance Abatement
Because the nuisance order is a civil action, the
burden of proof is lower than for criminal
actions. Abatement allows

• The permanent closure of structures such as crack
  houses.
• The seizure of personal property.

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Social and Constitutional Questions
Anti-gang injunctions raise difficult questions

• Civil court orders designed to eradicate gangs
  prohibit otherwise legal conduct.
• Using civil remedies may deprive individuals of
  constitutional procedural protections.
• Legal challenges based on the freedom of
  association, freedom of speech, and right to
  privacy were all found to be unsubstantiated by
  appellate courts.

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Legislative Efforts
In the past, gang behavior was dealt with though
law enforcement techniques and through
prosecution under existing penal laws.
Recently, legislatures around the country have
enacted gang-specific legislation to target
street gangs.
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Enhanced Penalties for Gang-Related Crime
One of the most popular legislative responses to
gang activity has been to impose increased
penalties for gang-related offenses.

• Generally, states increase their penalty range
  one class.

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Gang Membership and Participation Defined as
Illegal
Some states have made gang membership or
participation illegal.
Gang definitions vary by state, but all are
typically vague and overbroad.
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Drive-By-Shootings Defined as a Separate Offense
The drive-by is perhaps the most infamous of
gang offenses and receives the greatest media
attention.
Some states have enacted legislation the
specifically criminalizes drive-by shootings.
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SELF CHECK

• Briefly describe G.R.E.A.T.s philosophy and
  curriculum.
• What programs and strategies have been used by
  prosecutors and legislatures to respond to gangs?
  How successful have they been?

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13.8 The Future of Gangs
Some indicators demonstrate that the gang problem
in the U.S. is likely to get worse before it gets
better. There is limited evidence that
strategies in use are effective in reducing the
gang problem.
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The Future of Gangs
Other indicators show the gang problem may be
getting better.

• The 1997 National Youth Gang Survey found a
  slight reduction in the number of jurisdictions
  with gangs and in the number of gang members.

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SELF CHECK
Is the gang problem getting better or worse?
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• END OF CHAPTER