7/27/2019 Perceptions of gangs among prosecutors in an emerging gang city.pdf http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/perceptions-of-gangs-among-prosecutors-in-an-emerging-gang-citypdf 1/13 Perceptions of gangs among prosecutors in an emerging gang city ☆ ☆☆ Kathleen A. Fox a, , , Jodi Lane b a Sam Houston State University, College of Criminal Justice, P.O. Box 2296, Huntsville, Texas 77341-2296, United States b Department of Sociology and Criminology & Law, University of Florida, P.O. Box 117330; 3219 Turlington Hall, Gainesville, Florida 32611-7330, United States http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2010.04.031 , How to Cite or Link Using DOI Permissions & Reprints Abstract Gangs were a target of widespread political and social attention during the 1990s, and despite a short-lived lull in policy focus, gangs are recently receiving increased attention from policymakers. In spite of political concern about gangs, very little research had examined perceptions of gangs. By conducting face-to-face interviews with thirty of thirty-five county prosecutors, this study was among the first to examine prosecutors' perspectives of gangs in Gainesville, Florida, an area that could be considered an “emerging gang city. Themes from the interviews were extracted and included prosecutorial perceptions of the: (1) definition and prevalence of gangs in Gainesville, Florida; (2) personal and social characteristics of gang members; (3) reasons people join gangs; and (4) bes approaches to stop or eliminate gangs. The ways in which prosecutors' perspectives mirror prior research on gangs is highlighted. Introduction Research on gangs had primarily focused on various aspects of membership and delinquency and had often overlooked perceptions of gangs. While much of the prior research on gangs focused on large “chronic” gang cities (places with an extensive history o gangs), a substantial amount of research had also examined “emerging” gang cities (places with recent increases in gang activity) (Spergel & Curry, 1993). A considerable body of research examined gangs within emerging gang cities, such as Columbus, Ohio ( J Miller, 1998); Denver, Colorado (Esbensen, Huizinga, & Weiher, 1993); Kansas City, Missouri (Fleisher, 1998); Las Cruces, New Mexico (Winfree, Mays, & Vigil-Backstrom, 1994); 1 Las Vegas, Nevada (McCorkle & Miethe, 1998); Milwaukee, Wisconsin (Hagedorn 1988); Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Loeber, Stouthamer-Loeber, van Kammen, & Farrington, 1991); Rochester, New York (Thornberry Krohn, Lizotte, & Chard-Wierschem, 1993 ); San Diego, California (Decker, Bynum, & Weisel, 1998); and San Francisco, California (Waldorf, 1993). Furthermore, the Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T.) national evaluation examined severa emerging gang cities, including Portland, Oregon and Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska (Esbensen, Osgood, Taylor, Peterson, & Freng 2001). Yet, prior research on emerging gang cities had primarily focused on the correlates of gang membership rather than examining perceptions of gangs. What is less understood are public or policymakers' perceptions of gang activities. While some research had examined the perceptions of gangs among police, youth, students, and teachers (Johnson et al., 1995, Katz & Webb, 2006, St. Cyr & Decker, 2003 and Swetnam & Pope, 2001), prosecutors' perceptions of gangs, especially within an emerging gang city, is largely unknown. This exploratory study addressed gaps in the literature by focusing on prosecutors' perspectives on four related questions: (1) What is the definition and prevalence of gangs in Gainesville, Florida? (2) What are the social and personal characteristics of gang members? (3) What are the reasons people join gangs? and (4) What are the best approaches to stop or eliminate gangs? The following section first reviews the limited literature that examined prosecutors' perceptions of gangs and then presents research on each of the four issues of interest in the current study.
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7/27/2019 Perceptions of gangs among prosecutors in an emerging gang city.pdf
Perceptions of gangs among prosecutors in an emerging gang
city ☆ ☆☆ Kathleen A. Foxa, , ,
Jodi Laneb
a Sam Houston State University, College of Criminal Justice, P.O. Box 2296, Huntsville, Texas 77341-2296, United States
b Department of Sociology and Criminology & Law, University of Florida, P.O. Box 117330; 3219 Turlington Hall, Gainesville, Florida 32611-7330, United States http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2010.04.031, How to Cite or Link Using DOI
Permissions & Reprints
Abstract
Gangs were a target of widespread political and social attention during the 1990s, and despite a short-lived lull in policy focus, gangs
are recently receiving increased attention from policymakers. In spite of political concern about gangs, very little research had
examined perceptions of gangs. By conducting face-to-face interviews with thirty of thirty-five county prosecutors, this study was
among the first to examine prosecutors' perspectives of gangs in Gainesville, Florida, an area that could be considered an “emerging
gang city. Themes from the interviews were extracted and included prosecutorial perceptions of the: (1) definition and prevalence of
gangs in Gainesville, Florida; (2) personal and social characteristics of gang members; (3) reasons people join gangs; and (4) bes
approaches to stop or eliminate gangs. The ways in which prosecutors' perspectives mirror prior research on gangs is highlighted.
Introduction
Research on gangs had primarily focused on various aspects of membership and delinquency and had often overlooked perceptions
of gangs. While much of the prior research on gangs focused on large “chronic” gang cities (places with an extensive history o
gangs), a substantial amount of research had also examined “emerging” gang cities (places with recent increases in gang activity)
(Spergel & Curry, 1993). A considerable body of research examined gangs within emerging gang cities, such as Columbus, Ohio (J
Miller, 1998); Denver, Colorado (Esbensen, Huizinga, & Weiher, 1993); Kansas City, Missouri (Fleisher, 1998); Las Cruces, New
Understanding prosecutors' perspectives of gangs is important given the power prosecutors have over offenders' - and gang members
- criminal cases and the influence they sometimes have over legislation. Prosecutors typically have substantial discretion over the
nature of criminal charges, sanctions, and the decision regarding whether or not to pursue gang-enhanced charges (Jackson
2004 and Walker, 1993). Moreover, prosecutors often participate in gang-related programming and create task-forces that influence
gang-related policies (Gramckow & Tompkins, 1999). Indeed, prosecutors' perceptions of gang members directly influence thei
responses and reactions to gang members. Decker and Kempf-Leonard (1991)suggest that policymakers' perceptions of gangs maybe even more important than the public's perceptions given that, “in a very real sense, the response of policymakers to gangs defines
them as a social problem” (p. 274). Ultimately, understanding prosecutors' perceptions of gangs is critical for recognizing and
interpreting legal responses to gangs.
Couched in the “emerging” gang city perspective, the current study attempted to address gaps in the literature by contributing to the
existing research on gangs in at least two important ways. First, the present study was one of the few to assess prosecutors
perceptions of gangs. Prosecutors offer a unique perspective on crime, given that they are exposed to crime and offenders daily
Second, this research focused on perspectives of gangs in a unique location – the medium-sized growing city of Gainesville, Florida
which might be considered an emerging gang city (Spergel & Curry, 1993). Although some research had examined social and
demographic characteristics of gang members, gang activities, reasons for joining gangs, and programs and policies designed to
reduce or eliminate gangs, prosecutors' perceptions of these issues have been largely overlooked. Gaining an understanding o
prosecutors' perceptions about gang members and gang activity is critical to understanding and addressing gangs given the impact
prosecutors have on gang members, their cases, and policy. Consequently, prosecutors from a medium-sized city were interviewed
regarding their perceptions of local gangs, their knowledge of the personal and social characteristics of gang members, their beliefs
about the reasons for joining gangs, and their recommendations for stopping gangs.
Prior research on prosecutors' perceptions of gangs
Despite the important role prosecutors' play in the prosecution of gangs, only a handful of studies had examined prosecutors
perspectives of gangs. Furthermore, in the scant research that had assessed prosecutors' perspectives of gangs, the samples were
comprised of other individuals of interest as well, including law enforcement, school officials, politicians, probation and parole officers,and correctional personnel (Johnson et al., 1995, Katz & Webb, 2006 and McCorkle & Miethe, 1998). Although prosecutors were no
the only focus, these important studies identified interesting similarities and differences with other key criminal justice personnel. Fo
example, Johnson et al. (1995) identified many similarities between prosecutors and law enforcement officials' survey responses
regarding perceptions of a growing gang “problem” within the communities, types of crimes gang members often engaged in (drugs
and violence), and a perceived lack of early intervention programs designed to eliminate gangs. Similarly, Katz and Webb
(2006) discovered many similar perceptions about gangs obtained from interviews with law enforcement and other stakeholders
(including attorneys).
Other research indicated prosecutors had some different perceptions of gangs in comparison with law enforcement. McCorkle and
Miethe (1998) interviewed a variety of individuals expected to have the most exposure to gangs, including prosecutors, in Las Vegas
Nevada. While the study was not primarily focused on prosecutorial perspectives of gang crime, the authors reported that prosecutors
were uncomfortable with the way the police broadly identified and labeled individuals as gang members. Interestingly, prosecutors
reported that while prosecuting gang members, they learned that gang stereotypes were not realistic. Instead of “criminal enterprises,
prosecutors described gangs as “simply loose, shifting associations without stable leadership, role expectations, or collective goals
(McCorkle & Miethe, 1998, p. 60), which was consistent with most prior research on gangs (Decker, 1996, Howell, 2000, Klein
1995 and Klein & Maxson, 2006). Overall, the limited research on prosecutors' perceptions of gangs offered important preliminary
insights that suggest further exploration of prosecutorial perspectives of gangs is essential given the impact prosecutors have on gang
Defining gangs has been a consistent focus of gang research (Esbensen, Winfree, He, & Taylor, 2001). While a comprehensive
discussion of the variety of gang definitions among scholars and legislation was beyond the scope of this study, several main
definitional features will briefly be mentioned here (see Ball & Curry, 1995, for a detailed discussion of gang definitions). Some gang
definitions are limited to street gangs, which require the members to spend time together outside of other institutions, such as home
school, or work (Klein & Maxson, 2006). Other definitions are limited to youth gangs, and prohibit the inclusion of motorcycle gangs,
prison gangs, supremacist groups, political terrorists, organized crime groups, and adult gangs (Klein, 1995 and National Youth GangCenter, 2009). Furthermore, some gang definitions require involvement with deviant and/or criminal behavior (Klein & Maxson, 2006)
whereas others do not (Short, 1996). Klein and Maxson (2006) offer one of the most parsimonious definitions of gangs, which
characterize a street gang as “any durable, street-oriented youth group whose involvement in illegal activity is part of its group identity
(p. 4).
Identifying the prevalence of gangs and gang members also continues to present challenges for legislators and researchers alike
(Spergel, 1990). The prevalence of gangs has most often been measured using survey research to directly assess gang membership
through self-reports (i.e., G.R.E.A.T.) or indirectly by surveying criminal justice personnel (NYGC, 2009). Self-report surveys indicated
approximately 11 percent of elementary and high school students admitted gang membership (Esbensen & Winfree, 1998 and Gove
et al., 2009). Recent National Youth Gang Survey estimates from law enforcement officials suggested that larger cities (with
populations over 50,000) had more gangs and more gang members than smaller cities (with populations between 2,500 and 49,999)
(NYGC, 2009). In terms of gangs, the NYGC (2009) reported that 34 percent of larger cities had seven to fifteen gangs (compared to
16 percent for smaller cities), 17 percent of larger cities had sixteen to thirty gangs (compared to 4 percent for smaller cities), and 22
percent of larger cities had over thirty gangs (while none of the smaller cities reported over thirty gangs). In terms of gang members
over 50 percent of smaller cities reported less than fifty gang members while 82 percent of larger cities reported more than fifty gang
members (with 21 percent of large cities reporting over 1,000 gang members) (NYGC, 2009).
As discussed earlier, very few studies have assessed prosecutors' perceptions of gangs; however, those that do described
prosecutors' beliefs about prevalence with more generalities than specific prevalence rates. For example, a prosecutor interviewed
by Katz and Webb (2006, p. 97) said that the gang problem “is very extensive” while Johnson et al. (1995) indicated that the majority
of prosecutors (78 percent) in large and small jurisdictions believed that violent gang crime had increased. Given that limitations
plague all available methods to assess the prevalence of gangs and gang members (e.g., inconsistent record-keeping across
jurisdictions, inability to track all gang members, under-reporting and over-reporting involvement with gangs), it is important to assess
perspectives from a variety of sources to better realize consistencies and trends.
Personal and social characteristics of gangs
Prior research identified personal demographic characteristics of gang members (i.e., gender, age, and race/ethnicity) using data from
law enforcement, general public, and gang members. In terms of gender differences in gang membership, law enforcement surveyed
by the National Youth Gang Center indicated over 90 percent of gang members were male (NYGC, 2009). Furthermore, prior research
had largely interviewed male gang members (Decker & VanWinkle, 1996 and Thrasher, 1927; but see Joe & Chesney-Lind
1995, Miller, 2002, Miller & Decker, 2001 and Zatz & Portillos, 2000 on gang girls). Alternatively, self-report surveys indicated tha
females comprised a substantial portion of gangs. Cross-sectional and longitudinal survey data suggested 35-38 percent of gang
members were female (Esbensen & Winfree, 1998,Gover et al., 2009 and Peterson et al., 2004). While estimates of female
involvement in gangs varied based on the sample of interest (e.g., law enforcement, general public, gang members), prior research
has established that males are more likely to be gang members than females (Howell, 1998).
In terms of the age of gang members, law enforcement agencies indicated that gang members in larger cities were more likely to be
over age eighteen and younger than eighteen years old in smaller cities (NYGC, 2009). In a review of the literature on gang
members, Howell (1998) suggested that gang members tend to be twelve to twenty-four years old although he pointed out that the
proportion of both younger and older gang members have increased. While researchers tend to agree that gangs are comprised of
Years of prosecutorial experience .5 to 29 9 (7.02)
Table options
Given that the research was exploratory, the interview questions were open-ended and included some modified questions from Lane
(2002). Some questions included the following: Do you believe there are gangs or gang members living in Gainesville? Do you have
any personal experience with gangs or gang members in Gainesville? What do you think is their composition in terms of age, race
ethnicity and gender? Why do you think people join gangs? What do you think is the best approach to stop or get rid of
gangs?3 Prosecutors were asked to respond to the questions based on their experiences with the system.
All interviews were tape-recorded and transcribed verbatim with the exception of three interviews which, at the request of the
interviewees, were recorded using only handwritten notes. Transcripts were then coded by hand by the research team to extract
themes that emerged. The following section presents the findings and highlights prosecutorial perceptions of: (1) the definitions and
prevalence of gangs in Gainesville, Florida; (2) the personal and social characteristics of gang members; (3) the reasons why people
join gangs; and (4) the best approaches to stop or eliminate gangs. Direct quotations from the interviews are provided to illustrate the
themes.
Results
Definitions and prevalence of Gainesville gangs
Given that legal and research definitions of gangs vary widely, and a universal definition describing the characteristics of gangs is
nonexistent, prosecutors were not provided with a definition of ‘gangs.’ Instead, respondents provided their own definitions of gangs
Interestingly, most of the prosecutors acknowledged that the meaning of ‘gang’ could be interpreted in many ways, but respondents
appeared to describe gang characteristics that were similar to each other. For example, attributes such as organization, a hierarchicastructure, similar signs and colors, and a common goal or purpose within a group context were mentioned often (see Decker &
VanWinkle, 1996 and Howell & Lynch, 2000). Two respondents mentioned the Florida Statues and another conducted an interne
search for the definition during the interview. In an effort to define gangs, over one-third of the respondents (n = 11) mentioned the
Bloods and/or the Crips as examples of gangs. Many prosecutors' definitions of gangs involved some type of deviant or crimina
behavior, as outlined in the following definition of gangs from one prosecutor:
A group of people with a common purpose who engage in criminal activity, anti-social behavior, even if doesn't r ise [to] the level o
criminal activity, with a common goal. That's enough [to be a gang]. (Interview 10)
Like researchers and legislators, prosecutors linked gangs with criminal and/or delinquent activities (Klein & Maxson, 2006)
Interestingly, considering the context of Gainesville as a college-town, four prosecutors mentioned the possibility of defining university
fraternities and sororities as gangs. One prosecutor remarked:
I'm wondering if we could classify fraternities as gangs for causing DUIs. And sororities. They all have colors, they have signs, they
have secret handshakes, they engage in illegal behavior and encourage drinking and driving …I think that that is a real problem and
we don't think about fraternities and sororities and any other organization on campus that way, as a gang, because they're not out
dealing drugs and committing violent crimes. However, they are instigating a culture which leads to criminal behavior …We see that al
the time. (Interview 18)
One prosecutor countered this sentiment by stating:
Another prosecutor described an experience prosecuting a member of the Latin Kings for first degree murder:
We were concerned about this guy [being] associated with the Latin Kings and he [a police officer] was able to show me the notice that
GPD [Gainesville Police Department] had been concerned about and so I saw the whole list. It was like three pages long of just
different people who were now connected locally with the Latin Kings. And so I'm more aware of it. (Interview 29)
Overall, prosecutors recognized definitional issues associated with defining gangs and, yet, they were able to articulate genera
definitional characteristics of gangs, both nationally and locally. Prosecutors perceived national gangs as possessing an organizationa
hierarchical structure, similar signs and colors, and a common goal or purpose within a group context. Prosecutors perceived localgangs as unorganized, loosely associated, and neighborhood-based with less stringent initiation and membership requirements. While
prosecutors believed local gangs were less pervasive than big city gangs, some respondents indicated that local gangs were prevalent
in the community and within the criminal justice system.
Personal and social characteristics of gangs
Of the twenty-five prosecutors that indicated gangs existed in Gainesville, each were asked follow-up questions about local gangs
personal characteristics in terms of age, sex, race/ethnicity, and location of residence. In terms of age, all of these prosecutors
(n = 25) agreed that gang members were primarily juveniles (see Howell, 2000). Furthermore, all respondents indicated that gang
members age out of their gang affiliation before the age of thirty, although two prosecutors suggested that some gang members tend
to remain committed to gangs beyond their youth. One of these prosecutors remarked that a local gang member from the Latin Kings
was prosecuted while he was in his mid-twenties and another member was over the age of forty.
All of the prosecutors who were asked about the sex of local gang members maintained that they were primarily male (n = 25). One
prosecutor said that 98 percent of the gang members were male. Others suggested that females could be gang members, although
they were clearly in the minority, if they existed at all. Only one prosecutor reported knowing a female gang member. This is in line
with the extant literature on gangs, which primarily focused on male gang members (Klein & Maxson, 2006). When asked about the
race of local gangs, fourteen prosecutors agreed that gang members were largely Black, one believed they were mostly White, and
four indicated that gang members were comprised of all races and could not identify any race in particular. The remaining six either did
not know or did not identify any races. One prosecutor pointed out that gangs were often formed on the basis of race (see Klein &
Maxson, 2006 and Vigil, 2002). The majority of the prosecutors who were asked about the location of gangs (n = 15) believed thatgang members lived in the lower socioeconomic neighborhoods on the east side (including the northeast and southeast areas) of the
city (see Decker & VanWinkle, 1996). Five other prosecutors reported that gang members lived all over the city, including the wealthier
and poorer areas, four prosecutors did not identify the locations of gang members' residences, and one prosecutor said that gang
members primarily lived in jail. He stated:
They're probably in jail. In and out of jail, and I think that's historically one of the ways gangs grow or are born is the networking tha
goes on in the jail. (Interview 18)
Of the twenty-five prosecutors that agreed gangs existed in Gainesville, eighteen identified a variety of activities in which local gang
members were typically involved. Consistent with prior research, prosecutors acknowledged that gang members mostly “hang out
(n = 8) and engaged in non-criminal antisocial activities (n = 2), such as skipping school, being rude, and being verbally assaultive
(Decker, 1996, Decker & VanWinkle, 1996, Joe & Chesney-Lind, 1995, Klein, 1995 and Thornberry et al., 1993). While genera
personal crimes were mentioned by five prosecutors, more specific types of personal crimes that were mentioned by some
prosecutors included fighting (n = 7), assault (n = 2), robbery (n = 1), violent crime (n = 1), violent crime with a weapon (n = 2)
extortion (n = 1), and drug rip-offs (n = 1) .4 General property crimes were mentioned by five prosecutors and more specific types of
property crimes included burglary (n = 6), theft (n = 5), vandalism/criminal mischief (n = 2), and possession of stolen property (n = 1)
Involvement with drugs was mentioned by ten prosecutors, and included buying, selling, trafficking, possessing, and transporting
illegal narcotics. Other types of criminal involvement by gang members included prostitution (n = 2) and illegal dog fighting (n = 1)
One prosecutor described typical gang activities and drew attention to the severity of gang violence:
Public service announcements about venereal diseases, AIDS, contraception, responsibility, drugs. Show them the films that I've seen
about methamphetamine abuse before they get hooked on it. Show it to eight year olds. This idea that we can't tell eight year olds
about nasty stuff and sex and things is the biggest disservice we do because it's only through knowledge and education that anybody
will ever improve. (Interview 2)
Another prosecutor discussed the importance of teaching young gang members about alternatives to gang membership:
I would assume just education to let kids know that it's not necessary. It's not necessary that you join this group of people that doesn'
have any respect of the law…
We need people to go in and educate the kids that it's not necessary. You know the people they're goingto respect and the people that they're going to listen to. If it becomes uncool to be in a gang, then kids won't be in a gang. As long as
it's cool to be in a gang, that's what kids are going to do…So until someone convinces them that it's not cool to be in a gang or it's not
cool to do what gangs do, they're going to continue to do it. (Interview 17)
While law enforcement was mentioned by several prosecutors (n = 6) as a means of combating gangs, half seemed hesitant to
recommend this as a major solution. Three prosecutors advocated funding police to continue to control gangs, whereas three other
prosecutors speculated that police may help, but will not solve the problem alone. Another prosecutor specifically supported the use o
community policing as a short-term solution. One prosecutor indicated that law enforcement and harsh sanctions were not viable
options for reducing gangs:
Fear of law enforcement does not cause them [gangs] to fizzle out. So if we're thinking more guns, more [prison] bars, more walls,more cops, more state attorneys, that's the answer; it's probably not. It's a great band aid, on the back end of it. It's a fine band aid
But it's certainly not going to shut off the spigot to the proverbial system…You've got to get into the lower income [neighborhoods], the
housing projects, whatever it is and work to get those kids to not want to be gang members because they can have success
somewhere else. (Interview 14)
In sum, prosecutors identified a variety of practical policies and programs that might successfully reduce local gangs. Common
recommendations for stopping gangs included parenting assistance, prevention and early intervention programs for youth, education
and law enforcement/sanctions. Several programs already in place throughout the country, such as G.R.E.A.T., integrate a
combination of these concepts (Howell, 2000 and Klein & Maxson, 2006).
Discussion and conclusion
The purpose of this exploratory study was to understand prosecutors' perceptions of gangs. Open-ended interviews revealed severa
related themes including: (1) the definition and prevalence of gangs in Gainesville, Florida; (2) the personal and social characteristics
of gang members; (3) the reasons people join gangs; and (4) the best approaches to stop or eliminate gangs. The following details a
review and discussion of the findings and provides suggestions for future research in light of some of the current study's limitations.
Many prosecutors were either unsure of the prevalence of Gainesville gangs or believed these gangs to be relatively rare, while some
prosecutors disclosed that they dealt with gangs daily. Certainly, the case assignments of the prosecutors may have affected the
extent to which they interacted with or prosecuted gang members. Nonetheless, there was a consensus among prosecutors that
Gainesville is home to “hybrid” gangs, which they considered largely unorganized neighborhood-based groups with little structure who
identify as gangs. Notably, this is similar to prior research that characterizes hybrid gangs as new gangs (established since the 1980s
or 1990s) that typically do not embody the same characteristics of well-established gangs, such as structure and organization
(Starbuck et al., 2001). Nearly all prosecutors contrasted local gangs with national gangs, which they perceived as being organized
with a clear hierarchical structure. Interestingly, interviews conducted with members of national gangs within a large metropolitan
“emerging” gang city (St. Louis) revealed that gangs (including Bloods and Crips) also were loosely associated, neighborhood-based
and generally lacked “leaders, roles, or rules” (Decker, 1996, p. 250). As discussed earlier, prosecutors in Las Vegas also described
gangs as “simply loose, shifting associations without stable leadership, role expectations, or collective goals ” (McCorkle & Miethe
1998, p. 60). Consistent with the growing research on “emerging” gang cities, respondents expressed doubt about the level o