http://crimereports.com/map Type in Your Zip code for Crime Reports (sit down for these results) note: Many common gang and drug crimes appear all areas of Salt Lake County What Happened on Your Street recently?
http://www.great-online.org/ School Programs That Address the Problem
http://attorneygeneral.utah.gov/drugs.html
Utah Attorney General Website
High School Truancy
http://www.abc4.com/content/news/top%20stories/story/SALT-LAKE-CITY-ABC-4-News-Truancy-is-a-big-pro/Erarv189L0q7f5nYIXWyYA.cspx (juvenile crimes during school time)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMpemG-_cl0 You Tube Gangs in America
http://www.fox13now.com/news/kstu-graffiti-taggers-risk-life-i80,0,7369051.story
http://www.fbi.gov/page2/feb09/ngta_020609.html F.B.I. Resources
http://www.fbi.gov/inside/archive/inside020609.htm F.B.I. Resources
http://www.fbi.gov/page2/july08/gangs_071008.html F.B.I. Resources
http://saltlakecity.fbi.gov/community.htm FBI Community Outreach
http://www.cops.usdoj.gov/files/RIC/Publications/GangsCard_FBI.pdf Resources for Communities
http://www.policemag.com/Channels/Gangs.aspx Resources
Utah Criminal Codes: (Utah Gang Laws With Loopholes) a few have improved, but many have not!
http://le.utah.gov/~code/TITLE76/76_06.htm
http://le.utah.gov/~code/TITLE76/htm/76_06_010700.htm
http://le.utah.gov/~code/TITLE76/htm/76_06_010701.htm
Harassment: http://le.utah.gov/~code/TITLE76/htm/76_05_010600.htm
http://le.utah.gov/~code/TITLE76/htm/76_09_080300.htm Gang Recruitment
Terroristic Threat http://le.utah.gov/~code/TITLE76/htm/76_05_010700.htm
http://le.utah.gov/~2009/bills/sbillint/sb0118.htm
http://www.slsheriff.org/admin/media/crimeprevention/pdf/safe_neighborhood.pdf
Brochure from SLCO Sheriff Org
http://deseretnews.com/article/content/mobile/1,5143,705282976,00.html?printView=true
http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=6848672&page=1 Phoenix, AZ 2008 Kidnapping Capital of the U.S.A. (370 in 2008)
http://www.rules.utah.gov/publicat/code/r277/r277-436.htm Utah Admin Code R277
http://www.kutv.com/content/news/topnews/story/Bill-Proposal-For-Tougher-Gang-Law/gNEXuVDCV0-jkysAKF6JfA.cspx
WVC golf course murder http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=148&sid=5617893 (gang related)
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What Can Be Done To Help Solve The Problem Of Gangs ?
ReplyDeletehttp://myfloridalegal.com/webfiles.nsf/WF/KGRG-7FVPNR/$file/GangReductionReportWEB.pdf
orney General
Bill McCollum
ii Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Introduction and Executive Summary
Criminal gangs steal and destroy property, sell drugs to our children and commit acts of violence and
brutality that threaten the safety and security of our citizens. The number of gangs and gang members
has been growing steadily in Florida for years. For far too long efforts to address gang problems in
Florida have been left to local law enforcement and community leaders with minimal federal and state
support and no statewide strategy.
In the summer of 2007, at the request of the Attorney General, the heads of affected state agencies and
law enforcement associations gathered to address this issue and formulate a statewide strategy to combat
gangs. Those participating in this executive group were:
The Attorney General; Secretary of the Florida Department of Corrections; Executive Director of the
Florida Department of Law Enforcement; Secretary of the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice; Secretary
of the Florida Department of Children and Families; Commissioner of the Florida Department
of Education; Director of the Florida Office of Drug Control; Director of the Florida Highway Patrol;
President of the Florida Sheriffs Association; President of the Florida Police Chiefs Association; and
President of the Florida Prosecuting Attorneys Association.
In December 2007, at the suggestion of this executive group, the Office of the Attorney General convened
a summit of interested community leaders from around the state to help develop a statewide strategy.
This document is the product of the efforts of the executive group and the participants in this summit.
The mission of the Florida Gang Reduction Strategy is to increase the safety of the citizens of Florida
by empowering Florida’s youth to reject criminal gangs as a viable option and by substantially reducing
gang-related crime and violence in Florida.
The goals to accomplish this mission are:
1. Stop the growth of criminal gangs in Florida
2. Reduce the number of gangs and gang members
3. Render gangs ineffectual
To meet these goals and accomplish the mission the strategy is built on three pillars:
• Prevention/Intervention
• Law Enforcement
• Rehabilitation and Re-entry
The key to the success of the strategy is coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local
governments, law enforcement, elected officials, community leaders and the business community. In
order to empower Florida’s youth to reject criminal gangs as a viable option a coordinated and cooperative
effort of all parties must be focused on the same basic objectives.
Executive Summary
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy iii
Prevention/Intervention Objectives:
Objective 1: Expose Florida’s gangs and their activities for their violent and destructive reality.
Objective 2: Educate youth, parents and other mentoring adults to help Florida’s youth reject
gang involvement.
Objective 3: Mobilize communities to repel gang appeal to Florida’s youth.
Objective 4: Provide effective prevention/intervention programs for those youth who are the most
likely targets of gang recruitment and identified young gang members.
Objective 5: Encourage and assist the creation of positive extracurricular activities and workforce
development programs for Florida’s at-risk youth.
Objective 6: Support existing and new community groups/coalitions that take a stand against criminal
gangs.
The strategy recommends that in addition to local gang prevention/intervention coalitions there be the
formation of regional gang prevention/intervention and suppression task forces to share information
and coordinate efforts at both the prevention/intervention and law enforcement level. Members of
these regional gang task forces should include representatives of federal, state and local law enforcement,
prosecutors, public defenders, the judiciary, juvenile justice, schools, area prevention/intervention
programs, local government, and religious and community leaders.
Law Enforcement Objectives:
Objective 1: Compile a statewide priority list and target every major criminal gang in Florida for
dismantling by arresting and prosecuting gang leaders and key gang members.
Objective 2: Identify and target for arrest and prosecution all gang kingpins in Florida and seek life
imprisonment sentences.
Objective 3: Prioritize the prosecution of gun crimes related to gangs and gang members and target
for prosecution those who provide guns to juvenile gang members ineligible to own or
possess a gun.
Objective 4: In areas of intense gang activity, build community policing, remove firearms from
low to mid-level gang members and use injunctive powers to prohibit gang members
from gathering.
Objective 5: Improve intelligence gathering and information sharing on gangs and gang members and
their activities among and between federal, state and local law enforcement, prosecuting
authorities, schools and Juvenile Justice, Corrections, and Children and Families officials.
Objective 6: Strengthen gang law enforcement and prosecution with more uniform, specialized
training and designate one Assistant State Attorney in each judicial circuit whose sole,
full-time responsibility is to prosecute and manage the prosecution of gangs, gang members
and gang related crimes.
Objective 7: Coordinate federal, state and local law enforcement/prosecution efforts toward the
common objective of combating gang activity in Florida including setting priorities and
targeting certain gangs, gang activities and gang related prosecutions all over Florida.
iv Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Rehabilitation and Re-entry Objectives:
Objective 1: Expand opportunities for criminal gang members in state or county correctional systems
to participate in prison industry programs, educational programs, faith and character-
based programs, drug treatment/rehabilitation programs and all other programs designed
to rehabilitate offenders or assist offenders in preparing for re-entry into society
upon completion of their sentences.
Objective 2: Develop and implement specialized, individualized counseling and mentoring focused
on motivating criminal gang members in state or county correctional systems to gain
educational, vocational or job training, social skills, and lifestyle interests and habits
that will turn offenders away from gang membership/participation and toward becoming
productive members of society when released.
Objective 3: Provide job placement for criminal gang members in state or county correctional systems
upon release and provide a counselor/mentor for each such released offender to
give guidance, assist with acquiring and keeping a job, educational advancement, and
building positive relationships outside of gangs for a period of five years after release.
Objective 4: Require all identified criminal gang members in state or county correctional systems,
upon release, to register with an identified state office and keep their address, contact
information and job status current for ten years after release and require such released
offender to report in person for counseling to a counselor/mentor at least quarterly for
the first five years after release.
Objective 5: Train and qualify the necessary number of counselors/mentors/teachers to accomplish
the individualized goals of gang member rehabilitation and re-entry from state or
county correctional systems.
The Florida Gang Reduction Strategy requires the collection and regular maintenance of solid data
on gangs, gang members, prevention/intervention programs and monitoring and coordination of
activities and initiatives designed to implement and effectuate the mission, goals and objectives of
the strategy. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), The Florida Department of Corrections,
The Florida Department of Education, The Florida Department of Children and Families,
Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, and many sheriffs’ offices and police departments collect
some data on gangs, gang members and gang activities. Unfortunately, this data is incomplete and
to date there has been no comprehensive collation of data from these various sources into a usable
form. There is a need to formulate a method whereby the data collected by these various agencies
can be pooled to facilitate the objectives of this strategy. Similarly, the development of a statewide
repository of resources with respect to prevention/intervention programs for at-risk youth or community/
non-profit programs targeted at youth likely to be recruited into gangs would be beneficial
to the furtherance of the strategy.
The 2007 FDLE survey of law enforcement and school resource officers shows that there are at
least 1,500 gangs and over 65,000 gang members in Florida. According to Department of Corrections’
officials, an analysis of inmate population indicates that all 67 Florida counties have gang
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy v
member representation in the prison system. Therefore the need for a statewide comprehensive
database is critical to the success of the strategy. The current “FDLE Gang Database” program
was established following an earlier recommendation of a statewide grand jury and is designed to
capture information voluntarily submitted by local law enforcement on gangs and gang members.
However, based upon reports from local agency officials, the majority of Florida’s law enforcement
agencies are not using the state system for various reasons. The most common reason stated is
the lack of interfaces that would allow this data to be electronically uploaded from their Records
Management Systems (RMS) to the FDLE system, thus eliminating the need for duplicate entries
into two systems. Chiefs and Sheriffs clearly indicate that they do not have the time, staff or desire
to enter the data twice.
To implement the Florida Gang Reduction Strategy it will be necessary to create and maintain a
group or body with a centralized office in the state to collect and collate data from all sources. This
group will also coordinate and direct, where appropriate, federal, state and local actions for all three
pillars of the strategy and measure success. For this purpose it was recommended that there be created
a Coordinating Council on Gang Reduction Strategies to be chaired by the Attorney General and
comprised of the heads of the following agencies: Commissioner of the Florida Department of Education,
Executive Director of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Secretary of the Florida
Department of Corrections, Secretary of the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, Secretary of the
Florida Department of Children and Families, Director of the Florida Office of Drug Control, Director
of the Florida Highway Patrol, President of the Florida Sheriffs Association, President of the Florida
Police Chiefs Association and President of the Florida Association of Prosecuting Attorneys.
Under this plan the Office of the Attorney General and the Coordinating Council would be responsible
for coordinating, implementing, and measuring the progress of the Florida Gang Reduction
Strategy. The Office of the Attorney General and the Coordinating Council would seek the steadfast
synchronization of gang reduction efforts throughout the state, building task forces, creating
coalitions and assuring the flow of shared information and intelligence on gangs, gang members
and progress on prevention/intervention and prisoner re-entry programs. It is anticipated that
from time to time the Attorney General and the Coordinating Council will make recommendations
to the Legislature and the Governor to further efforts in implementing the Gang Reduction Strategy.
It is also anticipated that there would be periodic summits in the various areas of the state to
bring together community leaders to counsel on ways the strategy can be improved or the implementation
furthered. These summits would be arranged and directed by the Attorney General and
the Coordinating Council.
vi Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Table of Contents
Background: The Extent of the Problem
• Progression of Criminal Gangs in America
• The Growth of Youth Gangs
• Criminal Gangs in Florida
• Addressing the Problem
• Risk Factors
F The Personal Cost of Joining a Gang
F The Cost of Criminal Gangs
F Individual Risk and Protective Factors
F Family Risk and Protective Factors
F School Risk and Protective Factors
F Peer Risk and Protective Factors
F Community Risk and Protective Factors
The Strategy
• Executive Group and 2007 Gang Reduction Summit
• Mission
• Goals
• Three Pillars
• Focus of the Effort to Defeat Gangs
• Prevention/Intervention Objectives
• Law Enforcement Objectives
• Rehabilitation and Re-entry Objectives
Concept of Operation
• Coordinating Council
• Regional Task Forces
• Developing a Prevention/Intervention Plan
• Law Enforcement Plan Developments
• Rehabilitation and Re-entry Plan Development
F The Department of Corrections and Re-entry
F Emphasizing Re-entry
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy vii
Measuring Success
• Gang Data
• Prevention/Intervention Data
• Workforce Development/Training Programs
• Drug Rehabilitation/Treatment Program Data
• Inmate Re-entry Data
• Community Involvement
• Importance of Metrics
• Gang Data from the Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey (2001-2007)
Resources
• State Agencies
F Office of the Attorney General
F Department of Education
F Department of Children and Families
F Department of Law Enforcement
F Department of Juvenile Justice
F Department of Corrections
F Office of Drug Control
F Department of Highway Safety & Motor Vehicles
• Well Known Existing Prevention Programs
• Other Programs and Resources of Interest
Appendix A-E
• A: Chapter 874 Street Terrorism Enforcement and Prevention
• B: First Interim Report of the Statewide Grand Jury on Criminal Gangs and
Gang-Related Violence
• C: 2005 National Gang Threat Assessment Recommendations
• D: Florida Council on the Social Status of Black Men and Boys
• E: Regional Gang Reduction Task Forces Map
viii Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 1
Progression of Criminal Gangs in
America
Criminal gangs have been prevalent in America
since its beginning. The drastic changes that occurred
with American lifestyles during the Industrial
Revolution gave rise to the modern American
gang. Notably, there was a high concentration of
criminal gangs in 19th century New York City. The
Five Points, a center of ethnic conflict in what is
present day Manhattan, was a neighborhood where
gangs with strong ethnic identities could grow and
operate. Irish gangs had a solid hold on the Five
Points, but gangs based on Polish, Italian and other
ethnicities were also common.1
The behaviors of the criminal gangs of that era
were similar to the gangs we face in our communities
today. Gangs fought over territory, robbed
and mugged people and sometimes united to fight
against gangs from other areas. Then, as now,
their affects on the neighborhoods they touched
were devastating.
During the 20th century America experienced
a gradual increase in criminal gang activity.
Throughout the 1950s and ’60s, most criminal
gangs were based in large metropolitan cities.
Subsidiary gangs would be located outside the
city in small suburban towns, while the development
of an efficient road system and increasing
high-speed transport availability assisted criminal
gangs in their illegal activities.2 As the highway
system matured and suburban-America grew,
criminal gangs were able to expand their activities
into communities remote from larger metropolitan
cities. Over time, gangs adapted to the advances
of law enforcement and adopted sophisticated
technology and organizational techniques to become
more efficient in their illegal behavior. Consequently,
criminal gangs used their efficiencies to
increase the destruction they inflicted on commu-
Background: Extent of the Problem
nities and increased their profits by controlling a
larger market in illegitimate businesses, especially
in the distribution of illegal drugs.
The Growth of Youth Gangs
As stated in a 2001 report from the Office of Juvenile
Justice and Delinquency Prevention, “youth
gang problems in the United States grew dramatically
between the 1970s and the 1990s, with the
prevalence of gangs reaching unprecedented levels.”
Between 1970 and 1995 the number of cities
reporting gang problems had increased seven
fold.3 Moreover, the number of counties reporting
gang problems in 1995 was 10 times the number
of counties reporting gang problems in 1970.4 Nationwide,
the last quarter of the twentieth century
saw a significant and growing domestic crime
problem fed by gang activity. Florida, in particular,
saw a disproportionate increase in the number
of youth gang members.
The number of Florida counties reporting gang
problems rose 23 percent between 1970 and
1995.5 This upsurge vaulted Florida to a ranking
of 4th in the nation among cities reporting youth
gang problems.6 Within a quarter of a century,
youth gangs had become a significant part of the
gang threat to the public safety within Florida.
Criminal Gangs in Florida
Most gang activity in Florida appears to be centered
in the Central, West and South Florida regions.
Over the past three years Florida has seen
a significant increase in crimes committed by gang
members in smaller sized cities like Panama City,
Marianna, Greensboro, Quincy, and Tallahassee.
An assessment prepared by the Florida Department
of Law Enforcement (FDLE) in November
1991 indicated that there were more than 10,000
documented gang members and associates and
over 159 identified gangs in Florida.7
Background: Extent of the Problem
2 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Since the 1991 assessment,
the number
of gangs and gang
members in Florida is
continuing to grow. In
October 2007, FDLE
completed a statewide
survey of law enforcement
agencies, corrections
and juvenile justice
facilities and prosecutors
in an effort to develop
a thorough understanding
of the scope of the
criminal gang problem
in Florida. Law enforcement
reported increases
in gang-related activity
over the past 6 to 12
months, and approximately
1,500 criminal
gangs with over 65,000
members were identified
by survey respondents.8
The number of crimes
committed by gang
members continues to
expand, as well. The
number of felony convictions
for gang members
rose from 2,759 in FY 04-05 to 4,447 in FY
06-07. This represents an increase of 61 percent in
crimes committed by gang members in Florida over
the past three years.9 This increasing gang presence
is not just a Florida phenomenon, but a nationwide
problem. According to the National Alliance of Gang
Investigators Association there are at least 21,500
gangs and more than 731,000 active gang members
in the United States (excluding prison gangs, and
motorcycle gangs.)10
Addressing the Problem
Criminal gangs pose a significant and growing
threat to the safety and security of the citizens of
Florida. If not stopped or reversed, this growing
activity will translate into a much larger threat
for Florida in the years
to come. Our state must
acknowledge the threat
and take concerted action
to address this danger to
ensure the safety of its
citizens. The ability of
criminal gangs to recruit
and grow is not isolated
to the poor or urban sections
of Florida. Nor are
the adverse effects of
gang-related crime unique
to a single demographic or
race. The damage done by
gang activity has spread
throughout our communities
and across all demographic
and social economic
lines. The tragedy
of an innocent life lost to
gang violence is mourned
well beyond the individual
afflicted family.
Despite increasing evidence
of gang crime and
violence throughout
Florida, some communities
continue to deny the
obvious gang presence in their neighborhoods, a
phenomenon reflected nationwide. Citizen pride
regarding their towns and communities, as well
as concerns for commercial and financial interests
leads to a reluctance to admit to gang problems.
Denying the problem leaves it to fester, thus
allowing the gangs to thrive amidst community
indifference. In order to combat the crime and
devastation brought on by criminal gangs, communities
must first recognize when gangs have
gained a foothold in their neighborhoods. The
success of gang reduction strategies will only be
recognized when law enforcement, school officials,
community leaders, business owners and
local citizens collectively conduct a thorough and
accurate analysis of the situation in their communities
and when a gang presence is discovered,
Factors Contributing
to Violent Crime
Percent of Agencies
Identifying this as a
Problem
Gangs 77%
Juvenile/Youth Crime 74
Impulsive
Violence/“Disrespect”
Issues
66
Economy/Poverty/
Unemployment
63
Release of Offenders
from Correctional
Institutions Back into
the Community
63
Cocaine 61
Poor Parenting 58
Increased Availability
of Guns
56
Methamphetamines 38
Insufficient Prison/
Jail Space
38
Top 10 Factors Identified as
Contributing to Violent Crime
Source: Police Executive Research Forum 2007 National
Survey, Violent Crime in America: The Tale of Two Cities
Background: Extent of the Problem
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 3
acknowledge the true nature of a gang presence in
their community.
Risk Factors
The Personal Cost of Joining a Gang
Joining a gang is quite costly to the individual. In
a study of the economics of drug selling within
a well organized gang, active gang members over
a four-year period had roughly a 25% chance of
dying.11 If the gang member managed to cheat
death, he or she would still likely experience
two nonfatal injuries and be arrested almost six
times.12 In return for their risky activities, the
gang member earns far less than what the “job
duties” entail.
Many who join a gang fail to achieve a high
school diploma, substantially reducing life-long
earnings potential.13 As a result, the low-level
gang member earns only a third of those with
a high school diploma.14 Even worse, low-level
gang members make half the amount of those
earning a legitimate wage without a high school
education. Unfortunately, many of those who
join gangs do not weigh the small gains attained
through gang involvement with the large, detrimental
and dangerous consequences that gang
membership brings.
The Cost of Criminal Gangs
The cost to Florida for gang-related crime is staggering.
The operating costs to manage the facilities
incarcerating the over 4,400 identified gang
members in prison exceed $130 million. Identified
gang members on state probation cost the criminal
justice system another $2 million per year. All
together, convicted gang members cost Florida’s
taxpayers more than $132 million a year.15
Programs/Policies Implemented in Response to
Increase in Violent Crime
Percent of Agencies
Implementing Program/Policy
Hot Spots Enforcement 63%
Community-Oriented Initiative 44
Problem-Solving Policing 37
Cooperation with Other Departments (e.g., drug task forces) 37
Gang Suppression (enforcement) 37
Shifts in Police Resources (moving desk officers to patrol, or reassigning
employees based on changes in crime)
28
Drug Enforcement, Such as Crackdowns on Open-air Drug Markets 23
Targeting for Enforcement of Repeat Offenders 22
Hiring/Recruiting More Officers 20
Federal Grant Programs (Weed & Seed, Project Safe Neighborhoods) 17
Technology (cameras, radios, computer systems, CEDs) 15
School Resource Officers 12
“Zero Tolerance” of Low-Level Disorder Policies 12
Juvenile Crime Programs 10
Creation of a Gang Unit 9
Programs/Policies Implemented in Response to Violent Crime
Source: Police Executive Research Forum 2007 National Survey, Violent Crime in America: The Tale of Two Cities
Background: Extent of the Problem
4 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
While the cost of incarceration is significant, the
costs gangs have on the juvenile justice system,
county jail systems, and courts create an even
bigger financial burden on Florida’s taxpayers.
Moreover, the negative impact of gang-related
activity affects Florida’s economy. The revenue
generated to run government in Florida is fueled
largely by the many tourists who visit. Increasing
gang activity in our state will most likely
discourage tourists from coming to Florida and
the economic results could be devastating. The
human cost, above all, is the most expensive
bill Florida citizens bear. Victimization through
personal injury, property crimes, and the ancillary
effects of gangs perpetuating the illicit drug
market impacts the safety and quality of life for
our communities. Gangs cast a shadow of crime
over the Sunshine State and represent a major
threat to Florida’s way of life. There is no doubt
that this danger is a growing reality and one that
Florida must strive to eliminate.
Individual Risk and Protective Factors
Individual risk factors are personality traits and behaviors
that may increase the likelihood that a youth
will join a gang. Several studies have noted a few
consistent individual risk factors specific to joining a
gang. They include: general delinquency, antisocial
beliefs, alcohol and drug use, and a propensity toward
violence.16 Lowering the individual risk factors
that youth deal with can be daunting, but can be accomplished
by decreasing the number of risks youth
are exposed to in their neighborhood.
A young person’s proclivity to use aggression
when confronted with problems in their personal
life, or a fatalistic view of the world, are examples
of individual factors that need to be addressed to
limit the chances for those to expand into larger
risks. If those individual risk factors are not tended
to, youth will become exposed to additional
hazards of substance abuse, illegal gun ownership
and early sexual activity. All are threats that will
lead to a higher probability of criminal gang activity
for youth.
The individual risks that youth face may lead to
gang involvement. By confronting the individual
risks and lowering their influence on youth,
the individual may have a greater chance of
mitigating any additional risk factors of their
family, school and peers. Individual protective
factors that have successfully decreased risk
factors include a sense of purpose, a belief in
a positive future, commitment to education,
A Parent's Quick Reference Card
Recognizing and Preventing Gang Involvement
Warning Signs That Your Child
May Be Involved with a Gang
This quick reference guide provides common warning signs of gang
involvement, but may not be all-encompassing. Parents should look
for multiple signs to indicate possible gang involvement because
some of these indicators alone, such as clothes or musical
preferences, are also common among youth not involved in gangs.
Parents are encouraged to familiarize themselves with local gang
symbols, seek help early, and consider contacting school personnel,
local law enforcement, faith leaders, and community organizations for
additional assistance.
• Admits to "hanging out"
with kids in gangs
• Shows an unusual
interest in one or two
particular colors of
clothing or a particular
logo
• Has an unusual interest
in gangster-influenced
music, videos, movies,
or websites.
• Uses unusual hand
signals to communicate
with friends
• Has specific drawings or
gang symbols on school
books, clothes, walls, or
tattoos
• Comes home with
unexplained physical
injuries (fighting-related
bruises, injuries to
hand/knuckles)
• Has unexplained cash or
goods, such as clothing
or jewelry
• Carries a weapon
• Has been in trouble with
the police
• Exhibits negative
changes in behavior
such as:
* Withdrawing from
family
* Declining school
attendance,
performance, behavior
* Staying out late
without reason
* Displaying an unusual
desire for secrecy
* Exhibiting signs of
drug use
* Breaking rules
consistently
* Speaking in gangstyle
slang
Background: Extent of the Problem
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 5
ability to act independently (not easily succumb
to peer pressure), and a sense of control over
one’s environment. Ability for empathy, skills
in conflict resolution and critical thinking are
additional characteristics that build resiliency to
risk behaviors in youth. These critically important
protective factors are fostered through
other areas of influence in a youth’s life such as
family, schools and communities.
Family Risk and Protective Factors
The family is the first line of defense in identifying
the signs of gang activity. Family dysfunction
and lack of parental guidance can play a
significant role in increasing the risk of youth
joining a criminal gang. The guidance of strong
family role models can decrease the chances of
a young person engaging in criminal gang activities.
The individual risks can be reduced with
family guidance from parents, grandparents,
other respected and responsible family members
or legal guardians who reinforce the belief
that joining a gang is not a viable option.
A household that fosters a permissive attitude
toward alcohol, drugs and violence is more
likely to lead to youth gang activity. An important
factor in positively nurturing children has
been determined to be the number of times a
week the child spends quality time interacting
with the family. The correlation is one to one.
The more times per week, the better the overall
behavior of the youth; the fewer times, the
worse the behavior of the youth.17
Successful preventive programs will seek to
engage and inform families of the dangers of
criminal gang activity. Information and resource
guides will be made available through
several different prevention organizations. The
literature provided to families will support a
variety of practices that can assist their efforts
in preventing gang involvement. Without a
positive family role model, the remaining risk
factors will only be compounded, making prevention
an increasingly arduous task.
School Risk and Protective Factors
A student’s performance and behavior in school, as
well as the school’s effectiveness in engaging, addressing
and providing for the needs of their students,
are important factors in determining school
risk. A student who has a low-level of academic
success or is classified as having a learning disability
What Parents Can Do to Prevent
Gang Involvement
• Spend quality time with
your child
• Get involved in your
child's school activities
• Be a positive role model
and set the right
example
• Know your child's
friends and their
families
• Encourage good study
habits
• Teach your child how to
cope with peer pressure
• Help your child develop
good conflict/resolution
skills (See
www .safeyouth.org/scri
pts/teens/conflict.asp)
• Encourage your child to
participate in positive
afterschool activities
with adult supervision
(recreation centers,
organized sports, youth
groups)
• Take action in your
neighborhood (create a
neighborhood alliance,
report and remove
graffiti)
• Talk with your child
about the dangers and
consequences of gang
involvement. Let your
child know that you
don't want to see him or
her hurt or arrested.
Explain to your child that
he or she should NOT:
* Associate with gang
members
* Attend parties or
social events
sponsored by gangs
* Use hand signs,
symbols, or language
that is meaningful to
gangs
* Wear clothing,
including specific
colors, which may
have meaning to
gangs in your area
www.cops.usdoj.gov www.fbi.gov www.ojjdp.ncjrs.org
To obtain details on COPS programs, call the
COPS Office Response Center at 800.421.6770
Background: Extent of the Problem
6 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
is at a higher risk for
gang affiliation than
other students.18 Negative
attitudes toward
school, frequent truancy,
suspension, numerous
school transitions, and
school dropout are recognized
as risks for gang
involvement. In addition,
a student who feels disconnected
from school or
threatened within school
is more vulnerable to
gang recruitment.
Students who perform at low levels of achievement
may be at a greater risk of being pulled in the direction
of criminal gangs because they desire the strong
feelings of achievement that the gang provides
almost instantly. Although the early infatuation
eventually fades, the young gang member is often
entirely immersed in the criminal gang lifestyle by
the time he/she realizes it, and is often unable to
separate themselves from the disastrous course. It
is essential for parents and school officials to work
together in identifying youth that run a higher risk
of gang affiliation, and to work in concert to prevent
at-risk youth from being initiated into a gang at an
early age.
Commitment to school is a major protective factor
in buffering youth at risk of engaging in violent
behaviors, such as those associated with gang
activities.19,20 For youth at risk of gang involvement,
developing a feeling of connectedness and
commitment to school can reduce the likelihood
that he or she will drop out of school and/or become
involved in problem behaviors. Schools that
provide a safe learning environment, establish
discipline measures with positive supports, and
create opportunities for students to participate in
meaningful ways are characteristics of positive
school climate. Schools are a fundamental part of
any community’s anti-gang strategy because they
have the unique advantage of fostering key protective
factors for youth, reaching out to parents and
families, creating partnerships with law enforcement,
and strengthening
linkages with
community partners.
Peer Risk and
Protective Factors
One of the strongest
correlations of a youth’s
risk for delinquency,
substance abuse, and
other forms of problem
behavior is their tendency
to spend time
with peers who engage in deviant behaviors.21
Youth are more likely to join criminal gangs if they
have either a high commitment to delinquent peers
or a low commitment to positive peers.22 If youth
surround themselves with delinquent peers who
use drugs or alcohol, distribute drugs, or have a
high proportion of gang affiliation the likelihood of
joining a gang goes up markedly.23
Families and school officials can play a key role in
identifying when youth tend to break from their
normal routine to spend more time with unfamiliar
groups of friends who may be negatively influencing
the child. Actions to prevent children from
joining criminal gangs should not begin when
they reach high school, but must be initiated at an
early age when the influence of family and teachers
are at their most effective. Influencing when
and with whom a child is allowed to spend time
will decrease the opportunities of interacting with
criminal gang members and positively influence
their development.
Community Risk and Protective Factors
Cities, towns and rural communities are at risk
of increased threats of criminal gangs when they
tolerate cultural norms that support gang behavior
and fail to invest the social capital to oppose gangrelated
crime.24 Other risk factors at the community
level associated with gang-related crime are the
prevalence of drugs and weapons in a community,
and the level of community disorganization.25 This
is indicated by high crime rates, gang activity, poor
ith h i d
Background: Extent of the Problem
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 7
housing, lack of quality schools and recreational
facilities, inadequate availability of social services,
and a weakened infrastructure. Such an environment
can severely limit youths’ opportunities for
socially acceptable avenues of success.
Communities that strive for economic sustainability,
safe and health-promoting environments, availability
of neighborhood resources, and a supportive
law enforcement presence set the foundation
for an environment that is inhospitable to gangs.
Actively promoting positive social norms, social
cohesion within and across neighborhoods, and
creating opportunities for pro-social community
involvement are community protective factors
that foster resiliency in youth who are at risk of
gang involvement. Communities that work with
law enforcement and prevention experts have
experienced successes in driving the presence of
gangs out of their neighborhoods and have seen
the crime rate of their neighborhoods decline.26
End Notes
1 Klein, Malcolm W. The American Street Gang:
Its Nature, Prevalence, and Control. Oxford
University Press 1997
2 Klein, Malcolm W. The American Street Gang:
Its Nature, Prevalence, and Control. Oxford
University Press 1997
3 Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention,
The Growth of Youth Gang Problems in
the United States: 1970-98 April 2001
4 Ibid.
5 Ibid.
6 Ibid.
7 Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Florida
Criminal Street Gangs 1995
8 Florida Department of Law Enforcement, 2007
Statewide Gang Survey Results
9 Florida Department of Law Enforcement, 2007
Statewide Gang Survey Results
10 National Alliance of Gang Investigators Association,
2005 National Gang Threat Assessment
11 Steven D. Levitt and Sudhir Alladi Venkatesh,
“An Economic Analysis of Drug-Selling Gang’s
Finances” Quarterly Journal of Economics, August
2000
12 Ibid.
13 Lasley, James R. Age, “Social Context, and Street
Gang Membership: Are Youth Gangs Becoming
Adult Gangs?” Youth and Society Volume 23, No.
4 June: 443-45l; Spergel, I. Youth Gangs: Problem
and Response: A Review of the Literature. Assessment
Part I. National Youth Gang Suppression
and Intervention Project with the Office of
Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Planning, U. S.
Dept. of Justice, University of Chicago April 1992
14 Baum, Sandy and Jennifer Ma, “Education Pays,
the Benefits of Higher Education for Individuals
and Society” College Board 2007 Steven D. Levitt
and Sudhir Alladi Venkatesh, “An Economic
Analysis of Drug-Selling Gang’s Finances” Quarterly
Journal of Economics August 2000
15 Florida Department of Corrections, Research and
Data Analysis
16 National Youth Gang Center, Why and How
Youth Join Gangs
17 The National Center on Addiction and Substance
Abuse at Columbia University, The Importance of
Family Dinners IV
18 National Youth Gang Center, Why and How
Youth Join Gangs
19 Jessor, R., Turbin, M. S., & Costa, F. M. “Risk and
Protection in Successful Outcomes Among Disadvantaged
Adolescents.” Applied Developmental
Science, 1998, 2, 194-208
20 Department of Health and Human Services,
Youth Violence: a Report of the Surgeon General
2001
Background: Extent of the Problem
8 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
21 Dishion, T., Nelson S., and Yasui, M. “Predicting
Early Adolescent Gang Involvement From Middle
School Adaptation.” Journal of Clinical Child and
Adolescent Psychology. 2005, vol. 34, No.1, 62-73
22 Esbensen, F., Huizinga, D., and Weiher, A.W.
“Journal of Gang and Non-gang Youth: Differences
in Explanatory Variables” Contemporary
Criminal Justice: 1993 pp. 94-116
23 Curry, G.D., and Spergel, I.A. “Gang Involvement
and Delinquency Among Hispanic and African-
American Adolescent Males” Journal of Research
in Crime & Delinquency: 1992 pp. 273-291
24 Short, J.F. and Strodtbeck, F.L. Group Process
and Gang Delinquency. Chicago, IL: University of
Chicago 1965
25 J. David Hawkins, Todd I. Herrenkohl, David P.
Farrington, Devon Brewer, Richard F. Catalano,
Tracy W. Harachi, and Lynn Cothern, Predictors
of Youth Violence, Office of Juvenile Justice and
Delinquency Prevention, April 2000
26 Curry, G.D., and Spergel, I.A. “Gang Involvement
and Delinquency Among Hispanic and African-
American Adolescent Males” Journal of Research
in Crime & Delinquency 1992 pp. 273-291
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 9
The Strategy
Executive Group and 2007 Gang
Reduction Summit
In the summer of 2007 the heads of all state agencies
involved with youth and law enforcement met
in the Office of the Attorney General to develop a
statewide strategy to address the growing problems
of gangs and gang violence in Florida. They were
joined in this effort by the heads of key Florida law
enforcement associations. To build upon a working
draft prepared by this executive group in December
2007 the Office of the Attorney General held a Gang
Reduction Strategy Summit in Tallahassee. The
two-day summit brought leaders from various state
agencies, local law enforcement, community leaders,
and prevention/intervention organizations and
experts together. The framework of this strategy
was discussed and approved at the summit.
Mission
The mission of the Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
is to increase the safety of the citizens of Florida
by empowering Florida’s youth to reject criminal
gangs as a viable option and by substantially
reducing gang-related crime and violence in Florida.
State agencies cannot singlehandedly combat the
problem of gangs. There must be a series of cascading
approaches, each adding to the impact of the
others, between many state agencies, local governments,
and community advocacy groups working
in concert to oppose criminal gangs.
Goals
The goals to accomplish this mission are:
1. Stop the growth of criminal gangs in
Florida;
2. Reduce the number of gangs and gang
members;
3. Render gangs ineffectual.
Criminal gangs have been growing in Florida for the
better part of the past 25 years. The first priority
of the strategy is to stop this growth of gangs and
gang members. That must be immediately followed
by the reduction in the number of gangs and gang
members. While it may never be possible to completely
eliminate all criminal gangs and gang members
in Florida, the strategy contemplates rendering
what gangs remain ineffectual. Accomplishing these
goals will greatly reduce crime and violence in our
communities, save the lives of many at-risk youth,
give many more youth in our state the opportunity
for productive lives, save state and local government
a lot of expense and costs associated with gangs and
their criminal behavior, and make Florida a safer
place to live and work.
Three Pillars
The strategy is based on three pillars:
• Prevention/Intervention
• Law Enforcement
• Rehabilitation/Re-entry
In recent decades law enforcement has been the
principal entity attempting to control or resolve
the problem of criminal gangs. Law enforcement
will be much more efficient in its mission of
public safety when it is partnered with prevention
and re-entry efforts within the communities and
throughout the state. The gang problem is highly
complex. A well informed and coordinated effort
to fight criminal gangs is necessary. This strategy
will work to identify and target the problem
with gangs and the youth they affect and enable
communities to develop appropriate coalitions and
action plans to successfully address the problem
of criminal gangs.
The Strategy
10 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Focus of the Effort to Defeat Gangs
Criminal gangs are the enemy of an ordered society.
Defeating them necessitates identifying the
key to their survival, appeal, and effectiveness. It
is the premise of this strategy that the strength of
criminal gangs in Florida is their ability to attract a
continual stream of young recruits to their ranks.
Denied that strength, gangs will dry up, lose their
capacity to generate replacements and finally
cease their criminal activity.
The strategy, therefore, focuses its efforts toward
making gang membership and gang activity less
desirable for the youth of this state and turning
at-risk youth away from gangs and toward things
that will make them productive members of society.
This strength of the gang system derives from
its ability to cultivate zealous, aggressive members
who seek to establish their reputation within the
gang. Without that ability, the destructive capacity
of the gang is gradually eroded and eventually
dissipates completely. The gang itself becomes
discredited and is seen in its pernicious reality – a
collection of criminals devoid of social conscience,
lacking any semblance of dignity and driven only
by the petty, selfish interests of their leaders.
Consequently, the prevention/intervention portion
of the strategy must not only work to engage
at-risk youths and gang members in alternative,
constructive and educational activities and social
settings, it must also aim at taking away the appeal
of the gang. Denied the constant flow of new
recruits, the gang will disintegrate. Eventually,
the gang will cease to hold any attraction at all
and become ineffectual.
At the same time the prevention/intervention efforts
are underway, there must be a coordinated law
enforcement effort targeting the leaders of certain
gangs for prosecution, disrupting gang meetings and
activities and cutting off the supply of guns, other
weapons and sources of income. Since many of Florida’s
gang leaders come out of state prison, it is also
essential that a special effort be made to intervene
with gang members in prison with the objective of
educating, training and making as many of them
as possible constructive and contributing citizens
of society upon re-entry. By doing so, some of the
experienced gang leadership can be eliminated. In
most cases this will contribute significantly to the
decline and ultimate demise of the gang from which
they came.
The end state of this strategy is a Florida where
criminal gang activity is minimal to non-existent and
where gangs are no longer perceived as a desired
option for our youth, but rather as the undesirable
criminal organizations they represent. This strategy
aims to minimize gang membership and reduce
crime committed by gangs to an insignificant percent
of total crime in all 67 of Florida’s counties.
Prevention/Intervention
Objectives:
Objective 1: Expose Florida’s gangs and their
activities for their violent and
destructive reality.
Objective 2: Educate youth, parents and other
mentoring adults to help Florida’s
youth reject gang involvement.
Objective 3: Mobilize communities to repel
gang appeal to Florida’s youth.
Objective 4: Provide effective prevention/intervention
programs for those youth
who are the most likely targets of
gang recruitment and identified
young gang members
Objective 5: Encourage and assist with the
creation of positive extracurricular
activities and workforce development
programs for Florida’s
at-risk youth.
Objective 6: Support existing and new community
groups/coalitions that take a
stand against criminal gangs.
Prevention is essential to the success of the strategy.
The most effective and least costly way to
stop the growth and reduce the number of criminal
gangs and gang members in Florida is to convince
youth never to join a gang in the first place.
The first three prevention/intervention objectives
are aimed at taking away the appeal of gangs to
The Strategy
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 11
at-risk youth. They contemplate a program being
developed statewide or in a community or region
to communicate to these at-risk youth the message
that gangs are undesirable to belong to. In
order to develop and deliver the proper message,
prevention/intervention organizations and community
leaders must study and thoroughly understand
the motivational forces involved in gang
membership and what makes gang membership
appealing to youth. Then using this information
the image of gang membership must be portrayed
to these youth as something they would not want
to be a part of.
The remaining three prevention/intervention objectives
concern providing constructive, educational
and entertaining alternatives to gangs for at-risk
youth. Since most youth recruited into gangs are
missing some essential elements of family and
community, these objectives include making up
for what is missing as much as possible, and instilling
hope and opportunity in those youth and
a sense that they can dream big dreams and make
them come true. While there are many prevention/
intervention programs for at-risk youth, the
objectives focus attention specifically on those
at-risk youth in the community most likely to be
recruited by gangs.
Law Enforcement Objectives:
Objective 1: Compile a statewide priority list and
target every major criminal gang in
Florida for dismantling by arresting
and prosecuting gang leaders and
key gang members.
Objective 2: Identify and target for arrest and
prosecution all gang kingpins in
Florida and seek life imprisonment
sentences.
Objective 3: Prioritize the prosecution of gun
crimes related to gangs and gang
members and target for prosecution
those who provide guns to
juvenile gang members ineligible
to own or possess a gun.
Objective 4: In areas of intense gang activity,
build community policing, remove
firearms from low to mid-level
gang members and use injunctive
powers to prohibit gang members
from gathering.
Objective 5: Improve intelligence gathering and
information sharing on gangs and
gang members and their activities
among and between federal, state
and local law enforcement, prosecuting
authorities, schools and
Juvenile Justice, Corrections, and
Children and Families officials.
Objective 6: Strengthen gang law enforcement
and prosecution with more
uniform, specialized training and
designate one Assistant State
Attorney in each judicial circuit
whose sole, full-time responsibility
is to prosecute and manage the
prosecution of gangs, gang members
and gang-related crimes.
Objective 7: Coordinate federal, state and local
law enforcement/prosecution efforts
toward the common objective
of combating gang activity in
Florida, including setting priorities
and targeting certain gangs, gang
activities and gang-related prosecutions
all over Florida.
With over 1,500 criminal gangs and thousands of
gang members in Florida who engage in criminal
activities across many jurisdictional boundaries,
law enforcement efforts to suppress criminal
gangs more effectively will require enhanced
coordination, targeting, prioritization and aggressive
approaches. The law enforcement objectives
in this strategy are designed to accomplish this, and
in conjunction with prevention/intervention community
efforts to stop the growth of gangs, reduce
their number and the number of gang members and
ultimately render them ineffectual.
The objectives contemplate a statewide effort
to prioritize dismantling gangs. This is not a
central command and control effort. It must be
a cooperative effort among all law enforcement
agencies, federal, state and local. To be successful,
the strategy requires identifying, arresting and
prosecuting key gang leaders in all targeted gangs
The Strategy
12 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
throughout Florida and seeking a life sentence
for them. This will require improved intelligence
gathering and information sharing and better
trained and more specialized prosecutors including
one designated assistant state attorney in each
judicial circuit whose sole, full time responsibility
is to prosecute gang members.
With so much of the violent crime in Florida
attributable to gang activities and its violence
most often associated with guns, one of the
objectives should be to do a better job of keeping
guns out of the hands of gang members. In
order to accomplish this, prosecutors will have to
focus more on prosecuting gun crimes relating to
gang members including prosecuting those who
provide guns to juvenile gang members ineligible
to own or possess a gun.
In as much as gangs generally operate from a
defined and comparatively small geographic area
within a community, community policing targeted
to areas of intense gang activity can make a difference
and combined with the ability to enjoin gang
members from meeting can disrupt and render
gangs less effectual.
Rehabilitation and Re-entry
Objectives:
Objective 1: Expand opportunities for criminal
gang members in state or county
correctional systems to participate
in prison industry programs,
educational programs, faith and
character-based programs, drug
treatment/rehabilitation programs
and all other programs designed
to rehabilitate offenders or assist
offenders in preparing for re-entry
into society upon completion of
their sentences.
Objective 2: Develop and implement specialized,
individualized counseling
and mentoring focused on motivating
criminal gang members
in state or county correctional
systems to gain educational, vocational
or job training, social skills,
and lifestyle interests and habits
that will turn offenders away
from gang membership/participation
and toward becoming productive
members of society
when released.
Objective 3: Provide job placement for criminal
gang members in state or county
correctional systems upon release
and provide a counselor/mentor
for each such released offender to
give guidance, assist with acquiring
and keeping a job, educational
advancement, and building positive
relationships outside of gangs
for a period of five years after
release.
Objective 4: Require all identified criminal
gang members in state or county
correctional systems, upon
release, to register with an identified
state office and keep their address,
contact information and job
status current for ten years after
release and require such released
offenders to report in person for
counseling to a counselor/mentor
at least quarterly for the first five
years after release.
Objective 5: Train and qualify the necessary
number of counselors/mentors/
teachers to accomplish the individualized
goals of gang member rehabilitation
and re-entry from state
or county correctional systems.
Several thousand gang members are incarcerated
in Florida’s state prisons. Few, if any, of these
gang members receive any targeted rehabilitation
efforts while they are in prison. Most are released
from prison within a few years of their incarceration.
It appears that many of these released
gang members go back to their communities and
become the key leaders in their criminal gang.
The rehabilitation and re-entry objectives of the
strategy are designed to divert some of these
incarcerated gang members from returning to
their gangs when released. The more successful
intervention programs are in prison the better
The Strategy
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 13
the chances of success for community efforts to
dismantle and render ineffectual the gangs from
which these prison inmates come.
Rehabilitation and re-entry objectives of the
strategy can be accomplished by using specially
trained counselors and mentors to try to motivate
gang members in prison to participate in rehabilitation,
educational, and drug treatment programs
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Performance
Measures
represent means
for tracking
progress
toward desired
outcomes.
Desired
Outcomes
define results
to compare
with actual
performance.
Objectives
define the
necessary
actions to
achieve the
desired goal.
Goals define
the directions of
the Strategy.
Strategy
develops
statewide plan
to get youth
to reject gangs
and reduce gang
related crime.
Strategy
Goals
Objectives
Desired
Outcomes
Performance
Measures
designed to redirect their lives away from gang
membership. Upon release from prison the objectives
call for personalized assistance and monitoring
for a number of years in order to place the
former gang member in a job and steering him or
her to a new life away from the gang.
The Strategy
14 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 15
Concept of Operation
Coordinating Council
Working under the auspices of the Office of the
Attorney General the executive group that initiated
planning for the gang strategy will act as a coordinating
council. The Attorney General and the
council will coordinate bringing together prevention/
intervention organizations, community leaders
the business community and local, state and federal
law enforcement that will form seven regional task
forces in the state. While action and operational
decisions will be made by organizational leaders,
community leaders, and local elected officials, the
Attorney General and coordinating council will
provide guidance and assistance in achieving the
objectives of the strategy. The council will work
with the Department of Corrections and others in
pursuit of the rehabilitation and re-entry objectives.
The council will also coordinate the
collection of data, develop and carry
out a process for measuring the success
of the strategy and periodically
adjust it as may be necessary.
Regional Task Forces
The state will be divided into
seven regions and a gang strategy
task force developed within each
region. The Gang Reduction Strategy
regions will each have the same geographical
composition as the state’s Domestic Security
Task Force Regions.
The Attorney General and the council will invite
selected prevention/intervention organizations,
community leaders, business leaders, elected
officials and local, state and federal law enforcement
for an initial organizational meeting in each
region. It is anticipated that each task force will
select a chairman who will be rotated periodically
and that the task forces will hold regular meetings
at least once a quarter. The Attorney General and
the council will provide the task forces with as
much guidance and data as possible. The regional
task forces will not be statutory or official bodies
of the state. Participation is completely voluntary.
There will be no funding or material support from
the state available to the task forces at the inception
of this strategy.
It is anticipated that by participation in the regional
task force each unit of local government within
the region and each law enforcement agency will
benefit significantly. While gangs may have a
comparatively small territory that they claim, their
criminal activity knows no geographical boundary.
The advantages of and benefits from a coordinated
effort under the statewide strategy should
be clear to all.
y
-
egy
ographiestic
Security
ncil will invite
rganizations,
rs, elected
l law enforcemeeting
in each
ask force will
ted periodically
egular meetings
ney General and
Regional Gang Reduction Task Forces
Concept of Operation
16 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
It is essential that each task force develop its own
plan of action, set time tables and carry it out.
Also, it is hoped that each task force will provide a
conduit of information back to the Attorney General
and the coordinating council and assist in the
collection of data necessary to measure progress in
the strategy. The key component of the concept
of operation is the networking and coordination
of local community components. For the citizens
of Florida to witness substantial declines in youth
gang membership, school dropout rates and gangrelated
crime, there must be a melding of the two
powerful forces of law enforcement and prevention/
intervention. Law enforcement agencies will
become more productive in their operations when
prevention gets youth to reject joining criminal
gangs and prevention organizations see fewer
youth losing their potential to gangs and can work
with them to make positive choices in their lives.
Developing a Prevention/
Intervention Plan
To be effective, each regional task force must develop
a plan of action to accomplish the Gang Reduction
Strategy in their region. All participants need
to be open-minded, committed to the goals and
objectives of the strategy and willing to think out
of the box in developing and carrying out a plan.
If existing prevention/intervention organizations
participate and are willing to adapt their organizational
goals and resources to meet the objectives
of this strategy and the plan developed by the
regional task force, they should be utilized to carry
out the plan and achieve the objectives of the
strategy. Where necessary, the task force should
not hesitate to bring in a prevention/intervention
program from outside the region or create such
new programs as may be necessary. Local community
involvement and leadership in a prevention/
intervention program is essential for success.
The plan must include proposals to get youth
at-risk of being recruited into gangs to reject gang
recruitment. The regional task force needs to
study and understand the psychology involved
and then develop a plan of action to discredit
gangs in the eyes of these youth tailored to the
specific communities and gangs in their region.
Working with local television, radio, cable, and
other media, there should be a media campaign
prepared and carried out to further this objective.
Simultaneously, working with parents, teachers,
school officials and church leaders, an approach
needs to be developed and carried out to discredit
gangs in the schools and in churches and other
community outlets that touch and interact with
children most at-risk of being recruited by gangs.
Mediums most frequented by youth, such as social
networks like MySpace, Facebook, etc. should
be utilized in getting the message out.
The message to discredit gangs should be inclusive
of the sexual exploitation of women so
commonly associated with gangs, along with
other criminal activities such as drive-by shootings,
home invasions, assaults, batteries, etc.
It should emphasize the contrast between the
financial gains of the leader, as compared to the
minimal gain of the lower level members. It
should include a thorough exposure of the gang
leadership’s brainwashing of the new recruits that
requires them to give up all their individual rights
and freedoms. It should expose the extreme brutal
treatment of gang initiation and the violence
inflicted upon any gang member who attempts to
think independently or who attempts to leave. It
should focus on the violent crimes new recruits
are required to commit, and how this is used as a
threat and control technique to keep them in the
gang by threatening to expose their criminal activities
should they attempt to get out of the gang.
It should point out that new recruits, as well as
their family members, are threatened in order to
keep them in the gang, and that it is not uncommon
for brutal attacks and deadly force to be used
on family members rather than the gang member
himself in order to force compliance with the gang
leaders and the gang creed. The message should
also focus on the early mortality rates of those associated
with gang membership and the frequent
criminal convictions that many gang members
have which will result in denial of voting rights,
limiting future employment, and any other negaConcept
of Operation
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 17
tive to gang membership that might dissuade an
at-risk youth from joining a gang.
The second major component of the prevention/
intervention plan must be the providing of constructive,
educational, and entertaining alternatives
to gangs for at-risk youth and also compensating
for the absence of social and family elements that
most at-risk youth experience. It is anticipated that
participating task forces will include many prevention/
intervention organizations such as Boys and
Girls Clubs, Urban League organizations, church
groups, etc., which already have experience working
in the local community at this level. What is
most likely missing in the function of these organizations
is specific targeting of youth most at-risk of
being recruited into gangs and programs especially
designed for this group.
It is contemplated that under the guidance of the
Attorney General and the coordinating council
and with the cooperative effort of local law
enforcement and other community leaders, these
existing organizations will develop new, effective
initiatives to address the target group. When a
task force concludes that it would be beneficial to
bring in a prevention/intervention program that
does not exist in the region or initiate a new program,
it should do so and make sure that cooperation
and coordination with existing organizations
in the region occurs. Often a single program only
addresses a few of the needs, while a number of
programs working together are much more likely
to succeed. It is vital to our success that every
possible expertise is brought to bear and pride in
existing local organizations should not stand in
the way of doing whatever it takes to accomplish
the strategy objectives.
Task forces should encourage support for existing
faith-based programs and the establishment
of new faith-based programs targeted at youths
at risk of being recruited into gangs and existing
gang members. Priority should be given to recruiting
every church and religious leader in the region
to participate. Not every at-risk youth will wake
up and come to church and change their lives;
therefore church leaders should be encouraged to
go out into the community and target youth who
are especially at risk of being recruited into gangs
and where possible, gang members.
The parents, especially those of at-risk youth,
should be engaged. The Gang Reduction Summit
found that parents desire additional education
about the early signs of gang involvement and
want to know the best way to intervene with
their child when the early signs of gang involvement
appear. They want to know how prevention
or intervention can be supported by their
local schools and community leaders. An effective
plan will educate these parents and involve them
in every way possible.
Communities where gangs flourish often find
gang members and youth at risk of being gang
members involved in a culture that accepts
and sometimes glorifies school truancy, school
drop-out, drug use, and drug abuse. The prevention/
intervention plan must include a program
working with schools, parents, and community
leaders to address these concerns, specifically
with respect to the youth most at risk of joining
a gang. Special steps should be taken to discourage
truancy and school drop-outs among these
youth. There should be targeted mentoring and
after school tutoring programs. School resource
officers should be actively engaged to assist and
provide support. Youth at risk of being recruited
into gangs should be given intense anti-drug
education and, when needed, should be given
priority in drug rehabilitation programs.
Plans should give special attention to workforce
development programs for these at-risk youth.
Most who wind up engaging in criminal activity
have never worked and have no job skills and no
work ethic. Getting at-risk youth engaged in work
force development suitable for their age group is
very important and could make a real difference
in whether they end up joining a gang or perhaps
can be enticed to leave a gang if they have joined.
The task force should consider developing a plan
to reach out to local businesses and recruit them
to participate in a workforce program and mentoring
for these at-risk youth. After school based
Concept of Operation
18 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
programs that teach leadership skills, interviewing
skills for potential employment, resume preparing
skills, personal presentation skills, etc., should be
a high priority of the task force.
Last but not least, the plan should include a
relationship with judicial intervention programs
where at-risk youth have encountered the law. It is
important to have working relationships with the
courts and with the juvenile justice system. Teen
courts and other alternative programs can be a big
help. Where teen court programs or the like do
not exist, the task force should examine existing
programs in other communities and consider developing
such programs within the region or within
communities lacking these programs.
Law Enforcement Plan
Developments
Each regional task force should have a law enforcement
plan as well as a prevention/intervention
plan. This may be one comprehensive document
inasmuch as the objective is to coordinate
both prevention/intervention and law enforcement.
Whether there are two separate plans or a
single one, it is very important that all participants
in the regional task forces are involved in the
preparation and planning for both the prevention/
intervention and the law enforcement portions.
The law enforcement plan should set a priority
targeting every major criminal gang in the region
for dismantling. The priority list should focus on
the most violent and dangerous gangs first, but
law enforcement intelligence and analysis will be
the key in setting the priorities on the list. Within
the targeted gangs the first order of business
should be to make cases against the leaders, and
get prosecutions and convictions under the new
gang kingpin statute where possible. The idea is
to take down as many gangs as possible within
the region in a systematic fashion and try especially
hard to put away the gang kingpins/leaders
for life or for an extremely high number of years.
The prevention/intervention plan should call for
targeting first and foremost youth in the geographical
area most likely subject to gang recruitConcept
of Operation
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 19
ment for the gangs that are being dismantled by
law enforcement. At the same time intervention
efforts should be made to try and peel off young
gang members from these gangs that are not being
prosecuted. By combining tough law enforcement
with focused prevention/intervention efforts, it is
more likely a particular gang can be permanently
dissolved or rendered ineffectual.
Because violence associated with gangs is on
the upswing in Florida, law enforcement plans
should prioritize the prosecution of gun crimes
related to gangs and gang members. The task
force should consider organizing “gun buy back
days” and/or “turn in your gun days.” Special
efforts should be made to prevent juveniles from
getting access to guns through purchases at gun
shows either illegally by an underage youth or
through the assistance of an adult who makes
the purchase for the youth.
Where possible, the plan should call for community
policing and the use of injunctions to prohibit
gang members from gathering in areas of intense
gang activity. More communities across the nation
are turning to civil injunctions to prohibit
gathering and association of gang members in
certain public areas where criminal activities have
previously taken place or are known to be taking
place. The plan should call for taking advantage
of a new state law with respect to the use of such
an injunction and each community should consider
developing local ordinances to assist law
enforcement in this regard.
It is important that the task force include representation
from a wide spectrum of law enforcement
in the region. State and federal enforcement
officials should be included. The U.S.
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF),
Postal Inspectors, Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
agents, the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), the
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and U.S.
Customs should all be asked to participate. So
should Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(ICE) agents. Naturally, all relevant state agencies
should be involved including the Florida
Department of Law Enforcement, the Florida
Department of Corrections, representatives from
the Florida Department of Children and Families,
the Florida Highway Patrol, the state Department
of Transportation and Motor Carrier Compliance,
state Fire Marshals, state Beverage officers and
state Agricultural officers, etc.
Including as many representatives from different
law enforcement persuasions as possible is
very important in putting together a team that
can have a wide base of information to share.
Improved intelligence gathering and information
sharing on gangs and gang members is absolutely
essential to the success of the task force and the
strategy. Law enforcement plans should encompass
guidance for intelligence gathering and information
sharing among all law enforcement who
partner in the task force and the many specialized
law enforcement associations, such as the Florida
Gang Investigators Association, Florida Narcotics
Association, Florida Intelligence Unit, etc.
Additionally, the task force should include a representative
of all prosecuting agencies which have
a presence within the region. They should be
asked to help set the priorities and give advice on
ways to control the flow of guns and use injunctive
powers to prohibit gangs from gathering. The
task force should encourage each state attorney
in the region to designate at least one assistant
state attorney in his/her judicial circuit whose
sole responsibility is to prosecute and manage the
prosecution of gangs, gang members and gangrelated
crime. Gang prosecutions can be complex
and very time consuming. While the resources
of each state attorney are very limited, each will
understand the very grave importance that needs
to be placed on dismantling gangs in achieving the
goals of this Gang Reduction Strategy.
In conjunction with developing a law enforcement
plan, each task force should develop and catalog a
list of every known criminal gang and gang member
in the region. A task force team should be
organized to make this happen and to make certain
that the list is clear of duplicates and updated with
Concept of Operation
20 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
regularity. Members of the task force should help
guide what information should be gathered for this
list. At least once a year, the coordinating council
should be provided a copy of the list that is maintained
by the regional task forces.
Rehabilitation and Re-entry Plan
Development
With guidance and assistance from the Attorney
General and the coordinating council, the Department
of Corrections and local law enforcement
agencies will make the rehabilitation and re-entry
of criminal gang members a major component
of the re-entry program. The Department of Corrections’
re-entry initiative will also be designed
to fulfill the objectives of the Gang Reduction
Strategy.
The Department of Corrections
and Re-entry
Last year approximately 35,000 inmates were
released from Florida’s prisons. According to the
Florida Department of Corrections’ 2006-2007
Annual Report, Florida’s prison population was
92,844 inmates (as of June 30, 2007). During
this same time period, inmate admissions were
37,864, an increase of 7.9% over the prior year.
Corrections officials report that a third of released
inmates return to Florida prisons within
a 3-year period. Furthermore, the basic education
level of Florida’s inmate population is at a
7th grade level. When looking at literacy levels,
0 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%
Year 7
Year 6
Year 5
Year 4
Year 3
Year 2
Year 1
1995
12,645
1996
16,830
1997
19,919
1998
15,841
1999
17,613
2000
19,535
2001
20,340
2002
20,009
2003
21,246
2004
23,348
2005
24,953 10%
11%
11%
11%
10%
10%
11%
12%
12%
12%
13%
11%
12%
13%
12%
13%
13%
14%
14%
13%
13%
9%
9%
10%
9%
9%
9%
9%
9%
9%
6%
7%
7%
6%
6%
6%
6%
6%
6%
7%
7%
6%
6%
6%
6%
4%
3%
3%
3%
3%
3%
3%
3%
3%
3%
2%
Percent Return to Prison
Year of Release and Number of Releases
Florida Recidivism Rates
Overall three-year recidivism rate since 1995 is 32.8%.
Data indicates that Year Two after release is the time period when most recidivists return to prison.
Concept of Operation
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 21
37.1% of the inmate’s have a literacy competency
of an elementary student.
Functional Literacy
Grade 6-8.9)
25%
GED Prep
(9-12.9)
36%
Basic Literacy
(Grade 1-5.9)
38%
Literacy Skill Level - Total Population
Ethnicity Median Literacy Level
Black Males 6.0
Black Females 6.1
White Males 8.6
White Females 9.7
Other Males 6.1
Other Females 7.1
Tested Literacy Skill Level (Most Recent Tests of Adult Basic
Education [TABE] as of June 30th, 2007
General Educational Development (GED) Tests
are available within the prison system, but many
of Florida’s inmates initially do not have the
education level necessary to obtain a GED or
even prepare for a GED examination. Even a vocational
certificate often requires an educational
level of 9th grade or higher. With 64.2% of the
population below this mark, a vocational certificate
is often unattainable for some fifty thousand
inmates every year. Not surprisingly, an ex-offender
returning to the community is confronted
by employers with statements such as “no job,”
“no skills” and “not enough education.”
Many returning ex-offenders also have some form
of substance dependency. Approximately 64%
of the inmates incarcerated in Florida prisons
have been identified as having a substance abuse
problem. While detoxification happens as a result
of incarceration, many inmates will return to an
environment where drugs are once again available.
The potential for relapse can greatly hamper any
re-entry service, such as educational and vocational
programs, if substance abuse treatment is
not provided. In fact, relapse dramatically reduces
the chance for an ex-offender to maintain stable
employment – a key factor in reducing recidivism.
As indicated in Florida’s Drug Control Strategy,
drug users are less dependable than other workers
and decrease workplace productivity. Drug users
compared to drug-free workers are also more likely
to take an unexcused absence, get fired more frequently,
and also switch jobs more frequently.
While the Department of Corrections has the
responsibility to supervise some offenders after
their release from prison, the agency also supervises
an even greater number of offenders sentenced
directly to community supervision in the form
of probation. Offenders on community supervision
have some transitional programs available to
them, however more programs must be provided
in order to adequately address the problem of
recidivism. With the Department of Corrections
in the unique position of supervising offenders
in the community and in prison, it affords them
the opportunity to have an immense impact on
gang members’ chances of leaving the criminal
lifestyle behind.
Many offenders while on probation or those being
released from prison lack the knowledge of
possible resources available to them in the community
to help in their re-entry needs. Access to
the resources, identifying the resources that are
willing to serve convicted felons, and securing
reliable transportation to visit these resources can
be difficult to accomplish. Consequently, without
recognizing and accessing legitimate support in
Concept of Operation
22 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
the community, many of these individuals return
to their former ways, a lifestyle of crime and
criminal gang involvement.
Given these factors, it is not surprising that exoffender
recidivism is predictable. Without skill
development opportunities and support systems a
return to criminal behavior is often very probable.
Emphasizing Re-entry
Many of these aforementioned barriers to successful
re-entry were well documented in the December
2006 report produced by Governor Bush’s
Ex-Offender Task Force. Following that report
and in response to the staggering statistics associated
with those returning to the state correctional
system, the Department
of Corrections has made
reducing recidivism a
major focus. In May
2007, the Department
of Corrections changed
its mission to state,
“To protect the public,
ensure the safety of
Department personnel,
and provide for the
proper care and supervision
of all offenders
under our jurisdiction while assisting, as appropriate,
their re-entry into society.” Coupled with this
change to the mission statement, the Department
set a goal for inmates to bring their recidivism
rate down from its present rate (33%) to 20% or
less by 2012. The Department envisions that, if
accomplished, the criminal justice system will see
a significant reduction in the demands that repeat
offenders exert and provide safer communities for
the citizens of Florida and those who visit the state.
Current and future re-entry initiatives in place to
accomplish this goal will be represented in the
Department’s Re-entry Strategic Plan, expected to
be completed by the end of 2008. Consequently,
given that there are approximately 4,000 inmates in
state prisons who have been identified as members
of criminal gangs, and this population represents
some of the greatest challenges to re-entry efforts,
corrections officials need to incorporate initiatives
specifically tailored for criminal gang members
within the state correctional system.
The objectives of this strategy contemplate the
Department of Corrections developing and implementing
specialized counseling and mentoring criteria
designed to motivate criminal gang members
in prison and under the community supervision,
to gain educational, vocational and job training
skills. Additionally, lifestyle interests and habits
should be established that will turn them away
from gang membership and toward becoming productive
members of society upon re-entry. There
is no doubt this will require training and qualifying
a certain number of
counselors, mentors and
teachers to accomplish
the individualized goals
of gang member rehabilitation
and re-entry.
Therefore, it may be
necessary for the Department
of Corrections
to seek grants from the
federal government
and/or private foundations
with an interest in
prisoner re-entry.
As with many prisoners, gang member inmates
will likely need drug treatment and rehabilitation
services. While there may be legal or regulatory
issues which restrict giving priority to criminal
gang members in such programs as well as in education
and training programs, every effort should
be made to provide all gang member inmates who
qualify, access to all available programs and to create
new programs where necessary.
The rehabilitation and re-entry plan should
include detailed provisions for job placement of
criminal gang members when they are released
and for providing a counselor/mentor for each
released offender to give guidance, assist with
c
t
t
o
b
T
n
p
t
f
a
t
Concept of Operation
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 23
acquiring and keeping a job, educational advancement,
and building positive relationships outside
of gangs for a period of at least five years after
release from prison. This, too, may require additional
funding from grants either at the federal
level or from private foundations. The plan
should include proposals to seek such grants.
The strategy calls for all identified criminal gang
members in state or county correctional systems,
upon release, to register with an identified state
office, and keep their address, contact information
and job status current for ten years after release
and that each released gang member inmate report
in person for counseling to a counselor/mentor
for a period of at least five years after release
from prison. The rehabilitation and re-entry plan
should address how this is to be structured and
accomplished and include a plan and timetable
for any changes in regulations or law that may be
necessary.
The Department of Corrections should call upon
members of the coordinating council for any assistance
they may be able to give in developing or
carrying out this plan.
Concept of Operation
24 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 25
Measuring Success
The mission of the Gang Reduction Strategy is to
increase the safety of Florida citizens by empowering
Florida’s youth to reject criminal gangs as a
viable option and by substantially reducing gangrelated
crime and violence in Florida. The goals to
accomplish the mission are stopping the growth
of criminal gangs in Florida, reducing the number
of gangs and gang members and rendering gangs
ineffectual. To accomplish this mission and these
goals, there must be a standard set of data collected
annually to measure progress and success.
Gang Data
The number of criminal gangs and gang members
in Florida is unclear. The Florida Department of
Law Enforcement (FDLE) announced in October
2007 the results of their first gang survey since
1995. It appears from this survey there are at
least 1,500 gangs and well over 65,000 gang members
in Florida. Unfortunately, the 2007 survey is
incomplete and may have duplications in it. The
survey was directed to Florida’s sheriffs, police
chiefs, and school resource officers. A very sizeable
number of them failed to respond. Inasmuch
as there is overlap among the jurisdictions of
police, sheriffs, and school resource officers, it is
difficult to analyze and sort out areas where duplication
in counting may have occurred.
The InSite Intelligence Database is a statewide
database maintained by FDLE which is designed
for the sharing of gang intelligence among all law
enforcement agencies statewide. The system is
contributed to on a voluntary basis. Many law
enforcement agencies utilize their own database
for storage of intelligence information and may or
may not contribute to the FDLE statewide gang
database. One of the reasons this occurs is the
diversity of database products among local and
state agencies. These agencies must duplicate
their efforts if they are to share their intelligence
statewide. Sheriffs and police chiefs have been
unable or unwilling to assign staff for duplicate
entries; therefore, the statewide database rarely
gets updated with the information that is stored
in local databases.
It is the recommendation of this strategy that
FDLE research all technological solutions available
to find a way to allow local and other state
systems to electronically upload their gang intelligence
information into the statewide system in
order to eliminate the need for duplication and to
facilitate a complete statewide database that all
law enforcement and criminal justice agencies can
readily access and retrieve pertinent information
on a timely basis.
The Department of Corrections maintains a
Security Threat Group (STG) management initiative
that catalogs gangs and gang members in
state prisons. From the data available, it appears
that there is at least one gang member from each
of Florida’s 67 counties serving in state prison.
While this initiative appears very thorough with
respect to those who are inmates and have been
identified as potential threats to prison security,
it is unclear whether it captures all criminal gang
members serving time in state prison or whether
some of those who are cataloged as gang members
for prison purposes might not be members of a
criminal gang in a local community prior to entering
prison.
As a consequence of the incomplete and loosely
connected data on criminal gangs and gang members
currently available, the coordinating council,
together with regional task forces, must develop a
simplified statewide system for the annual reporting
of data on gangs and gang members. For the
purpose of this strategy, the only data that needs
to be collected annually is the name and geographical
location of every identified criminal gang in a
region, the number of members in each gang, and
the nature and amount of criminal activity attribMeasuring
Success
26 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
uted to each gang during the preceding year (number
of arrests and convictions of gang members).
Each regional task force should designate a single
member to be responsible for collecting the data
from the region each year and submitting it to the
Office of the Attorney General. It is suggested
that the easiest way to accomplish this collection
task would be for each sheriff to take responsibility
for collecting the data from his or her county
using the resources of the office and information
solicited from each police department in the
county, the county jail, and the school resource
officers of all the middle schools and high schools
in the county. The designated regional task force
member should work with each sheriff and his
or her designee to screen the data collected from
the various sources within the county for accuracy
and to make sure there are no duplications.
The measuring period to be used in the collection
of this gang data will be the fiscal year ending June
30 of each year. It will be the responsibility of
each regional task force to collect the data from its
region, organize it and submit it to the Attorney
General no later than September 30 of each year.
It is recognized that for this strategy to meet
its long-term objectives, law enforcement and
prevention organizations will need more detailed
data on gangs and gang membership than is outlined
in this strategy. This is the data needed for
metrics. It is the basic, fundamental data necessary
to measure progress and success. Along the
way, the members of the regional task forces and
the coordinating council need to work with FDLE
to improve and make more effective and efficient
its periodic longer survey of gangs and gang membership.
One of the first things each regional task
force should do is to critique the current FDLE
survey and make suggestions for improvement in
the questions and data requested and help FDLE
come up with a way to assure a more timely and
complete response from those surveyed and a way
to assure more accuracy and less duplication of
data reported.
The regional task forces and the coordinating
council should also work with FDLE on improvements
to InSite. Intelligence sharing is crucial to
law enforcement and a more complete and workable
database for intelligence sharing purposes to
fight gangs would be invaluable. But the immediate
goal is to gather the simple, basic data necessary
for measuring progress and success.
Prevention/Intervention Data
Unfortunately, Florida has no state database identifying
existing prevention/intervention programs
directed toward at-risk youth, nor any criteria for
grading or measuring the success of existing programs.
There is no repository of information as
to which, if any, existing prevention programs in
Florida specifically target children at risk of being
recruited into gangs or their effectiveness. The
very fact that gang membership appears to have
steadily grown in Florida for a number of years
suggests existing programs are not working, or at
best, have had a limited impact on gang recruitment
and growth.
The coordinating council or a designated state
agency must gather a comprehensive list/database
on all at-risk youth prevention programs operating
in Florida. Included in this database should be an
indication which, if any, of these programs specifically
target children at risk of being recruited into
gangs and how these programs operate.
As the regional task forces are formed and organized,
they will be asked by the coordinating
council to compile a list within their region of
all prevention/intervention programs directed
toward at-risk youth and designate which, if any,
of these programs specifically target children at
risk of being recruited into gangs. For those that
target youth being recruited into gangs, the task
force should determine the model and/or methodology
being used by the program to address
this targeted group and provide this information
to the coordinating council. The list should be
comprehensive and include both faith-based and
non faith-based organizations and programs.
Where identifiable, mentoring programs should
Measuring Success
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 27
be included. In developing the list, the task forces
should consider including local Boys and Girls
Clubs; Urban League programs; YMCA programs;
Police Athletic Leagues programs; United Way
supported organizational programs; and any other
after-school or community based programs or
initiatives the task forces can identify.
As with the collection of gang data, the regional
task forces should also collect and revise the
prevention/intervention program data on an annual
basis for the previous 12 months of a fiscal
year concluding on June 30 and report the data to
the Office of the Attorney General by September
30 each year. It is suggested that each task force
identify a member to be in charge of the collection
of this data and that a member of the task force
from each county be designated to work with
this person to collect the data and sort through it.
All members of the regional task force should be
called upon to contribute information and provide
assistance in this effort.
The collection of this prevention/intervention program
data in each region is not only important for
statewide measurement of progress and success, it
is also essential for the regional task forces to have
this data in order to succeed in their prevention/
intervention objectives. The collection of the base
data should be the first priority of each task force.
A longer term goal of the coordinating council
and the task forces should be the development of
a methodology to measure the quality of success
for prevention/intervention programs directed
specifically at youth likely to be recruited into
gangs. There appears to be a lot of literature on
various prevention/intervention programs directed
at these youth, but no known gauge exists
for measuring the success or comparative success
of these programs.
Workforce Development/Training
Programs
A sub-set of the prevention/intervention programs
for youth at risk of being recruited into gangs are
those specifically designed to engage these youth
in workforce development and/or training. As
with most youth who engage in criminal activity
and end up in state prisons, few gang members
have developed marketable skills or held a job.
Each task force should collect a list of all existing
workforce development/training programs in the
region. Most likely, these will be associated with
area high schools, but there may be some prevention/
intervention programs or community organizations
with a workforce development component
that exists separate and apart from the schools.
While existing organizations that are trying to address
youth vulnerable to gang membership may
already have a workforce development component,
the likelihood is that the task force will have
to foster, develop or coordinate this component
in their regions. It may be that the task forces
will have to develop such programs specifically for
the targeted youth. Only with a good database of
existing programs and available resources will this
be possible.
Drug Rehabilitation/Treatment
Program Data
Studies indicate that drugs are intertwined with
criminal gangs and gang members. It is believed
that criminal gangs in Florida are the primary
retail outlet for the sale of most types of illicit
drugs. Many young gang members are drug users
and may be addicted to one or more narcotics.
The Gang Reduction Strategy contemplates a
coordinated effort between the regional task
forces and drug prevention/rehabilitation/treatment
programs in the local communities. Task
forces should collect a list of all such programs in
their region and involve them in their effort as appropriate.
This data should be readily accessible.
Task force leaders should seek the assistance of
the Florida Office of Drug Control to access this
data and help with the coordination of all drug
related issues.
Measuring Success
28 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Inmate Re-entry Data
Working with the Department of Corrections,
and the coordinating council, each regional task
force needs to collect a list of faith-based and non
faith-based programs in the region which provide
assistance to inmates leaving state prisons. The
development of organized efforts in the state by
non-profit organizations to provide assistance to
offenders in acquiring jobs is gaining support in
several parts of the state. The programs of these
organizations need to be identified and assessed
as to the number of released inmates who are able
to be placed in jobs each year and how successful
they may be in terms of keeping these individuals
employed once they have acquired employment.
This data will be invaluable to both the task
forces and the Department of Corrections in
future efforts to divert gang members who leave
prison from returning to a gang lifestyle. There
are a few programs that exist in Florida that are
specifically targeted to gang members who are reentering
society, and task forces should consider
working with the existing programs. Task forces
should work with the Department of Corrections
in developing job opportunities for gang members
re-entering society and methods of mentoring and
following them for a substantial period of time
after release from prison.
Community Involvement
While the Department of Corrections will play the
leading role in re-entry initiatives, community leaders
and local law enforcement must also play an active
role and partner in these efforts. Without local
law enforcement officials and community leaders
supporting community re-entry programs and addressing
re-entry issues at a local level, the chances
for sustainable success will be limited. Examples
of quality partnerships exist all around the state.
They include Jacksonville’s Re-entry Center (Jacksonville
Sheriff’s Office), Broward County’s Re-entry
Coalition, and the Pinellas County Ex-Offender Reentry
Coalition. Coalitions and organizations such
as these represent examples where state and local
partnerships can work together toward executing
a successful gang reduction strategy. Replicating
these partnerships with local knowledge, combined
with state resources, will provide continuity and
effective re-entry programs for offenders who are
members of criminal gangs both in state correctional
systems and for those offenders on community
supervision.
Both community leaders and the Department of
Corrections will call upon members of the coordinating
council for any assistance they may be able
to give in developing or carrying out this plan for
re-entering ex-offenders.
Importance of Metrics
Metrics are essential to the carrying out of the
objectives of this strategy. Each regional task
force should not only develop a plan for carrying
out its objectives, but also devise its own system
to measure progress and success. The data to be
gathered as described here will be necessary not
only as information needed by the regional task
force to develop its plans and carry them out, but
also for the measurement of success and progress.
In the same way, the coordinating council needs
this data in order to measure statewide success
and be able to determine what adjustments need
to be made in the strategy.
Measuring Success
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 29
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
44.0%
57.2% 55.4% 56.1%
49.0%
44.1%
49.1%
6.0%
6.5%
7.0%
7.5%
8.0%
8.5%
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
7.2%
7.0%
6.9%
7.5%
7.0%
8.0%
8.2%
Reporting ever having
belonged to a gang
Percent of High School Gang Members That Joined Before Age 14
Gang Membership Among Florida’s Middle and High School Students
Gang Data From the Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey (2001-2007)
Measuring Success
30 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
5%
6%
7%
8%
9%
10%
High School
Middle School
Middle & High School (Grades 6-12)
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
8.6%
7.3% 8.1%
6.5% 6.4%
8.3%
7.5%
7.2%
6.3%
7.5%
8.6%
7.8%
6.0%
7.9%
7.0%
6.9%
7.5% 7.0%
7.2%
8.0% 8.2%
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
18%
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
14.4%
12.4% 12.1% 12.4%
13.8%
15.4% 15.5%
Reporting that at least 1 of their 4 best friends
had belonged to a gang in the past year.
In the Past Year, How Many of Your Four Best Friends Had Been Members of a Gang?
(Middle & High School Students)
Gang Membership Among Florida’s Middle and High School Students
Gang Data From the Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey (2001-2007)
Measuring Success
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 31
6.5%
7.0%
7.5%
8.0%
8.5%
9.0%
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
8.6%
7.3%
7.5%
7.8%
7.9%
8.6%
8.3%
Reporting ever having
belonged to a gang
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
18%
20%
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
16.7%
14.3% 14.0% 13.4%
15.5%
17.1% 17.2%
Reporting that at least 1 of their 4 best friends
had belonged to a gang in the past year.
Gang Membership Among Florida’s Middle School Students
In the Past Year, How Many of Your Four Best Friends Had Been Members of a Gang?
(Middle School Students)
Gang Data From the Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey (2001-2007)
Measuring Success
32 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
6.0%
6.5% 6.4%
7.2%
6.3%
7.5%
8.1%
Reporting ever having
belonged to a gang
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
12.5%
10.7% 10.5%
11.5%
12.5%
14.0% 14.3%
Reporting that at least 1 of their 4 best friends
had belonged to a gang in the past year.
Gang Membership Among Florida’s High School Students
In the Past Year, How Many of Your Four Best Friends Had Been Members of a Gang?
(High School Students)
Gang Data From the Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey (2001-2007)
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 33
Resources
The Gang Reduction Strategy is a blueprint for
organizing existing resources to stop and reverse
the growth of gangs and gang membership in the
state and render gangs ineffectual. It does not
contemplate any additional government funding
or increased manpower. Some re-allocation
of existing manpower and resources by different
levels of government and non-governmental entities
will be necessary to accomplish the goals and
objectives. But there are other types of resources
available to assist.
All of the state agencies participating in the coordinating
council are available to help the regional
task forces and their members and participants
accomplish the goals and objectives of the strategy.
Members of the coordinating council have
agreed to donate staff time and resources to carry
out its coordinating function and help collect and
analyze data and identify materials and assets for
the regional task forces.
There are a number of prominent prevention
programs around the nation that have had some
success in fighting gangs. The regional task
forces are urged to review and draw upon these
programs for ideas and potential support of their
plans. At the same time, each regional task force
is expected to build its own plan and carry it out,
not simply copy one or more of the other projects
or programs.
Where additional funding may be necessary,
participants are expected to seek grants from nonprofit
organizations or the federal government or
draw upon support from colleges and universities
where funding may have already been obtained
for research, pilot projects or the like that could
be correlated to the needs of the task forces and
participants. There are a number of foundations
in Florida and across the nation that have in their
charters special interest in contributing to causes
that relate to the gang issues in this strategy. The
coordinating council is prepared to assist the regional
task forces and participating organizations
in seeking support from these foundations.
State Agencies
Each state agency participating in the coordinating
council has expertise of its own that could be very
valuable to regional task forces and participants
in preparing plans and working to achieve the
goals and objectives of the strategy. For reference,
some of the applicable duties of each state agency
are listed here along with an indication of some of
their current responsibilities and activities that are
related to anti-gang efforts and might give indication
of how the agency can assist in the strategy.
Office of the Attorney General
As Florida’s chief legal advocate the Attorney
General will take the lead in implementing this
Gang Reduction Strategy. With the assistance of
participating agencies, he will assure the role of
the coordinating council is fulfilled and assist the
regional task forces in planning and carrying out
plans to utilize the strategy.
The Attorney General will pursue enhancements
to existing statutes or when appropriate the
creation of new laws to combat criminal gangs.
The Attorney General’s Office of Statewide
Prosecution will continue its prosecution of gang
members under the criminal racketeering statute.
Charging under these laws not only enables
prosecutors to seek stronger sentences against
gang members, but also hampers the gang’s ability
to generate the money they need to survive. Using
the racketeering charge, authorities target the
gang as an organized criminal enterprise, often
useful when witnesses or victims are unwilling to
testify against gang members.
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34 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
A Statewide Grand Jury was convened in August
2007 to investigate criminal gang activity. Several
indictments have been issued and more are
expected. The jurors also studied various criminal
issues and made recommendations on needed
laws to deter gang activities and punish those
involved in these pursuits. A summary of the
1st Interim Report of the Statewide Grand Jury
on Criminal Gangs and Gang Related Violence is
located in Appendix B of the strategy.
Department of Education
The overarching goal for the Florida Department
of Education is the success of all Florida students.
The Department sets strategic imperatives to develop
and implement standards and measures that
focus on high student achievement. School success
is a strong protective factor contributing to
the prevention of youth engagement in delinquent
and other risk behaviors. A student’s school
success is demonstrated through both academic
achievement and level of attachment to school.
Low academic performance can contribute to a
student’s risk for gang affiliation.1 In addition, a
school’s ability to engage a student can significantly
influence a student’s behavior, including risk for
gang involvement.2 Students who feel connected
to school are less likely to engage in violent or
deviant behavior.3
There is a direct relationship between safe youth,
safe schools, and academic success.4 The Centers
for Disease Control reported, “Violence at school
can inhibit learning, affect school performance,
and even reduce school attendance.”5 The presence
of gangs in schools can disrupt the learning
process for students, and create a climate of
threat, intimidation, and violence. The Department
of Education will work with local education
agencies to develop and/or enhance existing
action plans targeted specifically toward reducing
youth gang involvement. The Department
will utilize the already existing infrastructure of
district contacts for Safety and Security, Safe &
Drug Free Schools, and Dropout Prevention to
disseminate information regarding best practices
for gang awareness training, gang suppression
tactics within schools, gang prevention programs,
and targeted gang intervention strategies. District
and school level action plans should include a four
pronged approach:
Universal Prevention: Strengthen prevention
services and positive school climate to improve
academic and social outcomes for all students.
Strategies/activities include:
• Implement evidence-based substance
abuse and violence prevention programs
that include anti-gang self-concepts, and
teach resiliency skills that empower youth
to make good choices and reject gang
involvement.
• Implement a school-wide bullying prevention
program.
• Provide students with positive role models
who offer nurturing, supportive, and
caring relationships.
• Employ consistent enforcement of policies
and procedures for acceptable student behavior;
discipline with positive supports.
• Teach academic skills, social skill development,
and critical thinking skills.
• Engage parents/guardians by involving them
in actively supervising youth behavior.
• Access business/community resources
and create partnerships with community
organizations that support positive youth
development opportunities such as afterschool
programs.
Campus Gang Suppression/School Level Targeted
Intervention: Partner with law enforcement
to create a school safety team to:
• Assess threat of gangs on campus by
identifying gangs and gang members on
campus and surrounding neighborhoods,
by identifying leaders and leadership
structure, and by assessing how gangs are
affecting campus.
• Establish a neutral school by enforcing
policies and procedures that do not tolerate
gang identifiers, by removing graffiti,
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Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 35
and by other methods that establish a safe
and secure school zone.
• Be consistent with enforcement of gang
suppression strategies.
• Implement effective reporting and documentation
practices.
Individual Level Intervention: Identify students
who are at greater risk for gang recruitment and
gang involvement. Types of intervention techniques
include:
• Establishing protocols for early identification
for risk of gang involvement.
• Employing research-based behavioral
intervention methods.
• Providing focused mentoring relationships.
• Making student assistance programs
available that provide additional supports
for academic, social, and employment
skills development.
Parent and Teacher Training and Education:
Be proactive by empowering parents/families and
school personnel to be aware of gang activities
and gang-involved youth.
• Provide teachers and school personnel
with training that includes gang awareness,
conflict resolution, de-escalating
methods for verbal conflicts, diversity
training, self-defense training, and safe
techniques to intervene in a fight
• Provide parents and families with gang
awareness resources, prevention, and
intervention information
Schools can create an organizational structure
and culture that do not tolerate gang recruitment
or gang activity on their campuses. More significantly,
since children spend most of their time at
school, schools are an excellent avenue to educate
youth and their families about the negative
consequences of gang involvement. Prevention
and intervention settings can be localized within
schools to empower youth to reject gang involvement
as well as gang affiliation.
Department of Children and Families
The Florida Department of Children and Families
(DCF) protects the vulnerable, promotes
strong and economically self-sufficient families,
and advances personal and family recovery and
resiliency. The DCF delivers foster care, adoption,
substance abuse, mental health, homeless and
other services through local and community-based
organizations. The DCF’s services to vulnerable
children and youth positions the Department
and its partners to support the Gang Reduction
Strategy’s prevention/intervention pillar through
normal daily operations.
Even though most Department of Children and
Families services to children and youth have an
overall preventative effect, the agency will focus
its activities on the most vulnerable populations
for gang recruitment – children in foster care and
young adults who have aged out of foster care.
These children and youth come from dysfunctional
families. They do not have strong ties to family
or a trusted adult, have low self-esteem, and are
likely to be a grade-level or more behind in school.
Therefore, the Department of Children and Families,
in cooperation with the Department of Education,
Department of Juvenile Justice and the Office
of Drug Control will enable children in foster care
and young adults who were formerly in foster
care to develop the skills necessary for successful
transition to adulthood and self-sufficiency.
The specific objectives associated with this goal are:
• Ensure youth have an adult who is invested
in his or her well-being, especially
education.
• Increase the number of youth graduating
from high school and post-secondary
education.
F Increase the educational stability of
children in foster care by increasing
the number of foster children remaining
in their same school, when
feasible, or improve the transition
between schools and school districts
when school moves occur.
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36 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
_ Facilitate youth having supports to
enter into, and complete high school
and post-secondary education.
_ Enhance the supports to prevent
school dropout, truancy, and disciplinary
actions.
• Enhance opportunities and supports for
youth to fully participate in all aspects of the
primary and secondary school experience as
well as activities to enhance normalcy.
• Increase the number of youth who obtain
a job that provides a living wage by implementing
“Operation Full Employment”
to employ 100 youth in foster care in the
Department; and challenging statewide
employer/agency collaborations that help
first-time workers enter and advance in
the workplace.
• Continue to support the development
and implementation of a transitional
living or subsidized independent living
housing experience for those youth aging
out of foster care at age 17 who will not
have the option of remaining in a foster
care family home or group home.
• Provide substance abuse and mental
health services for youth and families to
reduce risk factors for gang involvement.
• Assist Florida communities in developing
substance abuse prevention coalitions
that implement strategies to reduce
environmental factors contributing
to gang involvement.
Also, the Department of Children and Families’
Substance Abuse Program Office will collaborate
with the Governor’s Office of Drug Control, Department
of Health, Department of Education, and
Department of Juvenile Justice to administer the
Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey.
Department of Law Enforcement
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement
(FDLE) is committed to providing timely and accurate
criminal justice information to prevent crime,
solve cases, recover property, and to identify
persons with criminal warrants, arrests, and convictions.
The FDLE also provides statistical and
analytical information about crime to policymakers
and the public so that informed decisions can
be made regarding the best way to combat and
prevent crime. The agency is vital in providing an
overall analysis of criminal gang activity and gangrelated
crime in Florida.
Gathering and deciphering actionable intelligence
on criminal gangs is fundamental to successful
suppression operations. As part of a comprehensive
statewide strategy to address Florida’s violent
crime problem, FDLE has partnered with local,
state and federal agencies to develop a proactive
enforcement effort to focus on major violent
crime components which includes an emphasis
on criminal gangs. The FDLE has coordinated
regional summits with sheriffs, police chiefs, state
attorneys, and other partners to discuss current
initiatives and proposals to combat violent and
gang associated crime throughout the state. The
criminal gang component of FDLE’s statewide
violent crime strategy includes the following:
• Investigative/Enforcement Operations
F Establishing regional advisory groups
representing federal, state and local
agencies. The advisory groups will
meet on a regular basis to enhance
existing regional violent crime teams
by exchanging gang specific operational
and investigative information.
F FDLE has also designated a statewide
coordinator for its gang-related
investigative efforts.
• Intelligence/Information Sharing
F Expanding current intelligence
structure and designating intelligence
agents and analysts in each of
FDLE’s seven regions. The unique
responsibilities of these agents and
analysts will be their focused collection
efforts directed by the Office
of Statewide Intelligence to identify
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Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 37
current and emerging trends with a
priority on criminal gangs.
F Increasing the automation of gangrelated
intelligence information
through the criminal gang module
of Florida Intelligence Site (InSite)
which provides law enforcement
agencies throughout the state with a
secure database of active criminal intelligence
and investigative
information regarding
gangs, gang members
and gang-related
crimes. FDLE
will work with regional
analysts to
enter local agency
intelligence information
into InSite
and provide InSite
training to local law
enforcement agencies.
F Establishing analyst teams/pools in
each FDLE region to enhance intelligence
and information sharing.
• Violent Fugitive Apprehension
F Expanding the use of advanced
technology that can aid investigators
in rapidly identifying, locating, and
apprehending violent criminals using
cellular, global positioning satellite
and computer technology.
F Partnering with the United States
Marshal’s Office to enhance violent
fugitive apprehension efforts statewide
with an emphasis on identifying
and apprehending known gang
members with violent criminal
histories involving firearms.
• Training and Awareness Programs
F FDLE will provide specialized training
to both internal members and
local law enforcement on conducting
major gang investigations. The
agency will continue to develop
and deliver basic, intermediate and
advanced violent crime/criminal gang
awareness and training for local law
enforcement agencies.
Department of Juvenile Justice
The Florida Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ)
will provide youth entering their system or in
some cases youth at-risk of entering their system,
effective prevention, intervention, and treatment
services. DJJ is in a position to have considerable
influence on a young person’s need or decision to
become affiliated with a criminal gang. The agency’s
sustained anti-gang efforts and commitment
to prevention will ultimately impact criminal gang
activity statewide.
A Statewide Gang Steering Committee was formed
within the Department with representatives from
all program areas, as well as education, legislative
affairs, general counsel, management information
systems, and staff development and training. An
Action Plan was developed which included:
• A statewide assessment of current gang
identification, intervention, and suppression
practices.
• A statewide assessment of current gang issues
to identify the needs at the local and
regional levels.
• A statewide assessment of the current gang
training provided to Department personnel.
• Identification of gang awareness curriculum
to enhance current training.
• Identification of personnel to serve as:
F Regional Gang Coordinators
F Circuit Gang Liaisons
F Local Gang Representatives
F Certified Gang Trainers
The Steering Committee outlined the following
areas to be addressed for the Gang Free DJJ Initiative
to be successful:
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38 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Prevention: develop a
comprehensive prevention
program in collaboration
with local community officials
and stakeholders to
prevent youth from becoming
involved with gangs.
Education: implement
curriculum that addresses
youth at all levels of gang
involvement within our
system and to provide additional
gang-related training
for all direct care staff.
Identification: partner
with the Florida Department
of Law Enforcement to assist in identifying
youth affiliated with gangs as determined
by statutory criteria through the use
of the already established FDLE gang data
base InSite. Integrate the InSite system with
the Juvenile Justice Information System to
afford uploading of information gathered by
DJJ personnel.
Intervention: provide services to youth under
the supervision of, or in the custody of, the
Department that have been identified as gang
associates, members, or at-risk to become
involved with gangs. DJJ will target evidencebased
programs that are proven effective in
achieving desired outcomes or will include a
research component to interventions that are
not already identified as evidence-based.
Suppression: maintain a “Gang Free DJJ”
environment within all program areas by the
incorporation of a “zero-tolerance” policy for
any and all gang activity.
Legislation: secure funding from the Florida
Legislature to assist in the implementation of
the Gang Free DJJ Initiative.
Beginning with prevention, DJJ is taking a multidisciplinary
approach to combat gangs. DJJ will
be reaching out to local law enforcement agencies,
the leaders of faithbased
programs, community
partners, and the citizens of
Florida for assistance in its
gang reduction efforts.
Working with the most
vulnerable children, strengthening
families, educating
communities, and providing
pro-social activities for youth
are paramount.
The Department of Juvenile
Justice has identified relevant
curriculum and is in the
process of piloting programs
throughout Florida. Youth
who are gang members, associates, or at-risk of
recruitment within DJJ facilities and communities
shall be provided services to assist them in understanding
the dangers of gang involvement and the
tools to disassociate from their gang.
Representatives from DJJ have been working sideby-
side with FDLE to allow staff to enter gang
data that will interface with FDLE’s InSite. This
collaborative effort will be a resource for law enforcement
and will have a tremendous impact on
DJJ’s ability to keep youth safe while in custody.
This database will assist DJJ in identifying youth
that are associated with gangs or are gang members,
and putting the necessary services in place to
meet their needs.
Department of Corrections
The Florida Department of Corrections will secure
all gang members it receives in its prisons, deny
them a base of operations or any chance to network,
and take disciplinary action whenever any of
them seek to continue gang-like behavior. To that
end, in 1992 the Department began efforts in identifying
the levels of gang activity within its inmate/
offender population. Although corrections officials
had not realized a significant number of disruptive
incidents attributed to gang activity, national trends
and an increase in the intake of younger inmates
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Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 39
prompted the formation
of the Security Threat
Group (STG) management
initiative.
The mission of the Security
Threat Intelligence
Unit (STIU) is to maintain
a safe and secure operation
for correctional/probation
officers, visitors,
and inmates/offenders by
identifying, certifying and
monitoring STG activity,
coordinating all intelligence with fellow criminal
justice agencies, and providing community awareness
programs and education. After placement in
the correctional system, the inmates prone to gang
membership tend to mirror gangs in the community.
An exception to the similarity exists in that
prison gangs tend to gravitate and identify along
racial lines, whereas the majority of gangs reported
in Florida are multi-cultural allegiances.
The result is the comprehensive intelligence gathering
program that has given Florida a “blueprint”
of gang activity. The STIU is now recognized as a
national leader in STG identification, assessment
and management. Although the STIU’s primary
focus is on inmates and offenders, the unit is
committed to sharing what they learn with other
criminal justice agencies and the public.
In response to the staggering statistics on the
projected inmate population, the Department
of Corrections has made reducing recidivism a
major focus. It is important to note that each year
approximately 34,000 inmates are released from
the Department of Corrections.6 The STIU will
continue to expand their synchronization with
outside agencies by notifying local law enforcement
when a gang member is released from
prison. By enhanced coordination with local law
enforcement, communities will be able to monitor,
and when appropriate, provide services for
the reintegration, or in some cases, the integration
of a former gang member into a productive, lawabiding
citizen.
To accomplish the task of
offender reintegration the
Department of Corrections
changed its mission
in May 2007 to state, “To
protect the public, ensure
the safety of Department
personnel, and provide
for the proper care and
supervision of all offenders
under our jurisdiction
while assisting, as appropriate,
their re-entry
into society.” Coupled
with this change to the mission statement, the
Department set a goal of bringing the recidivism
rate down from its present rate of 32% to 20% or
less by 2012. The Department envisions that, if
accomplished, the criminal justice system will see
a significant reduction in the demands that repeat
offenders exert and provide safer communities for
the citizens of Florida and those who visit the state.
In addition to the re-entry of offenders, the Department
of Corrections has also been contributing
many hours annually in community service projects
through inmate labor. Aside from contracting with
the Florida Department of Transportation and local
communities to keep roads, highways, and parks
clean, communities and civic organizations can
contract with the Department to aggressively eliminate
gang graffiti and the other visible stains left
by gangs. Graffiti and gang “tagging” are stigmas
on Florida’s communities and without an effective
means to continually remove them gangs continue
to mark their territory on roads, buildings, and
signs. Being vigilant and not tolerating any gang
defacing neighborhoods will amplify the collective
community resistance to gangs.
Office of Drug Control
The Florida Office of Drug Control (ODC), located
in the Executive Office of the Governor, collaborates
with the Office of Planning and Budget to
implement a statewide drug abatement strategy
that utilizes a three-pronged approach of drug
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40 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
abuse prevention, treatment and counter-narcotics
law enforcement efforts to limit the devastation of
substance abuse in Florida’s diverse communities.
The Office of Drug Control has developed powerful
and persuasive prevention campaigns that
the Gang Reduction Strategy can build upon. By
working closely with other state and local agencies
in the development of evidence-based prevention
practices, substantial positive increases in
Florida’s youth rejecting the use of tobacco, illegal
drugs and prescription drug abuse have been
achieved over the past seven years.
In addition to lending expertise on drug abuse
prevention campaigns, the Office of Drug Control
has also developed anti-drug prevention coalitions
in all 67 Florida counties. These associations have
been instrumental in developing and implementing
best practices in their community to address those
substance abuse problems germane to their area.
Leaders in Florida’s neighborhoods reject the idea
that their cities cannot overcome problems relating
to substance abuse. Rather, they have banded
together to create broad based initiatives that have
helped stem the tide of drug abuse in our state.
Gang reduction efforts will therefore seek to mirror
the successes that have been built by the Florida
Office of Drug Control, and leverage the ODC’s
expertise to get these 67 drug prevention coalitions
to adopt a wider mission.
The Office of Drug Control is uniquely positioned
to develop and enhance initiatives for both gang
prevention/intervention and suppression. First,
because gangs derive much strength from narcotics
distribution, continuing ODC’s successes in
decreasing demand for drugs through effective
drug prevention and treatment programs acts to
reduce the potential financial resources available
to gang-connected drug dealers. Simply put, fewer
drug users mean fewer customers, and no business
survives without customers. Secondly, in addition
to their efforts to reduce drug demand, the Office
of Drug Control has also played a critical role in
furthering statewide law enforcement coordination
by assisting with multiple statewide counterdrug
interdiction operations over the past decade.
Department of Highway Safety & Motor
Vehicles
The Florida Department of Highway Safety and
Motor Vehicles (DHSMV), Division of the Florida
Highway Patrol (FHP), aggressively attempts to
reduce criminal activities occurring on Florida’s
highways through detection, prevention, and
enforcement of criminal laws relating to highway
violence, transportation of illegal drugs/contraband,
auto theft, driver license fraud, and other
criminal activities. The work of the Department
promotes a safe driving environment through aggressive
law enforcement, public education, and
safety awareness by reducing the number and severity
of traffic crashes in Florida, preserving and
protecting human life, property, and the rights of
all people in accordance with the constitutions
and laws of the United States and the state of
Florida.
The Florida Highway Patrol, Bureau of Investigations,
is responsible for criminal investigations
involving driver’s license fraud which at times
involves identity theft, motor vehicle theft, title
fraud, cargo theft, and other criminal activities associated
with motor vehicles and drivers. According
to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, statistical
data shows the number of cases of identity
theft and credit card thefts being perpetrated by
gang members has increased dramatically.
There are ten Florida Highway Patrol troops
geographically located throughout the state that
abuse prevention treatment and counter narcotics
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Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 41
participate in multi-agency operations and local
task force operations. One of the local task force
actions that targets violent criminals is Operation
Safe Streets, which is a joint operation between
the Florida Highway Patrol and the Jacksonville
Sheriff’s Office. This program emphasizes high
visibility patrol in geographic areas that are
statistically over-represented in criminal activity.
The FHP participates in the Multi-Agency Gang
Task Force of Southwest Florida and in Palm
Beach County, and troopers also participate in
the Violent Crime Task Force.
An essential part of the FHP is their Contraband
Interdiction Program (CIP), which consists of
specially trained troopers designated as felony
officers and canine handlers. These troopers are
strategically assigned throughout the state to patrol
the interstate system and other highways in
order to interdict drug couriers and other criminal
activity. The CIP assists other federal, state,
and local law enforcement agencies in the detection
and apprehension of drug traffickers and
other criminal offenders that utilize the roadways
of Florida. The CIP is an active participant
in various enforcement operations coordinated
by the Florida Office of Drug Control.
International, and to a smaller extent local
criminal gangs, are aware of Florida’s position as
an entry point for both legal and illegal products
from around the world. The highway system
will not succumb to unabated, widespread use by
criminal gangs. The CIP is equipped with sophisticated
drug detection equipment, such as fiber
optic scopes, drug detection devices, electronic
measuring devices, dual-purpose canines, and
various other tools. The program will be important
to cut off criminal gangs’ ability to traffic
illegal drugs or conduct other illegal activities
across Florida’s vast highway system.
During the period 2003-2007 the FHP seized
5,821 pounds of marijuana, 1,354 pounds of
cocaine, 11 pounds of crack cocaine, 36 pounds
of heroin, 15 pounds of methamphetamine, 9.1
million dollars in U.S. currency and other types
of illegal drugs, paraphernalia, and weapons. The
total value of illegal drugs seized in this period is
25.1 million dollars. These seizures resulted from
7,464 drug cases and 16,209 drug related arrests.
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation,
gangs are heavily involved in and use drug trafficking
as their primary means of financial gain.
Collectively, these efforts can have a significant
impact on the financial resources of many gangs
operating in Florida. The Florida Highway Patrol
remains a key ally on the front lines of interrupting
the flow of drugs and weapons. By providing
enhanced training and through effective cooperation
the FHP is positioned statewide to gather and
share vital intelligence, apprehend gang members
in transit, and keep Florida’s highways safe.
Well Known Existing Prevention
Programs
There are many efforts that have been made
across the nation to fight criminal gangs. Some
have been more successful than others. Some
have worked for a while and then not been so
successful. All have some merit and may provide
guidelines and ideas for the regional task forces
to draw upon. What follows is a brief outline of
some of the more prominent of these programs
and projects.
OJJDP Comprehensive Model
On February 15, 2006, the Department of Justice
launched an initiative to combat gang violence,
under its Project Safe Neighborhoods. The strategy
is twofold. First, prioritize prevention programs
to provide America’s youth and offenders
returning to the community with opportunities
that help them resist gang involvement. Second,
ensure robust enforcement policies when gangrelated
violence does occur.
As reported in the most recent National Youth
Gang Survey, some 760,000 gang members and
24,000 gangs were active in more than 2,900 U.S.
jurisdictions in 2004, representing all 50 states
and all cities with a population over 250,000. As
most gang members join between the ages of 12
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42 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
and 15, prevention is a critical strategy within a
comprehensive response to gangs that includes
law enforcement, prosecution, and re-entry.
The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention (OJJDP) developed a Comprehensive
Gang Model that communities in Florida can use
to build sustained coalitions. The model is based
on five core strategies, with an emphasis on accurate,
data driven assessments of the problem as
being critical for the model to work. The following
program development process will facilitate implementing
the five core strategies, they include:
1. Acknowledgment of the problem. The presence
of a youth gang problem must be recognized
before anything meaningful can be done to address
it. If denial is present, it must be confronted.
2. Assessment of the problem. Those with
responsibility for addressing the problem-representatives
of police, schools, probation, youth agencies,
grass-roots organizations, government, and othersparticipate
in identifying its nature and causes and
recommend appropriate responses. The assessment
results in an understanding of who is involved in
gang crime and where in the community it is concentrated.
This, in conjunction with other data and
information, enables targeting:
• Gang-involved youth
• The most violent gangs
• The area(s) where gang crime most
often occurs
3. Setting goals and objectives. Once the problem
is described, goals and objectives based on the
assessment findings are established. These should
emphasize changes the Steering Committee wants
to bring about in the target area.
4. Relevant services and activities. Rationales
for services, tactics, and policies and procedures
that involve each of the key agencies are articulated
and then implemented for each of the five
core strategies. These activities must be closely
coordinated or integrated to ensure that the work
of collaborating agencies is complementary. Representatives
of those organizations that will have
the most direct contact with the target youth-police,
probation, schools, and youth workers-should
form an Intervention Team and have regular
meetings to share critical information, plan, and
act collaboratively on individual youth and gang
activity in the target area. Thus, the resources of
collaborating agencies are focused on a group of
young people who are involved in gangs.
It is important to remember that while youth
gang members must be held accountable for their
criminal acts, they also must be provided with
services for their academic, economic, and social
needs. Gang members must be encouraged to control
their behavior and to participate in legitimate
mainstream activities. At the same time, external
controls on gang and gang-member behavior must
be exercised. For some gang members, secure confinement
will be necessary. For others, graduated
degrees of community-based supervision, ranging
from continuous sight or electronic supervision to
incarceration, will be appropriate. It is important
that youth understand that they will face consequences
if they do not follow rules, laws, conditions,
or reasonable expectations of the program.
It also may be important to develop a set of
incentives for compliance with the program. Thus,
a range of services and sanctions is required, often
in some interactive way. To be effective in this approach,
an understanding of how a youth’s family,
peers, and others are involved is important.
This approach is very consistent with community
policing, which promotes and supports organizational
strategies to address and reduce the fear of
crime and social disorder through problem-solving
tactics and community-police partnerships. In this
Model, gang unit, community policing, or other
officers are involved in the problem-solving process
at the street level while senior officers work
with the policy makers.
The work of the collaborating agencies is overseen
by a Steering Committee of policy or decision
makers from agencies and organizations that have
an interest in or responsibility for addressing the
community’s gang problem. These representatives
should not only set policy and oversee the
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Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 43
overall direction of the gang program, but they
should take responsibility for spearheading efforts
in their own organizations to remove barriers to
services, and to social and economic opportunities;
develop effective criminal justice, school, and
social agency procedures; and promote policies
that will further the goals of the gang strategy.
5. Evaluation. Results from evaluations have
shown that the Model is effective in lowering
crime rates among youth gang members. Preliminary
results from an evaluation of five communities
chosen as demonstration sites for the Model
show that a combination of intervention, suppression,
and prevention strategies, along with a coordinated
team approach to delivering services, are
effective in having a positive impact on reducing
gang crime. For these reasons, the incorporation
of a strong evaluation component as the initiative
is taking form and throughout the life of the
program is critical to assessing the impact of the
program. Using the five core strategies, the OJJDP
Comprehensive Gang Model supports a multifaceted
approach that includes eight critical elements.
1. Initial and continuous problem assessment
using qualitative and quantitative data
2. Targeting of the area and those populations
of individuals most closely associated
with the problem, as described in
the assessment
3. Mix of the five key strategies: community
mobilization, social intervention,
opportunities provision, suppression, and
organizational change/ development
4. A Steering Committee to oversee and
guide the project
5. A direct contact intervention team that
includes police, probation, outreach staff,
and others
6. A plan for coordinating efforts of and
sharing appropriate information among
those who work with the youth on a
daily basis, the Steering Committee, and
persons within the partner organizations
7. Community capacity building to sustain
the project and address issues that are
long-term in nature
8. Ongoing data collection and analysis to
inform the process and evaluate its impact
These eight elements should be used to focus interventions
toward specific types of criminal gangs
(from sophisticated to loosely organized gangs) and
varying levels of the problem (violent crimes, drug
distribution, robbery or property crimes).
OJJDP’s Gang Reduction Program is designed to
reduce gang activity in targeted neighborhoods by
incorporating a broad spectrum of research-based
interventions to address the range of personal,
family, and community factors that contribute
to juvenile delinquency and gang activity. The
program integrates local, state, and federal resources
to incorporate state-of-the-art practices in
prevention, intervention, and suppression. As part
of this program, OJJDP has developed a Strategic
Planning Tool to help communities assess and address
local youth gang problems.
The Gang Reduction Program is funding pilot sites
in four communities characterized by significant
existing program investment, strong indicators of
citizen involvement, and high rates of crime and
gang activity. The sites are located in:
• East Los Angeles, CA (Mayor’s Office for
the City of Los Angeles).
• Milwaukee, WI (Wisconsin Office of Justice
Assistance).
• North Miami Beach, FL (Florida Governor’s
Office of Drug Control).
• Richmond, VA (Virginia Attorney General’s
Office).
The latest gang-related resources may be found on
OJJDP’s Web site at:
http://ojjdp.ncjrs.gov/programs/antigang.
The PanZOu Project, Inc.
The PanZOu Project, Inc. (Gang Reduction Program)
in North Miami Beach, FL began as a grant funded
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44 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
program through the Office of Juvenile Justice and
Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). The goal of the
grant, awarded to the Florida Governor’s Office of
Drug Control, was to reduce gang membership in
the city of North Miami Beach. Initiated in 2004,
the PanZOu Project is one of four pilot sites in the
nation to receive the $2.5 million grant.
The main goal of the PanZOu Project is to significantly
reduce Haitian youths’ involvement in
gang activity in the North Miami Beach area. The
plan incorporates a broad spectrum of proven,
research-based interventions designed to address
the full range of personal, family, and community
factors that contribute to high levels of juvenile
delinquency and gang activity. This comprehensive
gang model focuses resources in primary and
secondary prevention, intervention, and enforcement
initiatives to stabilize and build pro-social
influences in challenged neighborhoods.
The PanZOu Project is overseen by a committed
group of professionals representing numerous
criminal justice agencies and community and
faith-based organizations. The steering committee
is comprised of the following members:
• Florida Department of Juvenile Justice
• Florida Office of Drug Control
• North Miami Beach Senior High
• Fulford United Methodist Church
• Miami Dade Juvenile Services Dept.
• Mayor, City of North Miami Beach
• North Miami Beach Police Dept.
• City of North Miami Beach Parks and
Recreation
• City of North Miami Beach Neighborhood
Services
• The Miami Coalition
• U.S. Attorney’s Office
• Greater Miami Neighborhoods
• Washington/Allen Park Weed & Seed
• Sant La Haitian Neighborhood Center
• Haitian Community Liaison
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Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 45
• State Attorney’s Office Community Outreach
Division
• State Attorney’s Office Gang Strike Force
• University of Miami
• Communities in Schools
• Children’s Psychiatric Center
• Community Members
The role of the steering committee includes ensuring
that the Gang Reduction Program is implemented
according to the strategic plan identifying
challenges and obstacles to implementing
the program and solutions for overcoming such
challenges. In addition, the steering committee
also provide oversight in decisions regarding the
effectiveness of the programs/strategies implemented,
review and advise on terms of subcontracting
and/or continuation of subcontracting,
and assist in identifying the most effective strategies
for future subcontracts.
Research has proven that the most effective gang
reduction model offers a range of programs that
target the risk and protective factors of a community
at various levels. The following outlines
our best practice prevention, intervention and
enforcement strategies for the Haitian community
in North Miami Beach.
Primary Prevention
• Funded the Victory Park Neighborhood
Resource Center in the target hot spot
• Early Literacy After School Program for
1st – 4th graders
• Midnight Basketball Program with Youth
Empowerment Training
• Haitian Creole Festival and Teen Hip Hop
Summit
• Community workshops on criminal/juvenile
justice and child welfare systems
• Presentations and training to community
agencies, parents, and school
• Secondary Prevention
• Alternative to Suspension Program
• Police Eliminating Truancy Program
• Strengthening Families Parenting Skills
Program
• Intensive Case Management
• D.I.V.A’s (Developing Intelligent Voices of
America) girls group
• Man-UP! young men’s group
• Youth Employment Program
Intervention
• Street Outreach
• Intensive Case management
• Multi-Disciplinary Intervention Team (police,
probation, outreach, schools, service
providers)
• 6 Rounds to Success Boxing Program
• On The Job Training Program
• Individual/Family Therapy
• Enforcement
• Foot Patrol in target area hot spot
• Gang Unit Intelligence and Response Team
• Data tracking
• Gang Enforcement and Prosecution Training
• Multi-disciplinary intervention team members
sharing information and referrals
The PanZOu Project, together with the North
Miami Beach Police Department and the Urban
Institute, mapped gang crime and violence and
determined the neighborhoods in most need of
targeted enforcement as well as social services. By
combining suppression activities and social services
in the hot spot communities, the project reduced
crime significantly in those neighborhoods.
Information regarding the PanZOu Project is available
on line at:
http://www.northmiamibeach.govoffice.com.
MPACT Project
The Miami Partnership for Action in Communities
Task Force Project (MPACT) is an anti-gang program
which was started in 2001 as a demonstraResources
46 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
tion model funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice
and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) and awarded
to the Miami-Dade Schools Police. The funding for
the demonstration project was awarded to four
major cities in the United States: Miami, Cleveland,
Houston, and Pittsburg.
It is based on a previous model used in Chicago
to reduce gang-related criminality among youths
in urban communities. The program follows five
main strategies: suppression, social intervention,
organizational change, opportunities provision and
community mobilization. The project began by
recruiting at-risk youth between the ages of 12-22.
To prevent youth from joining or falling back into
a criminal gang, MPACT Project provides opportunities
that foster positive life choices. It is the
project’s conviction that youth who are given an
opportunity to become productive citizens will select
an honest path and turn away from engaging
in criminal activities. Once the candidates have
been assessed and identified as eligible for programmatic
services, the project offers the targeted
youth a wide range of collaborative programmatic
services. The services include:
• Opportunities in cultivating their minds
• Marketable skills training and development
• Personal development, while raising their
self-esteem and confidence
The personal development component emphasizes
work ethics. Experiences gained in the program
have been shown to facilitate a youth’s successful
transition into the workforce and to positively
cultivate their self-esteem and self-worth. Along
with personal development, the OJT program is
the main intervention strategy of the project. The
OJT component expands the classroom learning
experience by promoting youth participation in
the labor market. The goal of the OJT program is
to provide youths an opportunity to learn and apply
marketable employment skills, which in turn
fosters positive life choices and decreases the likelihood
of criminality. The outcomes from Project
MPACT have demonstrated that when the targeted
youth in the program are given the opportunity
to become socially-contributing and economicallyindependent
members of society, the participants
of the project have chosen to participate in legal
and worthwhile endeavors.
The outcomes so far achieved demonstrate that,
when given the opportunity, the targeted youth
have immense possibilities to become sociallycontributing
and economically-independent members
of society. That is the goal of every participating
member of the project. MPACT is currently
located in the northern end of Dade County and
the long term goal is to spread throughout the
county as the “best practices” model for gang
intervention. One of MPACT Project’s long term
goals is to expand throughout the state of Florida.
Information about MPACT Project is available on
line at: http://www.mpact.dadeschools.net.
AMER-I-CAN Program
Both the Amer-I-Can Program and the Amer-I-Can
Foundation were founded in 1993, by NFL Hall of
Fame running back and motion picture actor, Jim
Brown, who through many years of experience
as a community activist, recognized that in order
to be successful, the attitude of the recipient is
paramount.
The Amer-I-Can Foundation for Social Change
(AFFSC) operates nationally. The Amer-I-Can
Foundation has affected positive change in
the lives of tens of thousands of young people
through life management skills training in
schools, juvenile camps and communities. Additionally,
Amer-I-Can has trained thousands of prison
inmates, police officers, and deputies across
the United States.
Among its most recent accomplishments, Amer-ICan
initiated a gang truce and cease fire agreement
between rival gangs in Los Angeles, resulting in a
significant reduction in gang-related homicides.
Currently Amer-I-Can is running pilot programs
in schools in three Florida counties: Manatee,
Hillsborough and Brevard Counties. They started
in the fall of 2007 and early signs of success are
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Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 47
remarkably good. Students identified for the program
all have problems with school. Facilitators
use a special curriculum to instill positive attitudes
and motivate students to success that has eluded
them. The program is based on a belief that the
failure in personal development and the lack of
self-esteem are the root causes of the aforementioned
problems that plague our society today.
By enlarging the scope of individual lives, introducing
them to self-determination techniques, motivating
them with goals, and showing them how to
improve and achieve success and financial stability,
lives will be saved that now seem to be lost.
The challenge of achieving one’s full potential is at
the center of the program. This life-management
skills training program is designed to empower
participants to take responsibility for their own
self-determination. The program works with
those whom society disregards, contending that it
is never too late to attain a full, meaningful life.
Amer-I-Can is comprised of the Amer-I-Can Program,
which is a 60 to 90 hour, 15 chapter Life
Management Skills curriculum that is designed to
empower individuals to take charge of their lives,
and the Amer-I-Can Foundation for Social Change,
a non-profit organization created to offer social
support and services to underserved populations
and cities.
More information on The Amer-I-Can Program is
available on their website at:
http://www.amer-i-can.org or at 2410 Gibsonwoods
Court NW, Salem, Oregon 97304,
503-391-2685 (phone), 503-391-2685 (fax),
info@amer-i-can.org.
Boys & Girls Clubs of America
The Boys & Girls Clubs of America offers a program
called “Gang Prevention Through Targeted Outreach.”
This program is offered as one approach
to resolving Florida’s ever-growing gang dilemma.
This comprehensive approach uses effective techniques
and strategies that direct at risk young people
to positive alternatives offered by Boys & Girls
Clubs statewide. Through an established referral
network of linkages by local Clubs with courts, police,
other juvenile justice agencies, schools, social
service agencies and community organizations, as
well as through direct outreach efforts, youth will
be recruited and mainstreamed into Club programs
as a diversion from gang activity.
The Targeted Outreach approach acknowledges
that youth most at risk of gang involvement are
not seeking the constructive environment that
Clubs have to offer. Through this initiative,
programs are created to excite and attract targeted
youth. Boys & Girls Clubs will provide positive,
constructive activities that meet both the interests
and needs of targeted youth. The Targeted Outreach
approach is comprised of four components:
1. Community Mobilization
2. Recruitment
3. Mainstreaming and Programming
4. Case Management
Boys & Girls Clubs throughout Florida will work
with key community agencies to complete a community
youth gang assessment. Additionally, they
will assist in mobilizing community leaders along
with Club staff to identify their roles and develop a
community-wide strategy associated with each of
the seven identified Regional Task Forces.
The project will use two primary ways to actively
reach out and recruit youth at-risk of gang
involvement:
• Direct Outreach (Boys & Girls Clubs’
youth development professionals will use
various techniques to get to know young
people outside the Club and encourage
them to join the Club).
• Referral (Community organizations or
agencies can refer youth to any one of the
43 Alliance Member Organizations located
throughout Florida).
Upon recruitment, the targeted youth will be mainstreamed
into regular Club programs in a non stigmatizing
way, while tracking and case management
services are provided for a full-year of participation.
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48 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
A more detailed description of the Boys & Girls Clubs
of America’s programming can be found on their
various website and at program locations throughout
the state. http://www.bgca.org/programs/
More information on The Boys and Girls Clubs of
America is available on their website at:
http://www.bgca.org/programs or by contacting:
Daniel Lyons, Executive Director of the
Florida Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs at: P.O. Box
10334, Tallahassee, Florida 32302-2334 – Office
229-768-3395, Fax 229-768-2330
Phoenix Gang Intervention &
Prevention
The Phoenix Project is an Intervention and Prevention
Program for High-Risk Youth, which is
based in New Jersey but their highly successful
and innovative resources are used nationwide to
address the risk factors underlying gang recruitment
and gang involvement, and provide concrete
tools for both gang intervention programs and
gang prevention programs. It provides evidencebased
treatment and curriculum resources for use
in correctional, probation, parole, detention, diversion,
community, and school programs.
The Phoenix Gang Intervention and Prevention
program is a curriculum-based approach to building
practical self-efficacy for delinquent youth,
including gang members, to learn and practice the
skills needed to resist risk factors, enhance protective
factors, and to construct productive, crimefree
lives. The mission of the Phoenix curriculum
is to provide participants with the knowledge,
skill, and attitudes necessary to change their lives
and stop cycles of gang activity and involvement
in the criminal justice system. The program is
constructed on a foundation of two critical goals:
1. Guide participants to develop practical selfefficacy
in identifying and addressing the
highest risk factors for substance abuse,
violence, gang involvement, and other crimes.
Participants learn to recognize high risk
people, places, things, and situations, and
acquire the necessary competence and confidence
to handle these risks effectively by
repeatedly practicing strategies and skills. Examples
of these strategies and skills include:
problem avoidance, problem-solving, refusal
and escape skills, asking for help from safe
and supportive people, feelings management,
self-monitoring, use of emotional intelligence,
and impulse control.
2. Guide participants to identify and enhance
critical protective factors or assets which can
help them achieve productive, crime-free lives.
Participants learn the fundamentals of character
education, how to build values and behaviors
that will lead to the selection of friends that are
not gang affiliated, having empathy for others,
developing positive goals and personal support
systems, and participating in positive community
organizations and activities.
Criminal gang influence and activities vary by
community and Florida’s prevention approach
must be explicit for the needs of the community.
The Phoenix Curriculum is extensive and can
be specifically tailored to the requirements of a
school or community. The program has a logical
progression and is based on cognitive-behavioral
treatment concepts.
More information regarding the Phoenix Project is
available on their website at:
http://www.gangprograms.com.
Gang Resistance Education and
Training (G.R.E.A.T.) Program
In 1991, the G.R.E.A.T. program was developed
through a combined effort of the U.S. Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF)
and the Phoenix Police Department (PPD). The
program began as an eight-lesson middle school
curriculum that, in 1992, led to the Federal Law
Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) joining
forces with ATF and the PPD to expand the
program nationwide. FLETC provided the support
necessary to train G.R.E.A.T. instructors, and
during that same year the first G.R.E.A.T. Officer
Training was held. In 1998, the program added
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Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 49
additional law enforcement agencies to assist in
administering the program, and Florida’s Orange
County Sheriff’s Office was selected as one of the
law enforcement agencies.
The G.R.E.A.T. program is a school-based, law
enforcement officer-instructed classroom curriculum.
With prevention as its primary objective, the
program is intended as an immunization against
delinquency, youth violence, and gang membership.
G.R.E.A.T. has developed partnerships with
nationally recognized organizations, such as the
Boys & Girls Clubs of America and the National
Association of Police Athletic Leagues. These partnerships
encourage positive relationships among
the community, parents, schools, and law enforcement
officers.
G.R.E.A.T. lessons focus on providing life skills
to students to help them avoid using delinquent
behavior and violence to solve problems. The
G.R.E.A.T. program offers a continuum of components
for students and their families.
The G.R.E.A.T. program consists of four components:
a 13-session middle school curriculum, an
elementary school curriculum, a summer program,
and families training.
Five regional training centers provide training
to sworn law enforcement officers to teach the
G.R.E.A.T. curriculum in elementary and middle
schools across the country.
More information regarding the G.R.E.A.T. program
is available on their website at:
http://www.great-online.org or at: G.R.E.A.T.
Program Training Coordinator, Institute for
Intergovernmental Research, Post Office Box
12729, Tallahassee, FL 32317-2729;Phone: (800)
726-7070;Fax: (850) 386-5356; E-mail:
information@great-online.org.
Project Safe Neighborhoods
Project Safe Neighborhoods is a nationwide
commitment to reduce gun crime in America by
networking existing local programs that target
gun crime and providing these programs with
additional tools necessary to be successful. The
Bush Administration committed over $1.5 billion
to this effort since PSN’s inception in 2001. This
funding is being used to hire new federal and
state prosecutors, support investigators, provide
training, distribute gun lock safety kits, deter
juvenile gun crime, and develop and promote
community outreach efforts as well as to support
other gun violence reduction strategies.
The initiative has been effectively increasing
federal firearm prosecution, and has achieved a
higher rate of successful firearm prosecutions.
Working in conjunction with local law enforcement,
U.S. Attorneys in each of the 94 federal judicial
districts have adapted the PSN strategy to fit
the distinctive gun crime problem in their district.
PSN was not built on a “one size fits all” approach,
and each region or city has developed unique solutions
germane to the needs of their community.
Each district has designated a Project Safe Neighborhood
point of contact in the U.S. Attorney’s
Office to serve as the project coordinator and facilitate
communication. Each U.S. Attorney is also
encouraged to create specialized units within their
office to target the most significant gun crime
problems within their district. These specialized
units have a narrower application of the initiative
and will provide for maximum impact to ensure
the safety of our communities.
Project Safe Neighborhood has five elements
that are required for a vigorous and successful
gun crime reduction; they include partnerships,
strategic planning, training, community outreach
and public awareness, and accountability. These
elements make it possible for increased prosecutions
of violent organizations by aggressively
using federal conspiracy, racketeering, narcotics,
and all other available laws to attack and punish
criminal gangs. Each district also engages in deterrence
and prevention efforts through community
outreach and media campaigns, and ensures that
law enforcement and prosecutors have the training
necessary to make the program work.
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50 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
On September 26–28, 2007, the Department of
Justice (DOJ) sponsored the Project Safe Neighborhoods
Anti-Gang Training pilot in Dover, Delaware.
Approximately 160 law enforcement agents and
criminal justice practitioners attended the training,
which presented the gang expertise of DOJ law
enforcement and criminal justice professionals in
a comprehensive curriculum. Intervention, prevention,
suppression and re-entry strategies were
presented, as well as a briefing on national and
regional gang trends, a community gang problem
assessment, and tips for working with cooperating
witnesses and confidential informants.
Due to the success of the pilot program and
the positive feedback and suggestions received
from attendees, twelve Anti-Gang Training sessions
will be offered in 2008 at various locations
throughout the country. In response to popular
demand, the 2008 training programs will feature
a separate track for gang prevention and intervention
personnel. Visit http://www.iir.com/psnagt/
for more information and to view the courses that
are offered, or download the promotional flier.
More information about Project Safe Neighborhoods
is available on their website at:
http://www.psn.gov.
Boston Gun Project (Operation
Ceasefire)
The Boston Gun Project is a suppression program
that targets youth and adult gang members in a
multiagency effort. It is based on an analysis of
homicide among Boston’s youth (age 21 and under)
that determined that this violence is gang centered,
neighborhood based, and concentrated in a small
number of repeat-offending, gang-involved youth.
The program was initiated in individual neighborhoods
with an explicit communication campaign.
This campaign begins with an orientation for
community groups and is then often carried out
face-to-face with gang members, who are given the
message that gang violence has provoked a zero
tolerance approach and that only an end to gang
violence will stop new gang-focused suppression
activities. The long sentences that offenders receive
are publicized in high-crime neighborhoods. The
program components described above build upon
and integrate the efforts of grassroots organizations
and the faith-based community.
A multiagency, coordinated task force of 45
full-time Boston police officers and others from
outside agencies suppresses youth and adult gang
violence and gun use. Suppression tactics include
“pulling levers” to impose costs on offenders related
to their chronic offending by serving warrants,
enforcing probation restrictions, and deploying
Federal enforcement powers.
Under another component of the program—Operation
Night Light—police and probation officers,
working in teams, make nightly visits to the homes
of youth on probation to ensure that they are complying
with the terms and conditions of their probation.
This helps target tough enforcement efforts
against gang leaders. City “streetworkers” (gang
prevention and mediation specialists) also work in
tandem with police and probation officers, helping
resolve conflicts and linking youth who want help
with needed services.
Simultaneously, the Boston Gun Project seeks to
interrupt the self-sustaining cycle of fear, weapon
use, and violence that appears to be driving youth
violence in the city by reducing use of guns with
a “coerced use-reduction” strategy and reducing
access to firearms. To carry out this deterrence
strategy, gang mediation specialists are deployed
to gang hotspots, which are generally already
known through mapping that shows gang overlap,
intergang conflicts, and gun-related crime. Heightened
surveillance for shootings, assaults, and
other selected incidents triggers deployment of
interagency crisis intervention teams with “swift
and comprehensive attention.” After this “calming”
operation, patrol officers continue to monitor
the hotspot for reoccurrence of gun violence.
The strategy that reduces access to firearms, using
gun-tracing capabilities of the Boston Police
Department and ATF, seeks to disrupt the illicit
gun market. The rationale supporting the supplyreduction
strategy is that disruption of the illicit
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Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 51
market will interrupt fear-driven gun acquisition
and use, thereby reducing gang violence in
Boston. Using Federal firearm laws, the project
“makes the market much less hospitable by strategically
removing the most dangerous gang and
drug offenders from the streets, and stemming the
flow of firearms into Massachusetts”.
Evaluation results are not yet available, although
gun homicide victimization among 14- to 24-yearolds
in Boston is reported to have fallen by twothirds
since the project began. Because homicides
were dropping nationwide among this age group
during the project period, the evaluation will
compare Boston’s homicide trends to trends in a
sample of other cities.
More information regarding the Boston Gun Project
is available on line at: http://www.ncjrs.gov
and also on the U.S. Department of Justice website
at: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/pubs-sum.
Project Exile
Project Exile was an expedited federal prosecutive
effort by the United States Attorney’s Office,
B.A.T.F., U.S. Marshal, and F.B.I., in coordination
with the Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney’s
Office, Richmond Police Department, and the Virginia
State Police to remove armed criminals from
Richmond streets. The project has expanded into
Norfolk\ Newport News, VA, and Rochester, NY.
During the early 1990s gun violence plagued the
city of Richmond, Virginia, and made it one of the
worst five cities when it came to per capita murder
rates. In 1997, before the implementation of
the project, 140 people were murdered, 122 with
firearms. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Richmond
developed and carried out an aggressive, innovative,
and creative approach to reduce violence
called Project Exile.
The project took advantage of stiffer bond rules
and sentencing guidelines in federal court. All felons
with guns, guns/drug cases, and gun/domestic
violence cases in Richmond were federally prosecuted,
without regard to numbers or quantities.
The project was fully integrated and coordinated
with local police, state police, federal investigators
(BATF/FBI), and local and federal prosecutors, to
promptly arrest, incarcerate, detain without bond,
prosecute and sentence violent criminals. In court,
bond was routinely and successfully opposed,
and prosecutors obtained mandatory minimum
sentences. Project Exile quickly, efficiently, and
successfully prosecuted a large number of gun
crimes, with a significant long-term impact on
criminal behavior.
Prosecuting violent criminals was one of the
components of the initiative, but a major factor
was a media outreach effort to get the message to
criminals about the possession of illegal firearms.
To effectively transmit this message a community
coalition was built that consisted of business, community
and church leaders. A media effort was
created that sent the clear message: “An illegal gun
will get you five years in federal prison.” This motto
and the request for citizens to anonymously report
illegal gun possession was placed on billboards, city
buses, television commercials, and on over 15,000
business cards that were distributed on the street
by local police. The outreach program was successful
by increasing citizen reports about illegal gun
possession and also energized the community to
support police efforts.
The city of Richmond identified seven obstacles
that were encountered during their implementation
of Project Exile. Each obstacle was eventually overcome
and lead to the realization of the initiative.
1. Obtaining the commitment of investigative
agencies to bring the cases forward.
2. Coordinating with local police to insure immediate
intake of cases from the street level.
3. Simplifying and streamlining the incident/
case reporting system to bring charges
quickly.
4. Avoiding “turf consciousness” among the various
police and prosecutorial levels.
5. To ensure smooth operations there must be
coordination between the court, U.S. Marshall,
and prison personnel.
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52 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
6. Establishing an active citizen organization to
give support to the prosecution effort, primarily
through creation and support of the media
outreach effort.
7. Establishing a cooperative working relationship
with the news media to insure that the
cases are covered and word is further passed
that the prosecution program is in effect.
Several innovative policing practices were formed
during the 1990s, and it is believed that these
practices assisted in producing fewer violent
crimes in our major metropolitan cities. Project
Exile was a new policing initiative that crafted a
clear message and strict adherence to the federal
gun laws. Richmond’s firearm homicide rate
steadily declined each year after the project was
initiated.11 Originators of the project insist that
the positive gains made in Richmond can be duplicated
in other cities. The key to the replication
is having a city build a coalition with the will to
implement the plan.
More information regarding Project Exile is available
on the Virginians Against Handgun Violence
website at: http://www.vahv.org/Exile or
at: P.O. Box 271, Norfolk, Virginia 23242-0462;
Phone: (757) 623-7918; Fax: (757) 622-3953; Email:
info@vahv.org.
Chicago Gang Intervention Strategy
At the start of 2003, the citizens of Chicago were
experiencing an escalation in narcotics-related
gang homicides. Many of the criminal gangs in
Chicago had become highly sophisticated and
well-organized. The Mayor’s Office and the Chicago
Police Department realized that their response
to gang activity had to counter the increased sophistication
of the criminal gangs that they were
confronting.
A key component of the city’s new strategy to
combat criminal gangs was the use of targeted
enforcement strategies that deployed police officers
to locations where gang crime was occurring.
Chicago was able to move officers into locations
where there was a high density of gang-related
crime by creating an intelligence center that
would be able to predict where violent gang activities
were more likely to occur next. The creation
of the Deployment Operations Center (DOC)
produced a unique blend of accountability and
intelligence-led policing that produced substantial
declines in the rate of violent crimes.
Weekly meetings are held at the DOC with the
city’s five Area Chiefs and their district Commanders.
The predictive analysis, combined with
street level gang intelligence that is provided by
the Department’s tactical response units, special
operations, and area narcotics enforcement teams,
provides District Commanders with the ability of
directing effective deployment assignments to officers
in the field.
The intervention strategy in Chicago is viewed
as an effective way of staying one step ahead of
criminal gangs and defuses their ability to buy
and sell illegal drugs and commit acts of violence
against members of the community. By the end of
2004, the city of Chicago experienced a twentyfive
percent reduction in homicides, 1,100 fewer
intentional shootings, and more than 10,000 guns
were recovered in the city.12
Other Programs and Resources of
Interest
National Youth Gang Center
The National Youth Gang Center (NYGC) is a
valuable resource in supporting gang prevention
and intervention programs. The center is located
in Tallahassee and has been supporting practitioners,
researchers, and policy makers, since 1995
with statistics, publications, training and technical
assistance on youth gangs. Its goal is to deliver
assistance that can be translated easily into policy
and practice. The NYGC website features a great
number of gang-specific publications that are fully
downloadable, a database of gang legislation that
is searchable by state or by topic and an interactive
list called GANGINFO that provides practitioners
with a forum for sharing ideas.
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Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 53
More information is available online at:
http://www.iir.com/nygc
Helping America’s Youth
Helping America’s Youth is a nationwide effort to
raise awareness about the challenges facing our
youth, and to motivate adults to connect with
youth in three key areas: family, school, and the
community. All of the youth-serving agencies in
federal government worked together to establish
a single set of criteria for rating the performance
of youth-serving programs. The focus of this
effort was on program designs that had demonstrated
results through evaluation. More than
180 programs that address a wide range of risk
factors were identified and have been included in
a searchable database on the Community Guide to
Helping America’s Youth website.
For each program, the database includes information
on the program design, the risk factors that
are addressed, the target group, the evaluation
design, outcomes, references for further information,
and a point of contact. The database can be
used to identify programs for potential replication.
However, it can also be used as a point of comparison
for existing local programs that are working
to accomplish the same ends. The Helping
America’s Youth website can also be a good source
for community leaders to search and locate federal
resources already available in their neighborhood.
More information is available online at:
http://www.helpingamericasyouth.gov
Florida Safe and Drug Free Schools
Within the Florida Department of Education
Office of Safe Schools, Safe & Drug Free Schools
serves to promote and support safe learning environments
by addressing issues of student safety
and academic success on state, district, and school
levels. Safe & Drug-Free Schools is a federally
funded project through Title IV, Part A of the No
Child Left Behind Act of 2001. It is a cornerstone
of youth drug and violence prevention and intervention
efforts within the State of Florida.
Through Safe & Drug-Free Schools, the Department
of Education assists school districts in their
substance abuse and violence prevention efforts
by supporting school-related evidence-based
programs and strategies. Safe & Drug-Free funds
also support services and activities, such as K-12
science-validated prevention curricula, school
climate approaches, conflict resolution, social skill
development, student assistance programs, peer
resistance training, parent programs, and peer
mediation programs. The office trains teachers
and other program implementers/coordinators
throughout the state in drug and violence prevention
science. The website contains information on
evidence-based programs and practices, Florida
best practices, and hot topics such as bullying prevention,
internet safety, and social marketing. The
website also includes an extensive list of links to
other prevention resources.
More information is available online at:
http://www.fldoe.org/safeschools/sdfs.asp
The Search Institute
The Search Institute is an independent nonprofit
organization whose mission is to provide leadership,
knowledge, and resources to promote
healthy children, youth, and communities. To
accomplish this mission, the institute generates
and communicates new knowledge, and brings
together community, state, and national leaders.
At the heart of the institute’s work is the framework
of 40 Developmental Assets, which are
positive experiences and personal qualities that
young people need to grow up healthy, caring, and
responsible. Search Institute’s 40 Developmental
Assets are concrete, common sense, positive experiences
and qualities essential to raising successful
young people. These assets have the power during
critical adolescent years to influence choices
young people make and help them become caring,
responsible adults.
More information is available online at:
http://www.search-institute.org/assets/
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54 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
U.S. Office of Special Education Programs
Technical Assistance Center on Positive
Behavioral Interventions and Supports
The OSEP-funded National Technical Assistance
Center on Positive Behavior and Intervention
Supports was established to address the behavioral
and discipline systems needed for successful
learning and social development of students.
The Center provides capacity-building information
and technical support about behavioral systems
to assist states and districts in the design of
effective schools.
More information is available online at:
http://www.pbis.org/main.htm
Prevention Institute
Prevention Institute is a non-profit national center
dedicated to improving community health and
well-being by building momentum for effective
primary prevention. Primary prevention means
taking action to build resilience and to prevent
problems before they occur. The Institute’s work
is characterized by a strong commitment to community
participation and promotion of equitable
health outcomes among all social and economic
groups. Since its founding in 1997, the organization
has focused on injury and violence prevention,
traffic safety, health disparities, nutrition and
physical activity, and youth development
More information is available online at:
http://www.preventioninstitute.org/home
PeaceBuilders®
PeaceBuilders is the research-validated violence
prevention youth program approved for the federally
funded Safe and Drug-Free Schools Act. It is a
comprehensive program launched in organizations
that shifts the entire climate to a peaceful, productive
and safe place for children, teenagers, parents,
staff and faculty.
More information is available online at:
http://www.peacebuilders.com
Keeping Youth Mentally Healthy and
Drug-Free
This site is provided by the U.S. Substance Abuse
and Mental Health Administrations Family guide.
It provides information and resources on such topics
as:
• Talk with Your Child
• Get Involved
• Set Rules
• Be a Good Role Model
• Teach Kids to Choose Friends Wisely
• Monitor Your Child’s Activities
More information is available online at:
http://www.family.samhsa.gov/default.aspx
National Youth Violence Prevention
Resource Center
A federal resource for communities working to
prevent violence committed by and against young
people. The mission of the NYVPRC is to provide
key leaders in communities—city managers/
leaders and community leaders—with dynamic
resources to help support their efforts to plan,
develop, implement, and evaluate effective youth
violence prevention efforts.
More information is available online at:
http://www.safeyouth.org/scripts/topics/ school.asp
Multijurisdictional Counterdrug Task
Force Training & the Southeastern
Public Safety Institute of St.
Petersburg College
The Multijurisdictional Counterdrug Task Force
Training (MCTFT) program provides unique
tuition-free, courses covering all aspects of counterdrug
law enforcement and training support for
community anti-drug coalitions. The program is a
federally funded partnership through the Department
of Defense between the Florida National
Guard and St. Petersburg College. The program is
nationally responsive and is located at the SouthResources
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 55
eastern Public Safety Institute (SEPSI) of St. Petersburg
College. SEPSI is a state-of-the-art facility
with a wide variety of special features to enhance
in service training.
In addition to the MCTFT training, St. Petersburg
College also offers a gang-related investigations
program. St. Petersburg College is the first and
only college in the nation to offer a gang-related
investigations specialty track as part of the Public
Safety Degree Program. Staff from the college
conducted a national needs assessment to identify
key course topics that would enable public safety
professionals and students to understand and deal
effectively with domestic and international criminal
gang issues and investigations. These courses
were designed and are taught by leading national
experts in criminal gangs.
Eight courses were developed by St. Petersburg College’s
curriculum planners in response to a thorough
review of existing literature and current research.
These courses include: Introduction to Gangs and
Crime, Intervention and Prosecution Techniques for
Gangs, Gangs and Terrorism, Contemporary Topics
in Gang Investigations, The Incarceration Connection,
Central America Gang Assessment, Technology
and Gang Intelligence Sharing, and Practicum. Additionally,
there are five upper division gang classes
under Gangs Enforcement Management to include:
International Gang Awareness for Public Safety
Administrators, Geographic Information Systems
in Gang Enforcement, Forecasting Trends in Gang
Enforcement, Political and Socio-Economic Impact of
Gangs, and Management of Tactical Gang Units and
High Risk Operations.
More information is available online at:
http://www.mctft.com or
http://www.spcollege.edu
Weed and Seed
Weed and Seed, a community-based strategy
sponsored by the U.S. Department of Justice
(DOJ), aims to prevent, control, and reduce violent
crime, drug abuse, and gang activity in designated
high-crime neighborhoods across the country.
The strategy involves a two-pronged approach:
law enforcement agencies and prosecutors cooperate
in ‘weeding out’ violent criminals and drug
abusers and public agencies and community-based
private organizations collaborate to ‘seed’ muchneeded
human services, including prevention,
intervention, treatment, and neighborhood restoration
programs.
A community-oriented policing component
bridges the weeding and seeding elements. The
strategy is a multi-level plan that includes four
basic components: 1) law enforcement, 2) community
policing, 3) prevention, intervention, and
treatment, and 4) neighborhood restoration. Four
fundamental principles underline the Weed and
Seed strategy: collaboration, coordination, community
participation, and leveraging of resources.
More than 250 Weed and Seed sites exist, ranging
in size from several neighborhood blocks to several
square miles, with populations ranging from
3,000 to 50,000.
More information is available online at:
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ccdo/ws/welcome
Florida Community Prevention
Coalition Directory
Prevention is the linchpin of the strategy. To create
a strong anti-gang prevention effort there needs
to be wide-ranging support in the community to
continually reinforce the message to our youth
that gangs offer no viable future. Over the years
Florida’s prevention experts have attained substantial
positive gains by developing the fortitude in our
youth to reject tobacco and drug use. Prevention
campaigns have developed highly effective messages
to raise awareness and also educate youth,
parent, teachers, and the community about the
repercussions of many dangerous behaviors.
Building on the success Florida has attained in increasing
the number of youth who reject tobacco
and drug use as a legitimate way of life, the strategy
will build upon the already strong prevention
effort in the state. A good source of information
on community prevention coalitions is the Florida
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56 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Office of Drug Control’s Community Prevention
Coalition Directory. The directory is located on
the Florida Alcohol and Drug Abuse Association’s
website, and is a good first step for community’s
to assess and expand prevention efforts in their
area to include gang reduction.
More information is available online at: http://
www.fadaa.org/fcc/documents/Coalition_Directory.
pdf
The Center for the Study and
Prevention of Violence
The Center for the Study and Prevention of
Violence (CSPV), a research program of the
Institute of Behavioral Science (IBS) at the University
of Colorado at Boulder, was founded in
1992 to provide informed assistance to groups
committed to understanding and preventing
violence, particularly adolescent violence. CSPV
works from a multi-disciplinary platform on the
subject of violence and facilitates the building
of bridges between the research community and
the practitioners and policy makers.
CSPV has a threefold mission. First, collect research
literature and resources on the causes and
prevention of violence, and provide direct information
services to the public by offering topical
searches on customized databases. Second, CSPV
offers technical assistance for the evaluation and
development of violence prevention programs.
Third, CSPV maintains a basic research component
through data analysis and other projects on
the causes of violence and the effectiveness of
prevention and intervention programs.
More information is available online at:
http://www.colorado.edu/cspv/
National Gang Intelligence Center
The National Gang Intelligence Center (NGIC)
is a multi-agency effort that integrates the gang
intelligence assets of federal, state, and local
law enforcement entities. The mission of the
NGIC is to support law enforcement agencies
through timely and accurate information sharing
and tactical analysis of federal, state, and
local law enforcement intelligence. The NGIC
is focused on the growth, migration, criminal
activity, and association of criminal gangs. Their
intelligence assessments, intelligence bulletins,
and joint agency intelligence products serve as a
centralized intelligence resource for gang information
and analytical support.
NGIC is staffed and supported by a number
of partnering agencies including the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives,
Bureau of Prisons, Department of Defense, Department
of Justice, Department of Homeland
Security, Department of Housing and Urban Development,
Department of State, Drug Enforcement
Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement,
National Drug Intelligence Center, and United
States Marshals Service.
More information is available online at:
http://www.usdoj.gov/criminal/ngic
Florida Gang Investigators Association
The Florida Gang Investigators Association (FGIA)
was formed in 1993 by criminal justice professionals
who wanted to promote and facilitate
the exchange of criminal gang intelligence and
information among criminal justice professionals.
The FGIA provides leadership in developing and
recommending policies and strategies to prevent,
control and eliminate gang crime, administer professional
training, as well as assist criminal justice
professionals and the public at large in identifying
and tracking gangs, gang members and gang crime
throughout Florida.
FGIA provides a professional organization for
both employees serving within the criminal
justice system, as well as the public at large that
share a common goal of preventing, intervening,
and suppressing gang activity throughout Florida.
This mission is carried out by the organization
through enhanced interagency intelligence
exchange, legislative activism, citizen awareness,
Resources
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 57
innovative anti-gang awareness, operational
tactics, and by providing professional education
and training.
More information is available online at:
http://www.fgia.com
End Notes
1 Howell, J. Youth Gang: An Overview. Juvenile
Justice Bulletin August 1998
2 Ibid.
3 Blum, R. School Connectedness: Improving the
Lives of Students, Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins
Bloomberg School of Public Health 2005
4 Modzeleski, William. US Department of Education:
Safe and Drug-Free Schools Program,
American School Health Association 2003
5 Centers for Disease Control, School Health
Guidelines to Prevent Unintended Injuries and
Violence, 2001
6 Florida Department of Corrections, 2005-2006
Annual Report
7 United States Conference of Mayors, Gang
Intervention & Gang Violence Prevention, published
2006
Resources
58 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 59
874.01. Short title
This chapter may be cited as the “Criminal Street
Gang Prevention Act of 1996.”
874.02. Legislative findings and
intent
(1) The Legislature finds that it is the right
of every person, regardless of race, color,
creed, religion, national origin, sex, age,
sexual orientation, or handicap, to be secure
and protected from fear, intimidation, and
physical harm caused by the activities of
criminal street gangs and their members. It
is not the intent of this chapter to interfere
with the exercise of the constitutionally
protected rights of freedom of expression
and association. The Legislature recognizes
the constitutional right of every citizen to
harbor and express beliefs on any lawful
subject whatsoever, to lawfully associate
with others who share similar beliefs, to
petition lawfully constituted authority for
a redress of perceived grievances, and to
participate in the electoral process.
(2) The Legislature finds, however, that the
state is facing a mounting crisis caused
by criminal street gangs whose members
threaten and terrorize peaceful citizens and
commit a multitude of crimes. These criminal
street gang activities, both individually
and collectively, present a clear and present
danger. The state has a compelling interest
in preventing criminal street gang activity,
and the Legislature finds that the provisions
of this act are necessary to maintain the
public order and safety.
(3) It is the intent of the Legislature to eradicate
the terror created by criminal street gangs
and their members by providing enhanced
penalties and by eliminating the patterns,
Appendix A: Chapter 874 Street Terrorism
Enforcement and Prevention
profits, proceeds, instrumentalities, and property
facilitating criminal street gang activity,
including criminal street gang recruitment.
874.03. Definitions
As used in this chapter:
(1) “Criminal street gang” means a formal or
informal ongoing organization, association,
or group that has as one of its primary
activities the commission of criminal or
delinquent acts, and that consists of three or
more persons who have a common name or
common identifying signs, colors, or symbols
and have two or more members who,
individually or collectively, engage in or
have engaged in a pattern of criminal street
gang activity.
(2) “Criminal street gang member” is a person
who is a member of a criminal street gang
as defined in subsection (1) and who meets
two or more of the following criteria:
(a) Admits to criminal street gang
membership.
(b) Is identified as a criminal street gang
member by a parent or guardian.
(c) Is identified as a criminal street
gang member by a documented reliable
informant.
(d) Resides in or frequents a particular
criminal street gang’s area and
adopts their style of dress, their
use of hand signs, or their tattoos,
and associates with known criminal
street gang members.
(e) Is identified as a criminal street
gang member by an informant of
previously untested reliability and
such identification is corroborated
by independent information.
Appendix A: Chapter 874 Street Terrorism Enforcement and Prevention
60 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
(f) Has been arrested more than once
in the company of identified criminal
street gang members for offenses
which are consistent with usual
criminal street gang activity.
(g) Is identified as a criminal street gang
member by physical evidence such as
photographs or other documentation.
(h) Has been stopped in the company of
known criminal street gang members
four or more times.
(3) “Pattern of criminal street gang activity”
means the commission or attempted commission
of, or solicitation or conspiracy to
commit, two or more felony or three or
more misdemeanor offenses, or one felony
and two misdemeanor offenses, or the
comparable number of delinquent acts or
violations of law which would be felonies or
misdemeanors if committed by an adult, on
separate occasions within a 3-year period.
(4) For purposes of law enforcement identification
and tracking only:
(a) “Criminal street gang associate” means a
person who:
1. Admits to criminal street gang association;
or
2. Meets any single defining criterion
for criminal street gang membership
described in subsection (2).
(b) “Gang-related incident” means an incident
that, upon investigation, meets any
of the following conditions:
1. The participants are identified as
criminal street gang members or
criminal street gang associates, acting,
individually or collectively, to further
any criminal purpose of the gang;
2. A reliable informant identifies an
incident as criminal street gang
activity; or
3. An informant of previously untested
reliability identifies an incident as criminal
street gang activity and it is corroborated
by independent information.
874.04. Criminal street gang
activity; enhanced penalties
Upon a finding by the court at sentencing that the
defendant committed the charged offense for the
purpose of benefiting, promoting, or furthering
the interests of a criminal street gang, the penalty
for any felony or misdemeanor, or any delinquent
act or violation of law which would be a felony or
misdemeanor if committed by an adult, may be
enhanced. Each of the findings required as a basis
for such sentence shall be found by a preponderance
of the evidence. The enhancement will be as
follows:
(1) (a) A misdemeanor of the second degree
may be punished as if it were a misdemeanor
of the first degree.
(b) A misdemeanor of the first degree
may be punished as if it were a felony of
the third degree. For purposes of sentencing
under chapter 921 and determining
incentive gain-time eligibility under
chapter 944, such offense is ranked in
level 1 of the offense severity ranking
chart. The criminal street gang multiplier
in s. 921.0024 does not apply to misdemeanors
enhanced under this paragraph.
(2) (a) A felony of the third degree may be
punished as if it were a felony of the
second degree.
(b) A felony of the second degree may
be punished as if it were a felony of the
first degree.
(c) A felony of the first degree may
be punished as if it were a life felony.
For purposes of sentencing under chapter 921
and determining incentive gain-time eligibility
under chapter 944, such felony offense is ranked
as provided in s. 921.0022 or s. 921.0023, and
without regard to the penalty enhancement in
this subsection. For purposes of this section, penalty
enhancement affects the applicable statutory
maximum penalty only.
Appendix A: Chapter 874 Street Terrorism Enforcement and Prevention
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 61
874.05. Causing, encouraging,
soliciting, or recruiting criminal
street gang membership
(1) A person who intentionally causes, encourages,
solicits, or recruits another person to
join a criminal street gang that requires as
a condition of membership or continued
membership the commission of any crime
commits a felony of the third degree, punishable
as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083,
or s. 775.084.
(2) Upon a second or subsequent offense, the person
commits a felony of the second degree,
punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s.
775.083, or s. 775.084.
874.06. Civil cause of action
A person or organization establishing, by clear
and convincing evidence, coercion, intimidation,
threats, or other harm to that person or organization
in violation of this chapter has a civil cause
of action for treble damages, an injunction, or any
other appropriate relief in law or equity. Upon
prevailing, the plaintiff may recover reasonable
attorney’s fees and costs.
874.08. Profits, proceeds, and
instrumentalities of criminal
street gangs or criminal street
gang recruitment; forfeiture
All profits, proceeds, and instrumentalities of
criminal street gang activity and all property used
or intended or attempted to be used to facilitate
the criminal activity of any criminal street gang
or of any criminal street gang member; and all
profits, proceeds, and instrumentalities of criminal
street gang recruitment and all property used
or intended or attempted to be used to facilitate
criminal street gang recruitment are subject to seizure
and forfeiture under the Florida Contraband
Forfeiture Act, s. 932.704.
874.09. Crime data information
The Department of Law Enforcement may develop
and manage a statewide criminal street gang
database to facilitate the exchange of information
pursuant to the intent and purpose of this chapter.
CS/CS/HB 43 – Criminal Activity/
Criminal Gangs: Effective October
1, 2008
During the 2008 Legislative Session, the Legislature
passed CS/CS/HB 43- which will amend
Chapter 874, Street Terrorism Enforcement and
Prevention, (Appendix A), upon the signature of
the Governor. HB 43 can be located at:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2008/
House/bills/billtext/pdf/h004305er.pdf
Key provisions of the bill include:
I. Enhanced tools for law enforcement
and prosecutors
Gang Kingpin Statute - Makes it a first degree
felony punishable by Life for initiating, organizing,
planning, financing, directing, managing, or
supervising criminal gang-related activity
Important provision in dismantling gangs; this
language mirrors the statute for an organizer dealing
in stolen property.
Definitions for criminal gang members - The
bill streamlines definition of criminal gang member
and criminal gang-related activity in Ch. 874,
Florida Statutes; leaves it up to a jury rather than
a judge which conforms with recent US Supreme
Court case law.
Prohibits use of electronic communications
to further criminal interests of a gang - Updates
our statutes to reflect new technology being
utilized by gang members to recruit new members
and facilitate gang activity
Appendix A: Chapter 874 Street Terrorism Enforcement and Prevention
62 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Prohibits the distribution of videos and still
photos for the purpose of promoting a gang
by showing illegal gang activity
Prohibits use of unlawfully issued identification
for the purpose of benefiting, promoting,
or furthering the interests of a criminal gang
(3rd degree felony)
Adds gangs to jurisdiction of the Violent
Crime Drug Control Council - Allows for law
enforcement agencies to apply for additional
funds for their long-term investigations into gang
activities in their communities (no grant monies
were provided in the 2008-2009 budget)
Makes it a third degree felony to intentionally
cause, encourage, solicit or recruit a person to
become a criminal gang member that requires
as a condition of membership or continued
membership the commission of any crime.
Such offense is a second-degree felony if it is
a second or subsequent offense.
RICO predicates - Adds new offenses to definition
of RICO predicate incidents: Fleeing to elude;
Accessory after the fact; Sexual battery (for gang
“sex-ins”); Broadening the burglary from “smash
and grab” to all burglaries under 810; Registration
Violation; Criminal mischief (i.e., graffiti)
Florida Racketeering law has specifically identified
street gangs as a racketeering enterprise for years,
but many of the most commonly committed gang
crimes are not current predicates.
Gang Felons in possession of firearms - Makes
it a felony of the first degree punishable by life for
a convicted felon 874 offender to be in possession
of a firearm
Bullet-proof vest provision - Makes it a 3rd
degree felony to possess a bullet-proof vest while
engaging in a criminal act such as aggravated assault,
robbery, kidnapping, criminal gang-related
offenses and drug-trafficking offenses
II. Witness Protection
Witness Tampering - Strengthens witness
protection laws by using the underlying criminal
act as the starting benchmark for penalties for
tampering and harassment.
Example: Defendant who is charged with strongarm
robbery, a second-degree felony, will now face
a new second-degree felony for witness harassment
or a new first-degree felony for witness tampering
instead of current provisions of law which
would provide only a third degree felony.
Pre-Trial Bond - Requires that gang members are
held in custody until their first appearance the
next morning to give the State an opportunity
to argue for reasonable bond conditions to close
the revolving door of pre-trial bond—which will
provide additional protections for witnesses.
Example: DUI offender must remain in jail for 8
hours; domestic violence offender must be held
until first appearance.
III. Law Enforcement Intelligence
Gang Registration - Requires adjudicated gang
offenders to identify themselves as such when
they register with law enforcement—failure to
register is a 3rd degree felony
Assists with criminal intelligence; a law enforcement
officer safety issue
Information sharing - Authorizes FDLE to notify
law enforcement agencies that criminal gang
member reports must be entered into statewide
criminal database
Improves criminal intelligence capabilities for law
enforcement
Appendix A: Chapter 874 Street Terrorism Enforcement and Prevention
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 63
IV. Protecting Neighborhoods
Public Nuisance - Defines gangs or their members
engaged in criminal gang activity to be a
public nuisance and allows for civil injunctions to
be sought to restrain nuisance behavior
Allows for arrests of individual violators who
violate a court-ordered civil gang injunction (very
similar to domestic violence injunctions that have
existed for years)
Designates people at the place-- not the place itself
; similar provisions have been enacted and used
effectively in California and Texas
Gang offenders - Prohibits probationers or community
controllees who are gang members from
knowingly associating with other criminal gang
members or criminal gang associates, except as
authorized by law enforcement or prosecutors for
the purpose of aiding in criminal gang investigations
Example: If you’re a SUR-13 gang member on probation
for auto-theft, you would be violating your
probation to attend a SUR-13 gang meeting.
V. Other
Creates a coordinating council on gang reduction
strategies within the Department of Legal
Affairs.
Appendix A: Chapter 874 Street Terrorism Enforcement and Prevention
64 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 65
Appendix B: First Interim Report of the
Statewide Grand Jury on Criminal Gangs
and Gang-Related Violence
EIGHTEENTH STATEWIDE GRAND JURY
Case No. SC 07-1128
FIRST INTERIM REPORT OF THE STATEWIDE GRAND
JURY
CRIMINAL GANGS AND
GANG-RELATED VIOLENCE
December 2007
West Palm Beach, Florida
Appendix B: First Interim Report of the Statewide Grand Jury on Criminal Gangs and Gang Related Violence
66 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Grand Jury Summary
We, the members of the Eighteenth Statewide
Grand Jury, find that gangs and gang violence
are on the rise in Florida, as in many parts of the
country. We see the increase not only in the rising
number of gangs and their membership, but
also in the number of violent crimes committed
by gangs.
We also find that though some progress has been
made, Florida’s overall efforts have fallen short.
This shortcoming is particularly striking in the lack
of resources dedicated to law enforcement and
prosecutors fighting gangs. In addition, we find
that Florida’s criminal laws must be revised and
re-written to ensure the intent of the legislature can
be carried out to “eradicate the terror created by
criminal street gangs and their members.” 1
As a result of our findings, we make several
recommendations to address the most immediate
issues: 1) strengthen our criminal statutes and
eliminate loopholes, 2) make modest yet critical
increases in funding to law enforcement investigators
and prosecutors, and 3) increase communication
and the sharing of information within the
law enforcement community.
In addition to reviewing testimony for this Interim
Report, we received testimony that provided the
basis for us to return a True Bill for Racketeering
and Conspiracy to Commit Racketeering against
eleven defendants who are members of a gang
based in Palm Beach County. The testimony about
their gang reinforced the testimony we had previously
received about the gang problem in Florida.
End Notes
1 Section 874.02(3), Florida Statutes.
Recommendations
I. Funding and commitments must be made
for law enforcement and State Attorneys
that allow for experienced and trained gang
investigators and prosecutors who implement
an investigator-prosecutor approach
within dedicated gang units. Gang prosecutors,
investigators, school resource officers,
on-site school juvenile probation officers,
and analysts must be funded in every
circuit. Additionally, training and funding
should be allocated to support the creation
of specialized judicial divisions to focus on
gang prosecutions much like specialized
divisions have been created for domestic
violence, juvenile and career criminals.
II. Florida Statute Chapter 874 must be redrafted
and modified in order for Prosecutors to
enhance a defendant’s sentence.
i. A “[c]riminal street gang member” under
statute 874.03(2) must be redrafted
so that it is more clear and usable by
prosecutors. It is recommended that the
statute be redrafted to state as follows:
(2) “Criminal street gang member” is a
person who is a member of a criminal
street gang as defined in subsection
(1) and who meets two or more
of the following criteria:
(a) Admits to gang membership.
(b) Is identified as a criminal gang
member by parent or guardian.
(c) Is identified as a criminal gang
member by a documented reliable
informant.
(d) Adopts the style of dress of
known criminal gang members.
(e) Adopts use of hand signs of
known criminal gang members.
(f) Wears tattoos of known criminal
gang members.
(g) Associates with known criminal
gang members.
(h) Is identified as a criminal gang
member by physical evidence.
Appendix B: First Interim Report of the Statewide Grand Jury on Criminal Gangs and Gang Related Violence
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 67
ii. Under chapter 874.03(2), a paragraph
should be written which states that it
is the intent of the legislature to allow
a single piece of evidence or a single
incident to prove more than one criteria.
iii. “Pattern of gang activity” is defined
under statute 874.03(3) and is required
under statute 874.03(1) in defining a
“criminal street gang.” Section 874.03(3)
should be redrafted so that the definition
of “pattern of gang activity” is less
limiting and is not based on a defendant’s
prior convictions.
iv. Section 874.04 allows for enhanced penalties
upon a finding that the defendant
committed the charged offense “for the
purpose of benefiting, promoting, or furthering
the interests of a criminal street
gang...” The legislature should clarify
that proof of “benefiting, promoting,
or furthering the interests of a criminal
street gang” includes non-monetary benefits
including but not limited to gaining
credibility, status, or reputation.
v. Section 874.04 allows for the enhanced
penalty provisions to be enhanced upon
a finding by the court at sentencing
once proven by a preponderance of the
evidence. This appears to be unconstitutional
as it would enhance the potential
penalty beyond the statutory maximum
without having the issue determined by
a jury. Therefore, statute 874.04 must be
reworded to require a jury finding of the
enhanced penalty using the beyond a
reasonable doubt standard.
III. The legislature should create a provision under
Ch. 874 which creates a criminal offense
for Gang Injunction Violation.
IV. The legislature should add a three year
registry requirement for defendants who
have been adjudicated as gang members
under Ch. 874 and make failure to register
by a convicted gang member a third degree
felony. Registered gang members under this
provision should not be published outside
of law enforcement records. A convicted
gang member under Ch. 874 will be required
to have his or her driver’s license indicate
that he is a registered gang offender.
V. Convicted gang members who are in possession
of a firearm should receive an additional
enhancement under Ch. 874.
VI. Create additional qualifying predicate
offenses under the RICO statute c. 895. Additional
predicates should include:
i. Fleeing and Eluding
ii. Criminal Mischief (including gang graffiti)
iii. Burglary – all sections
iv. Gang Injunction Violation
v. Failure to Register as Ch. 874 Offender
vi. Sexual Battery, Ch. 794, and Lewd &
Lascivious crimes, Ch. 800, pursuant to
gang initiation.
VII. It should be clarified in statutes that juvenile
adjudications of delinquency may serve
as predicate offenses for a RICO charge.
VIII. A gang kingpin provision should be created
that mirrors the dealing in stolen property
statute for anyone who “manages or directs”
gang activity.
IX. A defendant who commits a felony and
qualifies under Ch. 874 who has three prior
felonies on separate sentencing dates should
be eligible to receive a more severe punishment
as a repeat gang offender.
X. Convicted felons who are prohibited from
owning guns must also be prohibited from
owning, possessing or using bullet proof vests.
XI. The legislature should recommend that the
Florida Bar Rules Committee and the Supreme
Court consider the creation of a Rule
of Criminal Procedure similar to Federal
Rule 35(b) to allow for mitigated sentences
beyond sixty days for gang members who
cooperate with law enforcement against
their fellow gang members.
XII. Witness protection must be improved by
creating a new bond structure for gang deAppendix
B: First Interim Report of the Statewide Grand Jury on Criminal Gangs and Gang Related Violence
68 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
fendants. If a judicial circuit has a standard
bond schedule, the standard bond should
be doubled for any offense committed by a
gang member. A gang member who is out
on bond should be prohibited from contact
with known gang members or witnesses.
Prior to a gang member’s release on bond,
the State should be given a mandatory opportunity
to be heard at first appearance
before the bond is set.
XIII. Witness protection programs must be made
more useful. Funding should be made
available for witness protection in a manner
that will encourage its use. A program
through FDLE or State Attorney’s Offices
should be created that supports relocated
witnesses with housing, jobs, and counseling.
A victim/witness program should be
created which allows a person to establish
a new identity under special circumstances.
Law enforcement must be made aware of all
witness protection programs.
XIV. Witness intimidation and tampering statutes
must be strengthened in instances in
which a defendant who is charged with
an offense attempts to tamper with or
intimidate a witness. The crime of witness
intimidation or tampering should be
the same felony offense level as the most
serious underlying offense and one level
higher on the severity ranking chart than
the most serious underlying offense. The
bond amount for witness intimidation or
tampering should be higher than the bond
amount for the underlying charge. A third
party who is charged with witness tampering
or intimidation should receive the bond
amount, felony offense level, and severity
ranking in the ease against the original
defendant in cases where the bond amount,
felony offense level, and severity ranking
would be higher if this step-up were used.
XV. Data collection and sharing must be improved
across the State of Florida. A Gang
Fusion Center should be created at an
already existing law enforcement facility
to gather, evaluate, and disseminate data
to the law enforcement on the street, adult
and juvenile probation officers, and to prosecutors
so that they may make real use of
the information. The Center shall be staffed
by state and federal agents from police,
sheriffs, corrections, school resource officers,
analysts and immigration agents. Data
collection must be standardized and streamlined
on a new FDLE Gang Form which is
used by all law enforcement. InSite must be
used and populated by all law enforcement.
All departments seeking grant funding
must be required to participate in InSite
data program. Registration information for
a convicted gang member must be collected.
A defendant will be required to pay the fee
for registration.
XVI. The legislature should adopt laws to severely
punish gang offenders who commit
gun crimes. Convicted felons who are gang
members and commit any gun crime should
face lengthy prison terms.
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 69
The National Alliance of Gang Investigators Associations
(NAGIA) believes that implementation
of the following recommendations will greatly enhance
the ability of criminal justice professionals
and communities to effectively address the gang
problem together.
Federal Role in the Gang Problem
The gang problem is found throughout the United
States, in communities large and small. There is a
great need for a consistent and ongoing response
to gangs at all levels, from the local to the state
and federal levels. This response should be based
upon best practices and should be flexible enough
to deal with both rapidly changing trends and
gang problems, which can vary greatly from one
locality to another. Because gangs are a national
problem, there is a need for a cohesive national
response that supersedes agency boundaries.
Gang Denial
The education of the public, school administrators,
community leaders, and law enforcement
officials concerning the detrimental effects of gang
denial is critical to controlling gang growth and
its impact on the community. Public and institutional
denial of the existence of gangs and a lack
of proactive community measures are perhaps the
greatest contributing factors in the alarming increase
in the number, size, and strength of gangs.
Denying the presence of gangs in a community
significantly hampers effective prevention of gang
growth and development during the early stages
when violence is limited and active measures can
effectively deter the problem.
Appendix C: 2005 National Gang Threat
Assessment Recommendations
Law Enforcement Intelligence
Sharing
The sharing of gang intelligence is an issue of
great concern throughout all levels of law enforcement.
Usually, the most effective sharing of information
takes place informally between individual
law enforcement officers. The problems endemic
in sharing information among the many federal
law enforcement agencies exist to a large degree
within some local law enforcement agencies.
Gang, narcotics, homicide, and other units within
municipal police departments must ensure that
intelligence is communicated department-wide.
In addition, law enforcement administrators need
to recognize that the gang problem transcends
geographic borders, making it essential that gang
investigators meet regularly with their colleagues
from other jurisdictions and receive advanced
training at seminars. Because of the violent nature
of gang members, both inside prisons and in
communities, the sharing of information among
criminal justice professionals has become an issue
of public safety. NAGIA strongly recommends
that all law enforcement agencies consider membership
in their local RISS center to facilitate the
sharing of gang-related intelligence through the
RISS National Gang Database, conferences, and
information sharing meetings.
Gang Definitions
There is a need for standardized definitions of
a gang, gang member, and gang crime. If criminal
justice professionals are to effectively work
together and share gang-related intelligence across
jurisdictions, it is imperative that they employ the
same standards to determine what constitutes
Appendix C: 2005 National Gang Threat Assessment Recommendations
70 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
a gang, gang member, and gang crime. Many
states do not have a gang definition, either formal
or commonly understood, among jurisdictions
within that state. In fact, there are many different
definitions among jurisdictions at the state and
local levels, which make it difficult to have a common
discussion on gang issues. The lack of a common
definition also contributes to the complexity
of quantifying the nature and extent of the gang
problem. NAGIA representatives have developed
a recommended definition of the term “gang” to
facilitate a national discussion:
Gang: A group or association of three or more
persons who may have a common identifying
sign, symbol, or name and who individually
or collectively engage in, or have engaged in,
criminal activity which creates an atmosphere
of fear and intimidation. Criminal activity
includes juvenile acts that, if committed by an
adult, would be a crime.
Uniform Crime Reporting of Gang
Activity
In order to comprehend the scope and dimension
of the gang problem and to accurately measure
the effectiveness of anti-gang programs, there is
a need for uniform crime reporting on gangs and
gang activity. Accurate reporting is needed not
only from municipal and county law enforcement
agencies but also from schools. The standardization
of gang definitions may help alleviate this
problem. The FBI’s full implementation of the
National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS),
which collects information reported through
the Uniform Crime Reports (UCRs), will also help
in this endeavor.
Correctional Intelligence
There is a lack of intelligence coordination between
police departments and corrections officials.
This is largely due to the fact that many
officers are unaware of the wealth of intelligence
related to gangs and gang members available
within the corrections community. Corrections
officials and databases within federal, state, and
local prison systems are an unexploited source
of vital intelligence. Many correctional facilities
identify gang members, validate gang membership,
and have the capability to monitor mail,
telephone calls, and visits. NAGIA encourages
police agencies to work cooperatively with corrections
departments through partnerships involving
information sharing, fugitive apprehension, and
specialized enforcement.
Gang-Related Training
The explosion of gang activity in the United States
has resulted in a tremendous increase in the availability
of training about gangs. However, information
presented at some of these training programs
and conferences is outdated, inaccurate, or inappropriate
for the local situation. NAGIA believes
that there is a need to identify and support worthwhile
training sessions, conferences, instructors,
and events related to gang training. This endorsement
will help to ensure that only accurate and
up-to-date information is disseminated to criminal
justice professionals and others who have a need
for instruction.
Legislation
Increased awareness of gang activity has led to
a proliferation of federal, state, and local gangrelated
laws with varying degrees of effectiveness.
There is a need to identify and track legislation
pertaining to gang prevention and suppression
issues and to provide well-informed guidance
to legislative sponsors. There is also a need to
catalog and evaluate existing legislation to provide
examples of beneficial statutes to those seeking to
shape new legislation. The National Youth Gang
Center maintains a comprehensive list of state
and local gang legislation on its Web site at: http://
www.iir.com/nygc/maininfo.htm#Legislation.
Appendix C: 2005 National Gang Threat Assessment Recommendations
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 71
Gang Officers
Experience in working with gangs is important
to law enforcement’s success in their anti-gang
strategies and goals. Many police departments
have formed gang units and have developed specialized
positions within these units. The ability
of officers to effectively combat gangs is greatly
enhanced by accumulated on-the-job experience.
Many police officers and other law enforcement
agents routinely rotate into other job assignments
every few years, thereby diminishing the institutional
knowledge of a particular unit. Expertise
regarding gangs is particularly difficult to maintain
because gangs on both local and national
levels are unpredictable and readily adapt their
methods of operation to changing circumstances.
Therefore, it is critical that at least some of the
personnel involved in gang enforcement have
extensive experience working with gangs. NAGIA
recommends that law enforcement agency administrators
consider these factors when rotating or
reassigning personnel from a gang unit.
Community Responses to Gangs
Law enforcement alone will never successfully
eliminate the threat of gangs. Other community
agencies and partners, including schools, juvenile
justice agencies, grassroots community organizations,
faith-based organizations, social services organizations,
and others, must work together to address
the problem of gangs in the local community
and to provide youths with opportunities to opt out
of the gang lifestyle. NAGIA strongly recommends
that law enforcement agencies reach out to social
service agencies, nonprofit community assistance
agencies, faith-based groups, schools, and private
businesses to promote a comprehensive and coordinated
community action plan to deal with gang
suppression, intervention, and prevention.
Appendix C: 2005 National Gang Threat Assessment Recommendations
72 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 73
Executive Summary
Black Males and Black-on-Black
Crime: An Overview
For its inaugural report, the Florida Legislature
charged the Council on the Social Status of Black
Men and Boys with investigating the factors causing
the continuing crisis of Black-on-Black crime.
This report is designed to address the statutory
charge and provide a foundation upon which the
Council and the Florida stakeholders can conduct
future research and derive additional and more
expansion recommendations for change.
Black-on-Black crime is an on-going crisis. Nearly
30 years ago, in August 1979, Ebony magazine
published a special issue on “Black on Black Crime:
The Causes, The Consequences and the Cures.”
Publisher John H. Johnson asserted that the basic
premise of the special issue was that Black-on-
Black crime had reached such a critical level that
it threatened the very existence of Blacks as a
people. High rates of Black-on-Black homicide,
unemployment, delinquency rates among Black
youth, and disproportionate rates of adult incarceration
and community unrest, led the publisher
to remark that “as in the 19th century, there is no
flesh in America, as Frederick Douglass said…as
cheap as Black flesh.” Noting that the facts and
figures cited in the article had nothing at all to do
with the “social characteristics” of Black people
who he argued have never been more criminal
than other groups, Johnson argued that Blacks
are simply more often exposed to environments
that have produced higher levels of social frustration
and social disorder in all groups. Johnson
concluded by dedicating the special issue to what
he described as the “overwhelming majority of
Blacks, who are victims, not perpetrators of Black
on Black Crime…and primarily to the perpetrators
of crime whom he described as more often than
Appendix D: Florida Council on the Social
Status of Black Men and Boys
not, victims of their own crimes and of a society
that condemns them to lives of frustration and
rage and emptiness.”
Johnson’s appeal to the words of Frederick Douglass
to clarify the relationship between Blackness
and criminality, are important for understanding
the context and implications of Black-on-Black
crime, then and now. The intellectual debates and
scholarly writings of Douglass and the noted social
scholar and political historian W.E.B. Dubois
are also frequently drawn upon to explain the
relationship between Blackness and criminality,
and the economic, social and political implications
of “Black criminality.”
Murder may swagger, theft may rule and prostitution
may flourish and the nation gives but spasmodic,
intermittent and lukewarm attention. But
let the murderer be Black or the thief brown or
the violator of womanhood have a drop of Negro
blood, and the righteousness of the indignation
sweeps the world. Nor would this fact make the
indignation less justifiable did not we all know
that it was Blackness that was condemned and
not crime. (W.E.B. Dubois)
Where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced,
where ignorance prevails, and where any
one class is made to feel that society, is an organized
conspiracy to oppress...and degrade [it],
neither persons or property will ever be safe…
(Frederick Douglass)
The research presented in this report highlights
some of the issues that are conducive to alleviating
Black-on-Black crime, and the recommendations
made by the Council are designed to alleviate the
frequency and intensity of Black-on-Black crime.
This report includes innovative and thoughtful
findings from the Council’s five committees:
Improving Economic Outcomes, Improving
Educational Outcomes, Improving Foster Care and
Appendix D: Florida Council on the Social Status of Black Men and Boys
74 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Families, Improving Health Outcomes and Legislative
Review. As a result of the Council’s charge
to investigate the factors “causing black-on-black
crime from the perspective of public health related
to mental health, other health issues, cultural
disconnection, and cultural identity trauma,”
(Section 16.615(8)(b), Florida Statues) the Council
worked diligently to release the recommendations
located throughout this report. As the committees
addressed such varied topics, the best way to
summarize all the findings was through the “Top
15 Recommendations” listed below.
Top 15 Council Recommendations
Economics
1. Analyze the participation rates of Blackowned
firms and the dollar amounts awarded
through bidding and/or direct contracting
with state agencies. In conjunction with the
Office of Supplier Diversity, identify those
products and/or service codes where minority
business enterprises, especially Black-owned
firms, are under-represented. Inform the
Black business community as to the product
and/or service codes that are in need of more
Black business participation.
2. In consultation with other entities such as the
Florida Regional Minority Business Council
and the Florida Minority Supplier Development
Council, develop an assessment tool to
identify business capacities, strengths and/
or weaknesses. This assessment tool should
be utilized to: a) Determine award capacity;
b) Create business development programming
for the contracted business; c) Project
capacity increases during multi-year contracts,
including potential renewals; and d) Identify
a corporate industry peer success coach to be
a resource to Black business participants.
3. Encourage and support opportunities for
joint-ventures between and among Blackowned
businesses, to increase contract performance
capacities, shared costs and increased
outcomes. Support community resources such
as the Florida Regional Minority Business
Council and Who’s Who, developed by Pam
and Jerome Hutchinson. Also, continue to
work with the Office of Supplier Diversity, to
continuously highlight and publish an online
directory of all minority business enterprises
including Black-owned businesses by product
and service codes. Moreover, the Council will
work to ensure the online business directory
is accessible to all state and municipal purchasing
entities as a resource.
Education
4. Review the statewide and district level
policies, procedures and outcomes of school
discipline throughout Florida. Require all
public and charter schools to collect student
disciplinary data, including teacher/SRO referral
rates, suspension rates and grade distributions
(along with rationale and outcomes)
for all K-12 teachers and staff. Data must be
disaggregated by race, gender, violation, and
punishment. Create a reporting tool to track
incidents and compare punishments. Require
training of all principals, teachers and SRO
officers on school disciplinary procedures.
5. The Department of Education, School Superintendents
and Department of Juvenile
Justice (DJJ) staff should partner to evaluate,
amend and/or rescind K-12 zero tolerance
policies and practices to eliminate the referral
of youth to DJJ for misdemeanor offenses.
6. Identify intervention programs with proven
records of success working with Black
Males, such as Role Models of Excellence.
Beginning in 2008, establish 5,000 Role Models
of Excellence programs in every county
within the state with the goal of having a
Role Models of Excellence Program in every
school by 2012. Develop peer mentoring and
other special intervention programs such
as the Young Black Male Discovery Project
programs for Black males in all elementary,
middle and high schools.
Appendix D: Florida Council on the Social Status of Black Men and Boys
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 75
Foster Care and Adoption
7. Require school districts to implement Kinship
Care Support Programs. Non-relative care givers
should receive cash benefits for caring for a
dependent child. Encourage friends of parents
or god parents to care for their loved ones.
8. Community based care (CBC) agencies serving
foster youth should offer weekly Independent
Living skills (IL) classes to all current and
former foster youth age 13 to 23, as well as
transportation for the youth to enable them
to attend the classes. They should also offer
weekly IL skills classes at all facilities to
ensure that institutionalized youth receive the
same training.
9. Promote adoption though “One Church, One
Child” (OCOC). “One Church, One Child” of
Florida needs to be restored to recruiting,
preparing and approving families for children
in foster care in need of adoption service. Appropriately
and adequately funding OCOC will
allow the agency to work along side the resolution
of key barriers to placements of children,
i.e. access to the children to know who they
are and preparation of children for adoption.
Health
10. The state should invest in a public education
campaign to promote the benefits of
early screening for health care. This should
include use of mass media, dissemination
of information in public and private schools
as well as non-traditional systems such as
mobile medical units.
Legislative Review
11. Appropriate $250,000 for the Council for fiscal
year 2008-09, including the hiring of an
Executive Director (FTE with full benefits).
12. Eliminate the Council’s sunset date by passing
Senate Bill 546. The Council should also be
made a permanent commission.
13. Establish at least one local Council on the
Social Status of Black Men and Boys in each
of Florida’s sixty-seven counties, to serve
as a network for communication, education
and action.
14. Reestablish the Governor’s Ex-Offender Task
Force (Governor Bush’s original task force
sunsetted in January 2007).
15. Support the study and recommendations of
the Department of Juvenile Justice’s Blueprint
Commission.
Recommendations
1. Florida’s state agencies should review and
analyze the participation rates of Black-owned
firms, including but not limited to the number
of individual businesses and the dollar
amounts awarded, of Black-owned firms
which provide goods and/or services through
any form of bidding and/or direct contracting.
2. Identify those product and/or service
codes where Black-owned firms are under
represented.
3. Create informational venues to educate the
Black business community as to the product
and/or service codes which are in need of
more Black business participation.
4. Florida’s state agencies, in consultation with
other entities such as the Florida Regional
Minority Business Council, should develop an
assessment tool to identify business capacities,
strength and/or weaknesses. This assessment
tool should be utilized to: 1) Determine
award capacity; 2) Create business developmental
programming for the contracted
business; 3) Project capacity increases during
multi-year contracts, including potential
renewals; and 4) Identify a corporate industry
peer success coach to be a resource to Black
business participants.
5. Florida’s community college and university
systems should offer short-term entrepreneurship
educational activities and/or courses
to promote business ownership and offer educational
programming in the areas of management,
marketing/advertising, client developAppendix
D: Florida Council on the Social Status of Black Men and Boys
76 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
ment, governmental procurement, and other
areas of best of practices.
6. Create more financial incentives from state
and local governments for new businesses
and expansion of current businesses for the
small and disadvantaged businesses across
the state.
7. Encourage community development/re-development
organizations to support mixed-use
projects to provide affordable commercial
space for new business growth and employment
opportunities within Black communities
across the state.
8. State and municipal entities should encourage
joint-venturing opportunities between Blackowned
business to increase contract performance
capacities, shared costs and increased
outcomes in the Black community.
9. State and municipal entities should conduct
a historic review of their contracting policies,
procedures and actual awards of contracts
to determine the barriers to entry of Blackowned
businesses and/or the most prevalent
reasons why Black-owned businesses have
not received bid awards and/or direct contracting
opportunities.
10. Support community resources such as the
Florida Regional Minority Business Council
and Who’s Who, developed by Pam and
Jerome Hutchinson, to highlight and publish
a statewide periodical of Black-owned businesses
by product and service codes. Distribute
this contact periodical to all state and
municipal purchasing entities as a resource.
11. Florida should develop a comprehensive
program designed to stem the tide of foreclosures
within the Black community, which was
more disparately impacted by unfair lending
practices than any other ethnic community.
12. Florida must work with municipalities and
insurance vendors to aggressively and materially
decrease the burdensome costs (taxes and
insurance) associated with homeownership.
13. Florida must increase the resources necessary
to materially increase the educational outcomes
of the Black community in parity with
all other ethnic communities. (See also the
recommendations of the Education Outcomes
Committee)
14. Florida must develop and implement strategic
and tactical plans to increase the presence of
high-wage employers within the state, while
decreasing the exponential growth and perpetuation
of low-wage jobs.
15. The State, municipalities and Florida’s business
communities should look at greater economic
opportunities for goods and services by
and between Florida and the CARICOM.
16. Develop an accountable matrix to monitor the
success of municipal, state and/or federally
funded programs in materially impacting the
lives of participants economically, socially,
educationally and with regards to health.
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 77
Appendix E: Regional Gang Reduction
Task Forces
78 Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Notes
Florida Gang Reduction Strategy 79
Notes
Office of Attorney General
Bill McCollum
State of Florida
The Capitol PL-01
Tallahassee, FL 32399-1050
www.myfloridalegal.com
What Can Be Done To Help Solve The Problem Of Gangs ?
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Florida Gang Reduction Strategy
Office of Attorney General
Bill McCollum
State of Florida
The Capitol PL-01
Tallahassee, FL 32399-1050
www.myfloridalegal.com