Unit VII Discussion Board Question

BCJ 4101, Police and Community Relations 1

Course Learning Outcomes for Unit VII Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:

6. Discuss police-community relationships regarding the media, gangs, and the process of assimilation. 6.1 Discuss police-community relationships regarding gang control.

Reading Assignment Chapter 13: The Challenge of Gangs: Controlling Their Destructive Force Chapter 14: Understanding and Preventing Violence

Unit Lesson The existence of gangs in the United States is not a new phenomenon. Some may remember the black and white gang movies in which machine guns and shootouts were common among various gang families in big cities. If we fast-forward to modern gangs, we find that there are many similarities. Even today, we can probably recall news stories that told about gang members opening fire in city streets without consideration for the community members that might get caught in the crossfire. The primary motivation for gang involvement is still to obtain as much wealth as possible by any means necessary (including illicit enterprises and violence). According to Miller, Hess, and Orthmann, (2014), “an estimated 756,000 gang members are active in more than 29,000 gangs nationwide” (p. 386). One cannot escape media coverage about gang activity. Heartbreaking stories about gang violence which result in the death of innocent bystanders (e.g., children, high school athletes, and volunteers at community centers) are reported on an almost daily occurrence. However, gang activity also includes smuggling of undocumented persons, human trafficking, prostitution, and white-collar crimes (e.g., counterfeiting, identity theft, and mortgage fraud). Surprisingly, there is not one agreed-upon definition of a gang. However, there are some factors that are agreed upon as indicators of the existence of a gang: formation of a group, a sense of identity with a group, and their involvement in illegal activity. There are three primary types of gangs from which other gang types are derived: street gangs, prison gangs, and outlaw motorcycle gangs. “Gangs vary extensively in membership, structure, age, and ethnicity” (Miller et al., 2014, p. 388). Gang activity has a negative impact on communities. In addition to the issues related to crime commission and violence, gangs destroy the innocence of children by involving them in the commission of crime and in some instances force females to serve as accomplices to crimes (e.g., lookouts, hiding stolen property, and carry weapons) and to perform sexual favors. Gangs’ target of both groups (i.e., children and females) can have a lasting negative impact on the community for years to come. Youth are our future and females give birth to youth. Thus, the survival of any community is strongly tied to the welfare of both groups. Therefore, it is imperative that community members and law enforcement work together to prevent gang membership. Youth join gangs for a variety of reasons such as identity, financial stability, and protection. Prevention strategies need to address the motivations for gang membership. Therefore, prevention efforts should begin early, target youths exposed to multiple risk factors, and address every aspect of the lives of youths. There are national and local gang prevention programs available to assist communities in addressing gangs (e.g., GREAT, GRIP, Cops and Kids). Being able to recognize gangs is also an important component

UNIT VII STUDY GUIDE

Gang Control and

Violence Prevention

BCJ 4101, Police and Community Relations 2

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of addressing gangs in communities. Gang identifiers can include the colors of clothing and accessories worn by gang members, tattoos, gang literature, evidence of gang initiation, hand signs, and behavior. A variety of approaches have been used to address the gang problem in communities. According to the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), suppression (prevention, arrest, imprisonment, supervision, and surveillance), social intervention (present invention, treatment, outreach, and social service referrals), social opportunities (basic or media education, training, work considers common and jobs for gang members), community mobilization (community partnerships that communicated and develop joint policies and programs) and organizational development (special police units and special youth agency presses programs) have been the five main strategies used by law enforcement to address the gang problem (Miller et al., 2014). “The OJJDP found community mobilization to be the most effective strategy to address the gang problem” (Miller et al., 2014, p. 400). Federal efforts include the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Safe Streets Violent Crime Initiative, the National Crime Prevention Council’s (NCPC) Anti-Gang Initiative, and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency and Prevention’s (OJJDP) Comprehensive Gang Model. Strategies to address the gang problem on the local level include graffiti removal programs, conflict prevention strategies, drug-free zones, behavioral codes, applying community pressure, and civil injunctions. Viable alternatives to gang involvement must also be provided to potential, active, and ex-gang members. Such alternatives can include job training (e.g., Homeboy Industries), youth leadership activities (e.g., Safe Streets Campaign), and evening recreation and family programs (e.g., Summer Night Lights). Violence prevention is also a very high priority for ensuring safe and crime-free communities. Murder and non-negligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, and aggravated assaults are the four types of violent crime that are recorded in the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports. The causes of violence are numerous, such as desensitization to violence, familial violence, drugs and alcohol, availability of guns, and the deterioration of the family and community. Responding to violence requires that the entire community participate in identifying and implementing solutions to violence in the community. Community partnerships should be developed to facilitate public dialogue and community mediation. In addition, violence can be addressed as a public health problem and aids for addressing violence from that vantage point are provided by national and international health organizations such as the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO). Specific types of violence that can plague communities include hate crimes, gang violence, sexual violence, domestic violence, child abuse, and workplace violence. Strategies that the communities can implement to address the aforementioned violent crimes could include the following:

 zero-tolerance policies,

 community events and activities that denounce violent behavior and promote positive behavior,

 development of collaborations with law enforcement,

 community organizations and public agencies to develop violence prevention strategies,

 partnership with the media for public announcement campaigns,

 gun interdiction,

 identifying situations with the potential for violence,

 creating witness incentives,

 identifying perpetrators of violence,

 identifying persons at-risk to become victims of violence,

 reducing access to firearms,

 teaching gun-safe behavior,

 acquaintance rape prevention programs,

 corporate partnerships to combat violence,

 violence reduction units in law enforcement,

 police-community partnerships,

 training professionals to recognize signs of violence victimization,

 child development-community policing models, and

 and the development of multidisciplinary teams to investigate violence (e.g., child abuse, sexual violence).

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Addressing the gang and violence problems in communities require the development of partnerships that are marked by high levels of communication and collaboration. Law enforcement is a key partner in addressing gangs and violence in communities. Thus, it is imperative that members of the community and law enforcement personnel work together to identify specific problems related to gangs and violence in the community, develop strategies to address those problems, implement the strategies, evaluate the strategies, and revise the strategies as needed to continue to meet the needs of the community. Without such efforts, gangs and violence will continue to plague communities and over time may eventually cause the community to cease to exist.

Reference Miller, L. S., Hess, K. M., & Orthmann, C. H. (2014). Community corrections: Partnerships for problem solving

(7th ed.). Clifton Park, NY: Delmar Cengage Learning.

Suggested Reading To learn more about the topics found this unit, you must first log into the myCSU Student Portal and access the ProQuest Criminal Justice or Academic OneFile databases found in the CSU Online Library. The articles listed below highlight community policing responses to gangs and violence: Katz, C. M., Maguire, E. R., & Roncek, D. W. (2002). The creation of specialized police gang units. Policing,

25(3), 472-506. Koper, C. S., Woods, D. J., & Kubu, B. E. (2013). Gun violence prevention practices among local police in the

United States. Policing, 36(3), 577-603. Pickens, J. (2011). Community based participatory research on youth violence prevention. Journal of

Multidisciplinary Research, 3(3), 9-23. Ramsey, A. L., Rust, J. O., & Sobel, S. M. (2003). Evaluation of the gang resistance and training (GREAT)

program: A school-based prevention program. Education, 124(2), 297-309.

Learning Activities (Non-Graded) Community Policing Partnerships Community policing partnerships are integral to the successful implementation and sustainability of community policing strategies. One of the key partners in community policing partnerships is citizens in the community. However, citizens must be aware of the existence of community partnerships and able to identify and address the need for additional community partnerships. To assist you in learning more about community policing partnerships in your community, respond to the following questions:

 What challenges related to controlling gangs are encountered by law enforcement in your community?

 What violence prevention strategies are being utilized by law enforcement in your community?

 To what extent are community policing strategies being used to address the gang problems and prevent violence in your community?

 How could you get involved or become more involved in partnering with law enforcement to address the gang problem and/or prevent violence in your community?

Note: It may be necessary to access the website of law enforcement agencies in your community and/or to use web search engines to identify related media that describes gang and violence prevention strategies utilized in your community. Non-graded Learning Activities are provided to aid students in their course of study. You do not have to complete or submit them. If you have questions, contact your instructor for further guidance and information.