U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

Highlights of Gang-Related Legislation

Description

The following bullets and interactive visualization provide highlights of gang-related legislation (state and federal) across the country.

  • 52 jurisdictions (including all 50 states, the District of Columbia (DC), and the United States (U.S.)) have enacted legislation that can be leveraged to investigate gang-related criminal activity, apprehend and prosecute criminals, reduce gang involvement, and protect citizens.
  • 45 jurisdictions (including 43 states, DC, and the U.S.) have laws that define gang-related terms.
  • 41 jurisdictions (including 39 states, DC, and the U.S.) have passed laws that may be used to prevent gang violence, reduce gang involvement, and suppress gang-related crime.
  • 44 jurisdictions (including 43 states and the U.S.) have laws that prohibit racketeering, money laundering, criminal enterprise, or criminal profiteering.
  • 51 jurisdictions (including 49 states, DC, and the U.S.) have laws that provide for penalties (including enhanced penalties), fines, or damages for gang-related criminal acts.
  • 20 jurisdictions (including 18 states, DC, and the U.S.) have laws that prohibit carjacking.
  • 32 jurisdictions (including 31 states and DC) have laws that prohibit graffiti.
  • 33 jurisdictions (including 31 states, DC, and the U.S.) have laws on gangs in schools and establishment of education programs/courses.
  • 18 jurisdictions (including 17 states and the U.S.) have enacted laws that authorize the operation and use of criminal intelligence systems (including gang-related databases) and the development and use of criminal intelligence information.
  • 46 jurisdictions (including 44 states, DC, and the U.S.) provide for some form of data reporting or sharing related to criminal gangs or gang-related activity.
  • 43 jurisdictions (including 41 states, DC, and the U.S.) have some form of forfeiture laws.
  • 29 jurisdictions (including 27 states, DC, and the U.S.) have laws that authorize, fund, or require training or technical assistance related to gang prevention, intervention, or suppression.
  • 37 jurisdictions (including 35 states, DC, and the U.S.) have enacted laws to establish a funding mechanism to support the prevention of gang violence, reduction of gang involvement, and suppress gang-related activity.

Interactive Visualization

The following visualization displays gang-related laws by jurisdiction and subject. The map displays jurisdictions from the 50 states, DC, and the federal government (U.S.), totaling 52 jurisdictions. A darker color indicates a larger number of gang-related laws. Users can select a jurisdiction on the map to view the number of gang-related laws and associated subjects. To select multiple jurisdictions, hold down the CTRL key and click. Users can also select a subject in the chart to view the jurisdictions with gang-related laws in that subject. To reset the visualization, click the reset button in the bottom right corner.