Assignment: Criminal Organization Legislation
PROFESSOR REPLY
You brought up that information should not be eliminated. Do you feel that people should be able to be removed from the database?
HELLO THIS WILL BE A 150 TO 200 W0RD COUNT WITH REFERENCE PLEASE READ EACH STUDENT AND PROFESSOR QUESTION AND RESPOND BACK TO THEM. IF YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND SOMETHING JUST REACHOUT AND I WILL TRY AND GUIDE YOU……
STUDENT REPLIES
STUDENT REPLY #1 Callie Sanchelli
My local law enforcement uses the state-wide definition of gangs and gang members to help define if the offender they have caught could potentially be related to a gang. That definition is the use of a common symbol or name, and the members engage in a pattern of criminal activities. In doing my research on local law enforcements use of gang related databases I found that a database called “GangNet” was at one time was in use and became a long list of gangs around the area yet was shut down in 2011 due to the department believing the criminal activity was more than just being a gang issue and need to look at each offender individually. Currently the department does not rely specifically on a gang database, rather they use a crime mapping database that lists locations times and what type of crime was committed so if there is a certain pattern happening, they will be able to visually see it throughout the community. Pros of using a database would be seeing a list of potential gangs in the community and descriptions of them which could include the type of crimes normally committed by the gangs, what symbols they use to mark their criminal activity and or if the gang goes by a name. Cons of using this type of database would be that the information could be so broad that many different gangs could it the exact same description and even with the information it could be difficult to arrest members. I think gang databases can only aid in the arresting and shut down of these gangs and decrease the amount of criminal activity in these communities that are notorious for having gang related crimes occur.
Reference
Nelson, T. (2019, July 13). GangNet terminated by Ramsey County Sheriff. MPR News. https://www.mprnews.org/story/2011/08/03/gangnet
Office of the revisor of statutes. Sec. 609.229 MN Statutes. (n.d.). https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/609.229
STUDENT REPLIES
STUDENT REPLY #2 Angelica Moreland
How do your local law enforcement officers identify potential gang members?
I live in a town right outside of Houston in Montegomery County. Montegomery County created a gang investigation unit better known as (GIU) in 2014. Gang members are distinguished from ordinary criminals with markers, such as hand signals, tattoos, and evidence that an individual recruited new gang members.
• Does law enforcement in your community rely on a gang database?
“The gang intervention unit does have a database that is provided from the Department of Public Safety… We put all of our gang members in that database, and that’s how we keep up with them.”
• What are the pros and cons of using a gang database?
Pros
Helps curb crime
Helps being identified through color, tattoos, signs, and symbols
Cons
Discriminatory- brown and black men are overly represented in the database.
Error Ridden- Gand database are notoriously error-ridden.
Over-inclusive- there are no uniform criteria for adding someone to a gang database, and the criteria can be minimal and unrelated to a criminal activity.
Barrier to unemployment- because being included in a gang database can appear in a background check, it can create a barrier to employment and result in long periods of unemployment.
• Should gang databases continue to be used to combat gang-related activities? Why or why not?
Yes, the gang database should be used to combat gang related activities. However, there are a lot of improvements that need to be made within the database. The database should track the activities of the gang while having a checks and balance process in order. When reading this information, I noticed there are a lot of errors but there is also some good with the gang databases.
Reference
https://localprogess.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/2020-lp-policy-brief-gang-database.pdf
www.communityimpact.com/austin/news/2015/12/09/more-gangs-identified-in-montgomery-county-2