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Chapter 22 Supplement Special Topics

• An estimated 780,000 gang members were actively involved in gangs in 1998, down from 816,000 members in 1997. Of this number, 92% of gang members were estimated to be male and 8% were estimated to be female. The distribution of gang members by racial/ethnicity is Hispanic/Latino 46%, African-American 34%, Caucasian 12%, Asian 6%, and other races 2%. Thirty-three percent of the gangs were made up of a significant mix or two/or more racial/ethnic groups (OJJDP December 1999a).

• There were 3,340 gang member-based homicides in 1997 representing 18% of the homicides reported nationwide (OJJDP December 1999b).

• In an investigation into roles in the gang hierarchy played by its members, researchers discovered that members who were active for the entire four-year period of the study had roughly a 25% chance of dying. Furthermore, gang members experienced an average of more than two nonfatal injuries (mostly from gunshots) and nearly six arrests in that four-year period (Venkatesh November 1999).

A National Institute of Justice (NIJ) investigation into the prosecution of violent crimes committed by gang members found that prosecutors take many different and sometimes unusual approaches in dealing with witnesses in gang cases, in which witness protection is crucial. Witness protection goes hand in hand with witness cooperation. An NIJ survey of prosecutors showed a consensus among prosecutors that the reluctance of victims and witnesses to cooperate was seen to be based upon justifiable fears of retaliation, victim/witness intimidation, residence in a neighborhood culture that discouraged "snitching," and crossover involvement of victims and witnesses in gang activity (Johnson, Webster, and Connors February 1995).

Victim/witness intimidation both weakens the ability of the prosecution to investigate and present the case and damages the community's confidence in law enforcement's ability to maintain public safety and bring offenders to justice. To ensure the safety of victims and witnesses and to successfully prosecute gang crime, prosecutors are taking many of the following measures:

• Provide victim/witness protection inside and outside the courtroom.

• Provide emergency and short-term relocation for victims and witnesses.
• Videotape pretrial testimony.

• Aggressively prosecute all instances of victim/witness intimidation.

• Request high bail for victim/witness intimidation.

• Remove gang members from the court.

• Assign victim advocates to prepare victims and witnesses for trial and keep them personally apprised of case status through every stage of the process (Gramckow and Tompkins December 1999).

• Victims/Witness Unit, Shelby County, TN. Victim/witness intimidation in neighborhoods with a high density of illegal immigrants creates additional concerns for victims and witnesses of gang crime. For example, the District Attorney's Office in Shelby County, TN found that local gangs directed a growing amount of violence towards immigrants known to have entered the county illegally. The gangs preyed upon neighborhoods with large populations of immigrants recognizing that for fear of deportation, the victims were less likely to report crimes and the witnesses were less likely to come forward to offer evidence.

In an effort to reassure illegal immigrant victims of gang violence that their victimization would be fully addressed by law enforcement and the criminal justice system, regardless of their citizenship status, and to encourage key witnesses to testify, the Victims/Witness Unit in Shelby County, TN received permission from the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to develop and distribute through law enforcement, a photo ID card that identifies them as participants in an ongoing case in the county criminal justice system and prevents their deportation by the INS. As a result, victim advocates are building a greater foundation of trust when they interact with the immigrant community, and more gang violence is successfully prosecuted. Victim Witness Unit, District Attorney's Office, Criminal Justice Center, 201 Poplar, Suite 301, Memphis TN 38103-1947 (901-545-5900) (Blackburn 17 October 1999).

• Mothers Against Violence in America (MAVIA) is a grassroots community mobilization organization, founded in 1993 in Seattle, WA in response to a dramatic increase of violence by and against children. MAVIA supports prevention and early intervention for youth-at-risk for gang-related activities and focuses on prevention that is developmentally based, beginning at an early age and continuing onto adulthood. MAVIA promotes education that provides tools for children to deal with conflict--teaching them about their choices and taking responsibility for those choices. MAVIA promotes community education opportunities for parents and children on violence prevention and victim awareness education. Intervention with crime victims of gang-related violence (offering respect and providing information and education) is a tool for preventing future crime among victimized youth and those growing up in a violent environment. Mothers Against Violence in America, 105 14th Avenue, Suite 2-A, Seattle WA 98122 (800-897-7697).
• Gang Prevention Through Targeted Outreach is a comprehensive program that directs at-risk young people to positive alternatives offered by Boys & Girls Clubs. Through both direct outreach efforts and referrals by courts, police, juvenile justice agencies, schools, social service agencies, and community organizations, young people identified as at-risk are recruited and mainstreamed into club program activities as a diversion from gang activity. Gang Prevention Through Targeted Outreach, Boys and Girls Clubs of America, 1230 Peachtree St. NW, Atlanta, GA 30309-3494 (404-815-5763).

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