Gang-Related News Articles

California
One dead, four wounded in Venice shooting (Venice, CA): A 19-year-old man was killed and four others wounded in an apparent gang-related shooting outside a birthday party at the Venice Boys and Girls Club. The shooting occurred after a fight broke out between two gangs. None of the shooting victims were guests at the party, said the Boys and Girls Club's executive director. About 15 young men were denied entry to the gymnasium where the party was being held. After they were turned away, some in the group began harassing people leaving the party while others circled the block. Two men who police believe to be between 18-20 years old drove back in a vehicle and shot the victims.
Source: Los Angeles Times    Date: September 7, 2003

Illinois
Driver slain in possible gang shooting (Chicago, IL): A 21-year-old man was fatally shot in a possible gang-related incident, police said. A witness who was riding with the victim said that someone fired shots into the vehicle. The victim was hit but drove for another block before crashing the vehicle. The man was pronounced dead at the medical examiner's office. Police have no information on suspects.
Source: Chicago Tribune    Date: September 7, 2003

California
Drive-by shooting kills woman (Muscoy, CA): In Muscoy, sheriff's investigators reported a drive-by shooting that left a 22-year-old woman dead and a 24-year-old in critical condition. The two victims were sitting in an SUV when assailants drove past and fired more than a dozen bullets into their vehicle, authorities said. Police have made no arrests.
Source: Press Enterprise    Date: September 6, 2003

Florida
Shooting wounds teen (Plant City, FL): Police were investigating a shooting at Courier Field that left one teenager wounded and another under arrest, officials said. A 16-year-old boy was shot after words were exchanged with the shooter. The 17-year-old suspect was charged with aggravated battery with a firearm and use of a firearm during a felony, police said. Police also said the shooting might be gang related. The victim was taken to a hospital where he was reported to be in fair condition.
Source: The Tampa Tribune    Date: September 6, 2003

Illinois
Student stabbed outside school (Chicago, IL): A 17-year-old student was stabbed in the parking lot of Prosser Vocational High School, police said. The boy was stabbed after class got out. Police say the stabbing may have been gang related. The victim was in stable condition. No further details were available.
Source: Chicago Tribune    Date: September 6, 2003

Virginia
Slaying plot alleged (Arlington County, VA): After a year-long investigation, a purported gang member has been charged with conspiring to kill a police officer and participation in a criminal street gang, Arlington County police said yesterday. The arrest was the result of a multi-jurisdiction investigation that began last year after detectives received information about gang members threatening to kill several northern Virginia police officers. If convicted, the man could face up to 30 years in prison.
Source: The Washington Post    Date: September 6, 2003

Massachusetts
Five charged in gang war murder case (Lawrence, MA): Five members of a notorious Lawrence street gang were arrested by local, county, state, and federal authorities in connection with the 1998 mistaken-identity murder of a 22-year-old man. "The code of silence is gone," declared a state police sergeant. Additional arrests have not been ruled out as the investigation into the Immortal Outlaws' bloody beef with the Latin Gangsta Disciples (LGD) continues. Sources said the Outlaws were not gunning for the 22-year-old man back on July 12, 1998, when they went looking to exact payment from suspected LGD members they believed shot at them the day before. The victim was an innocent bystander who happened to be outside a Lawrence house party on LGD turf when he, another man, and a woman were hit by bullets. The other two victims survived. Authorities were able to secure indictments against the Immortal Outlaws posse because of unprecedented cooperation within their community. "There were people who helped out, who had not helped out before," one source said. "We're hoping this leads to more arrests."
Source: Boston Herald    Date: September 6, 2003

Kansas
Police warn nightclubs of rap song's gang link (Wichita, KS): A gang-related shooting incident at a nightclub outside of Wichita last week was prompted by the same rap song that led to four people being shot outside an east Wichita club last year, police said. The song has been known to cause club patrons to flash gang signs in a confrontational manner.
Source: The Wichita Eagle    Date: September 6, 2003

California
He won't let killers get away with murder (Santa Ana, CA): A detective from the Santa Ana Police Department has been working on gang murder cases that have been left unsolved, and one by one, individuals have been convicted of their crimes. Thirty-one cases that occurred five to 11 years ago have been revisited. Fifteen people have been convicted in seven of these cases, and suspects in five cases await trial. Seven cases have been cleared because the suspect was discovered to have been murdered or the district attorney's office determined the killing was self-defense.
Source: Los Angeles Times    Date: September 5, 2003

California
San Diego homicide (San Diego, CA): A 25-year-old woman who was sitting with a man on the steps of a Logan Heights building was shot to death by a walk-up killer, police said. Police believe that two men may have been involved, and they are investigating the possibility that the shooting was gang-related.
Source: City News Service    Date: September 5, 2003

Illinois
West Side gang, drug probe yields 12 arrests (Chicago, IL): The FBI and Chicago police arrested a dozen people who were acting as middlemen between Mexican drug cartels and the cocaine and marijuana peddling operations of the Vice Lords street gang on the West Side. Five other suspects remain at large, an FBI agent said. Authorities feel that the three-year investigation into drug dealing was an incremental step in the fight against gang-related drug dealing.
Source: Chicago Tribune    Date: September 5, 2003

Nevada
Las Vegas Police investigate latest attack linked to youth gang (Las Vegas, NV): Police are investigating a group which resides in suburban northwest Las Vegas called the 311 Boyz for a series of attacks. The group is an alleged middle-class, white youth gang and their attacks have included the beating of two Asian men leaving a shopping center, a black teen being attacked, and a male who was struck in the face with a rock. Some speculate that the gang is named for the Ku Klux Klan; "K" being the 11th letter of the alphabet and then times that by "3." Authorities are investigating the 311 Boyz in connection with other crimes, including three July beatings of teenagers, the burning of an 18-year-old with a hot butter knife in July, and a June incident in which a business' glass door was shattered. During the investigation, detectives uncovered video footage depicting numerous assaults on victims. On the tapes, some boys are heard chanting "311" during the beatings, police said.
Source: The Associated Press State & Local Wire    Date: September 5, 2003

Utah
Man shot in head in critical condition (Salt Lake County, UT): A 21-year-old man was in critical condition after being shot near his Salt Lake County home, authorities said. The man and two other people, who are all believed to be affiliated with gangs, were in a car traveling toward his home. As they pulled into a driveway, another car that had been following them passed, and someone inside began firing. Investigation is continuing.
Source: The Salt Lake Tribune    Date: September 5, 2003

California
City combats cycle of violence (Salinas, CA): In effort to reduce the recent flare-up of gang violence, police recently served warrants in two East Salinas neighborhoods. Three gang members were arrested including one man, age 21, on an attempted-murder charge for shooting at a carload of people. Also arrested was the first suspect's 22-year-old brother and a 19-year-old male, both for violating probation by associating with gang members.
Source: Monterey County Herald    Date: September 4, 2003

California
Fence shooting (Long Beach, CA): A 17-year-old boy was fatally shot as bullets came through a chain link fence, police said. Two others, ages 17 and 19, were wounded and expected to survive. Police say the two suspects fled on foot after the assault.
Source: City News Service    Date: September 4, 2003

California
Permanent injunction sought against San Bernardino gang (San Bernardino, CA): San Bernardino's Superior Court Judge granted a temporary restraining order against the Delman Heights Bloods Gang. Members of the gang are barred from congregating, applying graffiti, and participating in other activities within a designated area while the city attorney's office seeks a permanent injunction against the group. Violating curfew or loitering together could net members as much as six months in jail, three years' probation, and a $1,000 fine, said the deputy city attorney. A preliminary injunction hearing will be held in October, and a permanent injunction is expected this winter.
Source: Press Enterprise    Date: September 4, 2003

Illinois
Elgin police, FBI arrest 10 after 2 1/2-year probe into drug sales (Elgin, IL): A 2 1/2-year investigation by Elgin police and the FBI led to the arrests of 10 alleged members of a street gang accused of peddling drugs in Elgin and the Northwest suburbs. A long list of felony charges were used to indict the 10 members. The charges included unlawful delivery of a controlled substance, unlawful possession of a controlled substance, aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, compelling street-gang membership, and street-gang drug conspiracy, police said. About 500 Ecstasy pills, two handguns, and several hundred rounds of ammunition were confiscated. The investigation into the gang's activities began on November 11, 2000, when a 16-year-old alleged member of the street gang was shot in the head and his body dumped in a field in Cook County, police said. The street gang, which has about 30 members, has been active since the late '80s and early '90s.
Source: Daily Herald    Date: September 4, 2003

New Jersey
Arrest first step in club deaths probe (Bridgeton, NJ): Police in Bridgeton arrested a 26-year-old man for attempted murder associated with the double murder of a 24- and 26-year-old man. The suspect held a gun to someone's head during the incident, but was unable to shoot as the would-be-victim moved his head before the trigger was pulled. Other suspects involved in the shootings are still at large. Police are not certain if the incident was gang-related, but say that some of the victims were gang members. Some reports say that a gang called 30 Deep may have been involved. Police have not determined whether 30 Deep is a gang or a loosely affiliated group of friends.
Source: The Daily Journal    Date: September 4, 2003

Oregon
Shot from SUV wounds man (Portland, OR): Portland police are investigating a possible gang-related shooting that wounded a 21-year-old man. The pedestrian was shot by someone in a passing SUV, police said. Investigators have not been able to determine a motive for the shooting, but gangs may have been a factor.
Source: The Oregonian    Date: September 4, 2003

California
Teenager arrested in gang shooting (Fremont, CA): Police arrested an 18-year-old man and are searching for two other suspects in connection with a gang-related shooting that wounded a 17-year-old boy. The victim, who is a self-proclaimed gang member, did not suffer any life-threatening wounds. He was walking down the street when three men in a car approached him. One man got out of the car, chased him, and shot him once.
Source: Tri-Valley Herald     Date: September 3, 2003