Idaho Gangs in Prison

Idaho Gangs in Prison Investigation and Intelligence Unit o Comprised of at least one primary and an assistant facility investigator assigned to each of:  8 prisons  2 prison work camp  5 community work centers  7 district probation and parole offices o Investigation Program  Criminal investigations  Administrative investigations o Criminal Intelligence Program  Analyzing trends  Use of informants  Collection and sharing intelligence o Gang Management Program  Identification  Monitoring Idaho Gang Enforcement Act o Idaho Gang Enforcement Act o Definition of a Gang and Gang Member o Extended Sentences for Gang Crimes o Recruiting of Criminal Gang Members o Supplying Firearms to a Criminal Gang Member o Penalties for Violation Gang Defined: o Ongoing organization, association or goal o 3 or more people o Common name or common identifying sign or symbol o Whose members individually or collectively engage in a pattern of criminal gang activity o Engages in criminal gang activity and;  Meets 2 or more criteria: Admits to membership Is identified as a member Frequents a gang’s area Adopts its style of dress Uses its hand signs Wears its tattoos Associates with known members Been arrested more than once with known gang members Identified by physical evidence (photographs or documentation) Stopped with known gang members (4) or more times Security Threat Group o A group of 3 or more inmates who have been determined to be acting in concert so as to pose a potential threat to the safety, security and orderly operation of any correctional facility.  Two types: Criminal gangs Extremist groups o Radial Militia Groups o Sovereign Citizens o Earth Liberation Front o Animal Liberation Front o Terrorist Groups National Gang Trends o 1.4 million gang members in USA o 33,000+ gangs in USA o Active in all 50 states o Commit 80% of the crimes in many communities o Migrating from urban to rural communities o Gangs have grown 40% over the past 2 years Communities Attitudes o Deny gangs are present o Ignore them o Deal with them What Type of People Join Gangs o Every race o Every sex o Every national and ethnic group o Every socioeconomic group o Gangs and gang membership is not a racial issue with many gangs o Gangsters are some of today’s most popular role models for American youth Reasons for Gang Membership o Poor Sense of Family o Poor Self Esteem o Fear/Protection o Poverty o Boredom o Family tradition o Peer pressure o Simple choice Age of Gang Members o Gang members may be any age o Gang membership is for life o Most people remain involved in criminal gang activity for less than three years before they try to back off o In Idaho the typical age range for an active gang member is 14-25. The Gangster Attitude (3 R’s) o Respect  Their power over others is based on respect (fear)  If you don’t fear… you don’t respect me.  The more I make you fear me, the more I can force you to respect me  The more violent I am… the more respect I get o Reputation  The leaders are usually the most respected (feared) gang members.  Obtained through acts of: Courage Loyalty Mostly violence o Retaliation  Disrespect (failure to show fear) cannot be allowed… it must be addressed… no matter how small or how long it takes How do we tell gangs apart? o Hand Signs o Clothing (sports) o Gang tattoos  Generally homemade  Most commonly done in black ink  Tattoos may depict numbers  May also depict a neighborhood, area or street name  Tattoos may list the person’s moniker (nickname)  The name of the gang they belong to or the gang set o Gang Graffiti  The newspaper of the street  Identify members of a gang  Identify the gang name or set  Making the territory  Warn other gangs  Disrespect other gangs o When encountering graffiti:  Report  Record  Remove o Gang Drawings o Gang Photos Differences Between the Major Gang Afilliations o Sureno (Southerner)  Mexican Mafia originated in 1957 at the Dewel Vocational Center in Tracy California  Mexican Mafia is also known as La EME or “M”  Gang’s Number(s) is 13 because the 13 letter of the alphabet is “M”  The gang’s color is blue  Criminal enterprise with significant ties to the Mexican drug cartels.  “Budweiser Crew” o Norteno o Crip Affiliated Gangs  First appeared during the late 1960s in LA  Numbers used = 3, 3-3, 21, 2-11  Gang color = blue  Origin of the name “crip” is disputed  Many Native Americans in Idaho o Blood Affiliated Groups  Blood gangs first appeared during the late 1960 on Pina Street in Compton  First called o People Nation Gangs  Formed during the 1950s and 1960s by inmates in mid-west prisons  Most have “lords” or “stones” in name  Latin Kings = Yellow and Black  Gangs color = red o Folk Nation Gangs  First reported in 1978 in Stateville, Illinois  Created for protection against the People gangs  Most Folk Nation gangs have the name “disciple”  Close alliance with Sureno and Crip gang sets.  The gangs primary color is blue o Aryan Gangs  All whites and white supremacy beliefs Three types of Aryan gangs: o Neo – Confederate  Criminal business  It’s about the money not white supremacy  Frequently cooperate with non-white gang (surenos and Hybrid) by exchanging hit contracts and drug trafficking o Neo-Nazi  Rival of the 4th Reich  Deep hatred of all non-whites  Very violent o Christian Identity/Creativity Movement  Religious belief that they are the descendants of the Jews o Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs  Motorcycle (biker) gangs originated in the early 1950’s  They represent only about 1% of motorcycle riders  900 OMGs nationally  Only four have national or international importance: Hell’s Angels Outlaws Pagans Bandidos  Most other gangs are loosely affiliated with or allies of one of these main 4 motorcycle gangs o Independent Gangs  They maintain independence from the other major alliances  They serve as a bridge between rival gangs  Some are multi-racial Hybrid gangs loosely aligned with other large gangs  Some are formed along racial lines  Some are formed by criminal family groups  They start off a small unorganized groups  To survive they tend to