No Walk in the Park
Street crime -- car theft, vandalism, robbery with violence, burglary, to name a few examples -- is often considered a young man's game. Conventional thinking is that criminals wear out fast.
There's the stress of ruthless street life itself, the stress of getting caught, then multiple convictions that can start with juvenile detention, move on up to jail time, state prison time and, for some, federal prison time.
Early Roman scholars lamented the lawlessness of youth. So have the elders of every generation since. Assuming our earth is still intact, we can expect future generations to do the same.
By the Numbers
Youth crime may or may not be on the rise. Comprehensive incidence reporting has certainly become more refined, as has the tracking of crime trends. Police term the latter "threat assessment."
One such study is the 2005 National Gang Threat Assessment, a multi-agency U.S. survey of gang activities. Youth crime and street crime information figured significantly in the findings, which are less than comforting.
The 2005 study cited estimates provided by the U.S. National Youth Gang Center. In 2002 the Center identified 21,500 youth gangs in the U.S., made up of 731,500 members. Every city of of 150,000 or more reported youth gang problems. The same held for 87% of cities with populations between 100,000 and 250,000.
Changing Dimensions
Two concerns can be associated with these findings. First is the incidence of community denial and/or indifference, a factor reported by 31% of law enforcement officials. Pride of city may understandably be a factor here.
Second is the prevailing view that that these gangs are small and localized. Youth street gangs have been around for decades. Kids in numbers--no doubt egged on by peers--vandalize, pilfer, skip school, wear odd clothing, and eventually grow up and move on. Those days are gone.
Today's youth street gangs are the handmaids of highly organized, often violent adult gangs such as the Hell's Angels, MS-13, Crips, and Bloods. These gangs and others now operate internationally. For example, in 2005 the Hell's Angels had 218 chapters, 121 of which were outside the continental U.S. and Canada.
Illicit drugs are the bread and butter of street gangs. The youth gangs are very much the rank and file retailers, obtaining their product from adult gang producers and wholesalers. Moreover, other organized crime elements, notably Russian, Hispanic, and Asian elements are involved. As for violence by the gangs, law enforcement officials report that when illicit drugs gain a foothold, other crimes, such as robbery and aggravated assault, increase.
Street gang activity in major Canadian cities mirrors that of the U.S. Officials in Vancouver, Calgary, Winnipeg, Toronto, and Montreal have reported drug-related gang problems, as well as similar recuitment and organization patterns.
Closing the Door
To encourage gang crime prevention, the Office of the Texas Attorney General recently put out a message for all communities:
- Acknowledge the problem
- Assess the problem
- Act on the problem
Seems simple enough, doesn't it? More next week about street gangs, focusing on these and related criminal activities.
