America will face Riots, Marches, and Revolution

[Ryan Ruck]

This may be it... I'm pretty sure it is.

New Findings from the FBI about Cop Attackers & Their Weapons

From the Force Science News provided by The Force Science Research Center

December 28, 2006

New findings on how offenders train with, carry and deploy the weapons they use to attack police officers have emerged in a just-published, 5-year study by the FBI.

Among other things, the data reveal that most would-be cop killers:

• show signs of being armed that officers miss;
• have more experience using deadly force in “street combat” than their intended victims;
• practice with firearms more often and shoot more accurately;
• have no hesitation whatsoever about pulling the trigger. "If you hesitate," one told the study’s researchers, "you’re dead. You have the instinct or you don’t. If you don’t, you’re in trouble on the street..."

These and other weapons-related findings comprise one chapter in a 180-page research summary called "Violent Encounters: A Study of Felonious Assaults on Our Nation's Law Enforcement Officers." The study is the third in a series of long investigations into fatal and nonfatal attacks on POs by the FBI team of Dr. Anthony Pinizzotto, clinical forensic psychologist, and Ed Davis, criminal investigative instructor, both with the Bureau’s Behavioral Science Unit, and Charles Miller III, coordinator of the LEOs Killed and Assaulted program.

"Violent Encounters" also reports in detail on the personal characteristics of attacked officers and their assaulters, the role of perception in life-threatening confrontations, the myths of memory that can hamper OIS investigations, the suicide-by-cop phenomenon, current training issues, and other matters relevant to officer survival. (Force Science News and our strategic partner PoliceOne.com will be reporting on more findings from this landmark study in future transmissions.)

Commenting on the broad-based study, Dr. Bill Lewinski, executive director of the Force Science Research Center at Minnesota State University-Mankato, called it "very challenging and insightful--important work that only a handful of gifted and experienced researchers could accomplish."

From a pool of more than 800 incidents, the researchers selected 40, involving 43 offenders (13 of them admitted gangbangers-drug traffickers) and 50 officers, for in-depth exploration. They visited crime scenes and extensively interviewed surviving officers and attackers alike, most of the latter in prison.

Here are highlights of what they learned about weapon selection, familiarity, transport and use by criminals attempting to murder cops, a small portion of the overall research:

Weapon Choice:

Predominately handguns were used in the assaults on officers and all but one were obtained illegally, usually in street transactions or in thefts. In contrast to media myth, none of the firearms in the study was obtained from gun shows. What was available "was the overriding factor in weapon choice," the report says. Only 1 offender hand-picked a particular gun "because he felt it would do the most damage to a human being."

Researcher Davis, in a presentation and discussion for the International Assn. of Chiefs of Police, noted that none of the attackers interviewed was "hindered by any law--federal, state or local--that has ever been established to prevent gun ownership. They just laughed at gun laws."

Familiarity:

Several of the offenders began regularly to carry weapons when they were 9 to 12 years old, although the average age was 17 when they first started packing "most of the time." Gang members especially started young.

Nearly 40% of the offenders had some type of formal firearms training, primarily from the military. More than 80% "regularly practiced with handguns, averaging 23 practice sessions a year," the study reports, usually in informal settings like trash dumps, rural woods, back yards and "street corners in known drug-trafficking areas."

One spoke of being motivated to improve his gun skills by his belief that officers "go to the range two, three times a week [and] practice arms so they can hit anything."

In reality, victim officers in the study averaged just 14 hours of sidearm training and 2.5 qualifications per year. Only 6 of the 50 officers reported practicing regularly with handguns apart from what their department required, and that was mostly in competitive shooting. Overall, the offenders practiced more often than the officers they assaulted, and this "may have helped increase [their] marksmanship skills," the study says.

The offender quoted above about his practice motivation, for example, fired 12 rounds at an officer, striking him 3 times. The officer fired 7 rounds, all misses.

More than 40% of the offenders had been involved in actual shooting confrontations before they feloniously assaulted an officer. Ten of these "street combat veterans," all from "inner-city, drug-trafficking environments," had taken part in 5 or more "criminal firefight experiences" in their lifetime.

One reported that he was 14 when he was first shot on the street, "about 18 before a cop shot me." Another said getting shot was a pivotal experience "because I made up my mind no one was gonna shoot me again."

Again in contrast, only 8 of the 50 LEO victims had participated in a prior shooting; 1 had been involved in 2 previously, another in 3. Seven of the 8 had killed offenders.

Concealment:

The offenders said they most often hid guns on their person in the front waistband, with the groin area and the small of the back nearly tied for second place. Some occasionally gave their weapons to another person to carry, "most often a female companion." None regularly used a holster, and about 40% at least sometimes carried a backup weapon.

In motor vehicles, they most often kept their firearm readily available on their person, or, less often, under the seat. In residences, most stashed their weapon under a pillow, on a nightstand, under the mattress--somewhere within immediate reach while in bed.

Almost all carried when on the move and strong majorities did so when socializing, committing crimes or being at home. About one-third brought weapons with them to work. Interestingly, the offenders in this study more commonly admitted having guns under all these circumstances than did offenders interviewed in the researchers' earlier 2 surveys, conducted in the 1980s and '90s.

According to Davis, "Male offenders said time and time again that female officers tend to search them more thoroughly than male officers. In prison, most of the offenders were more afraid to carry contraband or weapons when a female CO was on duty."

On the street, however, both male and female officers too often regard female subjects "as less of a threat, assuming that they not going to have a gun," Davis said. In truth, the researchers concluded that more female offenders are armed today than 20 years ago--"not just female gang associates, but female offenders generally."

Shooting Style:

Twenty-six of the offenders [about 60%], including all of the street combat veterans, "claimed to be instinctive shooters, pointing and firing the weapon without consciously aligning the sights," the study says.

"They practice getting the gun out and using it," Davis explained. "They shoot for effect." Or as one of the offenders put it: "[W]e're not working with no marksmanship... We just putting it in your direction, you know... It don't matter... as long as it's gonna hit you…if it's up at your head or your chest, down at your legs, whatever... Once I squeeze and you fall, then... if I want to execute you, then I could go from there."

Hit Rate:

More often than the officers they attacked, offenders delivered at least some rounds on target in their encounters. Nearly 70% of assailants were successful in that regard with handguns, compared to about 40% of the victim officers, the study found. (Efforts of offenders and officers to get on target were considered successful if any rounds struck, regardless of the number fired.)

Davis speculated that the offenders might have had an advantage because in all but 3 cases they fired first, usually catching the officer by surprise. Indeed, the report points out, "10 of the total victim officers had been wounded [and thus impaired] before they returned gunfire at their attackers."

Missed Cues:

Officers would less likely be caught off guard by attackers if they were more observant of indicators of concealed weapons, the study concludes. These particularly include manners of dress, ways of moving and unconscious gestures often related to carrying.

"Officers should look for unnatural protrusions or bulges in the waist, back and crotch areas," the study says, and watch for "shirts that appear rippled or wavy on one side of the body while the fabric on the other side appears smooth." In warm weather, multilayered clothing inappropriate to the temperature may be a giveaway. On cold or rainy days, a subject's jacket hood may not be covering his head because it is being used to conceal a handgun.

Because they eschew holsters, offenders reported frequently touching a concealed gun with hands or arms "to assure themselves that it is still hidden, secure and accessible" and hasn’t shifted. Such gestures are especially noticeable "whenever individuals change body positions, such as standing, sitting or exiting a vehicle." If they run, they may need to keep a constant grip on a hidden gun to control it.

Just as cops generally blade their body to make their sidearm less accessible, armed criminals "do the same in encounters with LEOs to ensure concealment and easy access."

An irony, Davis noted, is that officers who are assigned to look for concealed weapons, while working off-duty security at night clubs for instance, are often highly proficient at detecting them. "But then when they go back to the street without that specific assignment, they seem to 'turn off' that skill," and thus are startled--sometimes fatally--when a suspect suddenly produces a weapon and attacks.

Mind-set:

Thirty-six of the 50 officers in the study had "experienced hazardous situations where they had the legal authority" to use deadly force "but chose not to shoot." They averaged 4 such prior incidents before the encounters that the researchers investigated. "It appeared clear that none of these officers were willing to use deadly force against an offender if other options were available," the researchers concluded.

The offenders were of a different mind-set entirely. In fact, Davis said the study team "did not realize how cold blooded the younger generation of offender is. They have been exposed to killing after killing, they fully expect to get killed and they don't hesitate to shoot anybody, including a police officer. They can go from riding down the street saying what a beautiful day it is to killing in the next instant."

"Offenders typically displayed no moral or ethical restraints in using firearms," the report states. "In fact, the street combat veterans survived by developing a shoot-first mentality."

"Officers never can assume that a criminal is unarmed until they have thoroughly searched the person and the surroundings themselves." Nor, in the interest of personal safety, can officers "let their guards down in any type of law enforcement situation."

[END]

[American Patriot]

Ok... just the highlighted part (in red) is the part I was saying. They DO have military, or weapons training from the military.

My question was more about regular punks. They have no military training, stole their guns someplace, or bought them, do NOT bother to pay to go to a range and in the city would stand out doing "shooting training" in the basement or garage of some building.

The paper also points out "would be cop killers". Almost NONE of the local punks on the street are "cop killers" until they get put into a position to fight.

ANY of us COULD become a "cop killer" under the right circumstances. Doesn't make us BAD people. Means we'd hesitate unless pressed. I wouldn't pull a weapon on a cop unless it was a situation that looked like I was about to face an illegal execution or something worse.

THAT could happen the way things are going.

[American Patriot]

Well... to support your theory, Ryan, this is coming from a pretty Left Leaning survivalist group.... they also state they are "militarily trained"... so I guess you train yourself to fight against the best of them and hope like hell everyone is simply trying to sow fear out in the public.

Gangs – Possibly Your Biggest Security Threat

Communications, Defending, Defense, misc, Other, Retreats, Security, Social, Vulnerabilities Add comments

Jul 142012

The darker the color, the greater the density of gang members in the state. Source – FBI 2011 National Gang Threat Assessment.

You know about gangs from the movies, television, and sometimes from the newspapers, right?
You probably understand them to be disaffected lawless groups of underclass urban youth, often from ethnic minorities, and while a problem for sure in the inner cities, not something you’re likely to encounter, either hopefully in your normal daily lives, or – and more to the point – if you ever need to bug out to the safety of your rural retreat.
Many people also assume that because street gangs are lawless and disruptive, and because they deal in and use drugs, and because they seem to be made up of high school dropouts rather than honor roll students, they are anarchistic in nature, uncoordinated, and poorly managed. Their tendency to kill each other is viewed as further proof of their irrelevancy outside of the narrow geographic areas they can be found in, and outside of the drugs trade they seem to be such a part of.
Unfortunately, while some of the preceding two paragraphs is indeed correct, the most important parts are totally wrong. Gangs are not a geographically confined phenomenon affecting only their fellow members of the criminal classes. They have already infiltrated all parts of the US – rural and urban – and are engaged in all types of criminal activity, from ‘white collar’ crimes such as identity theft and mortgage fraud to more traditional activities such as drugs, prostitution and general violent crime.
Gangs members are also more numerous than you might think and steadily increasing in number. In 2010 it was estimated there were at least 1.4 million gang members in the US (up from a 2008/2009 estimate of 1 million). In four states (CA ID UT and NM) the gang members outnumber the police by more than six to one, in another seven states there are 4 – 6 gang members for every law enforcement official (NV WA MT ND NE IA MS).
As these numbers hint at, gangs are moving out of the cities and into the rural states and regions. States with more than four gang members per 1,000 of population in general are CA, NV, ID, NM, IL (all with 6+ per thousand) and AK, WA, UT, WY, CO, NE, KS, OK, MN, IA, MS, TN, NJ and ME (all with 4 – 6 gang members per thousand). This is illustrated on the map at the top of this article.
Some Scary Facts About Gangs

While some neighborhood gangs remain informal and amorphous casual groupings of people with little interest in anything outside their own territory, most gangs are very different. These days gangs can be multi-national organizations comprising sometimes tens of thousands of members, and involved in international trade just like many large corporations, albeit of illegal rather than regular goods. They have hierarchies of leadership, they form alliances with each other, and generally act – in some respects – rationally and in a coordinated manner.
Rather than being made up of aimless drifters and high school dropouts, some gangs even provide scholarships for selected members to go to college to learn regular business skills which can subsequently be applied to benefit the gang. Other gang members are recruited out of the military, while some gang members remain active in the reserves, so the gangs have the benefit of the finest weapons and training that Uncle Sam can provide.
Gangs also have the latest in military grade weapons, both legal and illegal, and not only do they have higher powered weapons and munitions, they also have the training in how to use them effectively and a complete lack of moral restraint or care of consequences for when it comes to choosing to use them. They’re not just ‘gang bangers’ with ‘Saturday Night Special’ cheap revolvers stuck down the fronts of their trousers. Some of them are highly trained and battle hardened weapons experts who have fought in our various foreign wars, and who now are training their fellow gang members in the same combat skills, and with the same equipment – weapons, night optics, protective clothing, and field medical care – as they became proficient with in the armed services.
Gang members also actively seek to join police departments and other government organizations – and often succeed in doing so. Because of this, some gangs have as good or better intelligence about what the police are doing than what the police have about the gang members – it is difficult with some ethnic groupings to get police informers into gangs, and with our strange obsession about treating illegal aliens as a special privileged class of criminal these days, the determination, particularly at national levels, to give illegal aliens a ‘free ride’ and to look the other way whenever accidentally encountering one has also helped gangs preserve their own ‘opsec’. Needless to say, significant numbers of gang members are illegal aliens – oh yes, and they’re also actively involved in bringing more illegal aliens into the country as well.
Those gangs that haven’t infiltrated members into local law enforcement might still be able to pretend to be law officers. Gangs regularly target police vehicles to steal weapons, bullet proof vests, and police ID.
While gangs are happily involved in most traditional forms of crime, they haven’t restricted themselves to only crimes of violence. They have opportunistically spread into just about every form of illegal endeavor. Gangs even make use of mortgage banking and identity fraud the same as the best of white-collar criminals.
And while gang members like to flash recognition signs at each other, and to wear particular colors and styles of clothing, that’s not the only way they communicate. They also use high-tech methods of communication for command and control purposes, including encrypted voice communications, computer to computer links, and throw-away cell phones.
Gangs also use public internet communities as a means of recruiting new gang members, with specific individuals tasked with formal recruiting duties. Gangs aren’t growing in size as a result of randomness – they are actively – and successfully – recruiting new members, much more successfully than your local church or community group.
Gangs Are Now in Rural Areas as Well as Cities

Gangs have already spread across the country. They’re not exclusively an inner city/big city problem. They’re increasingly setting up in rural communities. The crime you’re seeking to escape from, by moving to a small township somewhere, may have already moved there ahead of you.
Unfortunately, the spread of migrant agricultural workers from Mexico and other Central/South American countries into agri-business states has also had them bring their gangs with them. And our willingness to welcome refugees has also seen us welcome refugee gangsters as well as refugees, whether they be from Somalia or Russia or anyplace else.
There’s a related consideration to keep in mind as well. You may not recognize gang members when you see them. Sure, some gang members are obvious, but not all gang members fit the classic profiles. In addition to youthful hispanics and blacks, middle-aged white men are gang members too, and as you surely know, we as preppers are often painted with too broad a brush, confusing us with ‘white supremacists’ and ‘neo-nazis’ and ‘fundamentalists’.
While we of course don’t like this blurring of the lines between ordinary law-abiding folk such as ourselves who simply wish to prudently prepare for possible future breakdowns in society, and extremists who wish to contribute to the breakdown in society, there is an uncomfortable element in this confusion. Sometimes it can be difficult for us to distinguish between fellow law-abiding and prepping ‘good folks’ and other people who while also prepping for an adverse future are most definitely not good folks.
This may be part of the reason why Idaho is shown as having so many gang members. We’re not sure if all the so-called gang members in ID are truly gang members, or if perhaps they are merely ‘counter-cultural’ types that in the last few years the Department of Justice has been distressingly eager to categorize as either domestic terrorists or gang members.
But, whatever and whoever these folks are, it is always prudent to keep in mind that the person next to you in the store who is also buying up bulk supplies of long life food, cases of ammo, or whatever else, may not necessarily share all the same values as yourself, and may not for sure be the sort of person you’d want to invite into your retreat, either in good times or bad.
Who is Winning the War Against Gangs?

Is there even a ‘war against gangs’, and if there is, do we have any reason to believe it is any less a colossal failure than our war against drugs?
While some elements of local gangs are indeed made up of the dregs of society doing their best to eliminate themselves from the gene pool, there’s precious little evidence that even against such dysfunctional adversaries our law enforcement bodies are winning the upper hand. No matter how many task forces and initiatives and community groups are formed, and no matter how much money is thrown at the issue, these least threatening types of gangs still seem to be thriving.
The upper elements of regional, national and international gangs are calculating, intelligent and very formidable opponents, and they are definitely growing in numbers and distribution. As evidence of that is the ongoing growth and spread of their gangs.
The FBI/National Gang Intelligence Center issued a National Gang Threat Assessment document in 2009 (you can read it here) in which they estimated there were about one million gang members in the US. A new National Gang Threat Assessment document was published in 2011 (you can read it here) in which the estimate had grown to 1.4 million.
The FBI say, to partially explain and excuse this apparent 40% leap in gang membership in a mere two years, that the reason for the growth in their estimate is in part due to better intelligence in 2011. But that’s not reassuring at any level – if the FBI couldn’t estimate gang numbers to within 40% of the real count in 2009, what else were they overlooking then, and what else are they still overlooking now? They didn’t say, in their 2009 report ‘this number might be off by 40%’; how are we to know that the 1.4 million count now is any more accurate?
There is a lot of information about gangs on the internet of course, and while the two FBI reports are more authoritative than many other sources, they have to be read in context with the FBI’s own constraints and framing agenda. Does it suit the FBI, in cases where a judgment call could be made, to be alarmist or to be calming in how they interpret the incomplete and raw data they receive?
If you want to know more, we suggest you should do a fairly open-minded and broad review of the published literature, and most of all, make sure you accept it free of the constraints of normal civilized behavior. Many of these gangs live a life and interact with normal people in a way that truly is (or could be) your worst nightmare, and unfortunately, it is in the rural communities these days where they are often most dominant.
At least in the inner cities, a confrontation between gang members and police can see tens if not hundreds of police rush to the location in only a few minutes, backed up by SWAT teams, helicopters, and all sorts of other formidable resources. But what about in a lightly populated county, where there might only be half a dozen sheriff’s deputies on duty at a given time, and half of them are 50+ miles away from the other half? This is distressingly a common circumstance in some areas these days – where one or two policemen realize that reinforcements are at least 30 minutes away and potentially an hour or more away, and even if the reinforcements all turn up magically in just a few minutes, they’ll still be outnumbered ten to one by the gang members they are confronting.
We know, from discussions with law enforcement officers and third parties, about counties where the police are massively outnumbered by gang members and where the gangs have pretty much taken over the county. Normal residents have either moved out or been forced to adjust their lives to accept the impact and presence of the gangs around them. The police will still happily give us, as ordinary law-abiding folks who support our local police and accept the rule of law, a ticket for doing 33 mph in a 30 mph zone, but if you’re a gang member, they’ll develop sudden selective blindness.
The police are used to ordinary criminals mouthing off when they are arrested, making all sorts of wild threats about what they will do when they get free, variously to the police officers and their families. They also know that 99.9% of the time, these threats are empty and without any meaning. But if the police overstep the bounds of the uneasy informal truces with their local gangs, they know that the threats are very real.
This creates for an uneasy sort of truce between the police and the gangs, with the gangs in the ascendancy.
Who is winning the war against gangs? Isn’t it obvious? The war is over, ended before it even started. The gangs have won.
Implications for Preppers

We headed this article with the claim that gangs are possibly your biggest security threat. Hopefully the article has opened your eyes to how and why this can be so.
In particular, consider the following points :

• Gangs are everywhere, including quite possibly in the towns and countryside close to your retreat. In other words, they’re already dangerously close to you.
• Gangs have many members, and are affiliated with potentially tens of thousands of fellow gang members in other branches of the gang. In other words, they outnumber you, maybe by ten to one, maybe by one hundred to one.
• Gangs have well-developed military competencies, and the weapons to match. In other words, expect to be confronted by battle hardened combatants armed with heavy caliber automatic weapons.
• Gangs have no moral restraints acting on them. They break the law with relative impunity now, and in a crisis seeing a collapse of society and its normal values, they’ll be even freer in their actions then. In other words, what’s yours risks becoming theirs.

What can you do? There are some small glimmers of hope. While the gangs are not constrained by normal moral or legal considerations, they do have a moderately rational leadership. Their future success doesn’t depend exclusively on plundering your retreat – they can turn away from you and concentrate on other easier opportunities if it suits them to do so. They’ve shown they can co-exist alongside local law enforcement, provided that the local law doesn’t become too bothersome. If you can create a ‘win-win’ that will result in that outcome, so much the better. (We have some thoughts on such scenarios, and you’ll understand our hesitation in publishing them for all to see.)
On the other hand, they’ll not be fazed by the thought of a ‘lose-lose’ situation. Particularly in a Level 2/3 event, they’ll have no shortage of people wishing to join their gang, and if they have to sacrifice 50 or 100 new recruits as part of an operation to eliminate you and your retreat, they’ll probably happily do so.
The likely impact of gangs on you and your retreat underscores, yet again, the essential need for you to be part of a medium or larger sized community, whether it be a Code Green community, one you create yourselves, or any other similar sort of arrangement. If it is just you against 50 gang members, you know how that story will end. But if it is 50 (or 100) of you against 50 gang members, you have a better range of endings to work towards.

[American Patriot]

And I have this article. Note that this guy "G-rates" the article because he feels that the general public shouldn't have this intelligence....

Street Gang Tactics

Emerging trends & enforcement strategies

Dave Grossi | From the May 2011 Issue Friday, May 20, 2011

123

Taskforces are beneficial in bringing down criminal enterprises. As a group, they have better access to funds, equiptment and intelligence. Contact your local FBI office for more information on starting a MAGFT.
AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes


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• A Short History of Hollow Points

My July 2010 column (“Biker Run Tactics”) generated a lot of positive feedback. So I decided to devote this column to something that affects cops everywhere: street gang tactics.


I had the pleasure of attending a three-day FBI confab on street gang trends a few months ago. Taught by an incredible cadre of local and federal experts, the class focused on emerging gang trends, as well as enforcement strategies that departments can implement to combat this growing threat.


The conference was restricted to law enforcement professionals and entrance to the classes was by badge only, so I’m going to give you the G-rated version. Here’s why: Even though Law Officer is a subscription-only publication not available to those cop buffs and police wannabe’s you see scouring the racks of Barnes & Noble for the quasi-cop rags, I feel that keeping the heavy-duty street-gang intelligence information to a minimum is prudent.


The Gang Threats
Presently, there are about 800,000 hardcore street gang members living in the U.S. If you add in the 150,000 or so prison gang members currently behind bars and the 50,000 or so outlaw biker gang members, that’s about 1 million potential threats to officers. More than a few of these 800,000 gangbangers are third- and fourth-generation thugs. Some are as young as 8 years old.


Currently, the FBI recognizes about 40 national-level gangs. By national-level, they mean gangs that have crossed state lines to set up their criminal enterprises. The most recognizable of these national-level gangs are the Bloods, the Crips, the Latin Kings, the Gangster Disciples, Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), Nortenos-14 and the prison gang, the Mexican Mafia.
However, it’s the emergence of the other 2,000-plus local or neighborhood street gangs that I want to focus on in this piece. This is because the FBI feels it’s these local gangs that pose the greatest threat to law enforcement today.


Recognizing You Have a Problem
Every city has a gang problem, either from national-level or homegrown gangs. My hometown of Rochester, N.Y., has the G-Boyz and the Tremont Street Gang. Tampa, Fla., has the 54th Avenue Gang. Miami has the 77th Street Gang, and Los Angeles has had the 2,000-plus member Florencia (or F-13) gang operating in parts of their city for years. You know who your local gangsters are. Municipalities that claim not to have a gang problem are in denial: They’re delaying the plague that these street vermin bring to the communities they reside in, which is the first step to being overrun with gang crime.


Gangs are a $5-billion-a-year business. Street-corner drug dealing, drive-by shootings, home invasions, robberies, car-jackings and school violence—not to mention the graffiti and sneaker-adorned telephone wires that gangs use to mark or tag their territory—are just some of the more outward signs that gangs have set up operation in your town.


Law Enforcement’s Approach
History’s shown us that traditional law enforcement tactics haven’t worked to curb criminal gang activity. Just taking down one or two gangbangers for individual crimes still leaves the gang active and operational. Even if you’re lucky enough to nab a gang leader, most still have the juice to run their criminal enterprise while locked up.


Remember: There are almost 150,000 prison gangbangers behind bars, and most prison gangs are just off-shoots of street gangs. Unless the entire gang is disrupted and dismantled, those on the outside are still active and able to keep their illegal enterprises operational. Also, just taking down one or two gang members gives the appearance to the gang that their local police agency is inept and ineffective in completely shutting down their operations.


So what’s the answer? Recognize these gangs for what they really are: criminal enterprises. Many small- to medium-sized cities that don’t have the manpower or funds to create their own full-time gang units have established Multi-Agency Gang Task Forces (MAGTF). These task forces comprise federal agents (mostly FBI, but sometimes ATF, Postal Inspectors and DEA agents) and local cops. By including the feds, these taskforces benefit from the expertise the FBI has in prosecuting large-scale criminal enterprises via the RICO statutes.


They can also take advantage of equipment and funds the feds have at their disposal. The asset forfeiture that goes along with federal prosecutions of cash, guns and cars that these gangs possess is just icing on the cake. But the real benefit of MAGTF—besides the show of force they bring during any arrest—is the intelligence other local cops bring to the table.


Pieces of the Pie
Although there’s no doubt the feds have the tools and funds, nobody knows your turf better than you do. School Resource Officers (SROs) are in the presence of potential, sometimes current, gangbangers every day. SROs see the faces, know the street names and see the social activities of these members on a daily basis.


Your correctional officers know the real names of the members and most likely will have full-face photographs and pictures of their gang tattoos, as well as a list of visitors.


Parole and probation officers are also an incredible source of intelligence on these people as they pass through the criminal justice system. They may have monthly or even weekly contact with them, and may have even performed home visits.
And, of course, you and your officers, who fill out the field investigations during your street or traffic stops, have valuable data on the cars gang members drive, the folks they hang out with and the places they visit.


Law Enforcement Isn’t Immune
Here’s a tidbit worth mentioning that will piss off a lot of cops. It’s long been accepted that gangbangers have been infiltrating the military for years now. All five branches have been targeted by the major gangs for not only the weapons training, but the assault tactics taught during basic and advanced training. In fact, military trucks, buildings and walls lining the streets of some of our own military installations are replete with street-gang graffiti.


Now, the dirty secret: Law enforcement isn’t immune to the street-gang infiltration either. In fact, last year, the DEA agent in charge of a local drug taskforce was found to be a high-ranking street-gang member who was actually planning to take down an armored car with a group of his fellow bangers. Luckily, his plan was discovered before it could be put into operation.


Recently a law enforcement agency in southwest Florida was targeted for infiltration by a local gangbanger who’d completed almost all of his pre-employment exams for the police academy—his physical, the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, his physical agility tests, even his background checks were just about done. If it wasn’t for the sharp eyes of a local street cop who recognized the homemade gang tattoo on the subject’s forearm, this guy might be in the academy as we speak, training on the firing range or even working his way through the FTO program.


Emerging Trends
Lastly, a word on what the FBI says are the two latest emerging trends involving street gangs: all-girl gangs and Haitian gangs. Historically, 80% of all street gangs have been male. However, the gang experts who presented at this conference indicated that all-female gangs, some made up of white 14–16-year-olds, have become common across the U.S., and, according to the FBI, will be established in every American city by 2020. BWA (Bitches with Attitude) is one of the most visible. Many of these young girls are from middle-class homes, work after school and, in reality, are part-time gangbangers living at home with mom and dad. They’re most visible at school functions, on Facebook, MySpace and YouTube. Your SROs are probably the most valuable source of intelligence on these all-girl gangs.


Haitian gangs are also becoming much more prevalent in the U.S., especially after the tragic earthquake there last year. The mass influx of thousands of presumed orphaned children brought with it members of several violent street gangs, some actually posing as the parents of the children to gain entrance into the U.S. Florida has seen the majority of these bangers, with more than 50 Haitian gangs now identified throughout south Florida. Many of these Haitian street gangs are becoming Americanized and starting to adopt hand signs, tattoos and specific styles of dress, mostly black-and-white T-shirts, something they didn’t do in their home country. Like our Midwest, east and west coast gangs, they recognize the benefit of expansion into other states. Names such as 64th Street Outlaws, 1-Way, NFL (Niggas for Life), NTO (Niggas Taking Over) and the violent Zoe Pound gang may be coming to a town near you soon.


These Haitian gangs differ from most others in that they combine males and females, have no rules, no real leader, no designated turf (except for drug dealing) and their only goal is to make as much money as fast as possible. Street gangs were generally allowed to exist and operate openly in Haiti because they networked with the government officials there. In fact, many Haitian police officers were members of these street gangs.


Haitian gangs prefer long guns—AK-47s, AR-15s and SKSs—but high-capacity semiautomatic pistols are also popular. Shooting scenes you respond to will probably contain dozens of spent casings—spray and pray is their mentality. It’s just too bad if an innocent gets in the way. Few of these gangbangers work, most just exist day-to-day.


Summary
The biggest enemy in combating street gang violence is denial: Communities, city officials, even some police chiefs simply refuse to accept that gangs have moved in or are residing in their midst. Many simply view gang graffiti as vandalism. They look at the stylized dress of a group of young people as a phase, and hand signs and handshakes as innocent communication. By the time the city leaders admit and accept that they have a gang problem, it’s already too late. The gang has become entrenched, set up shop, laid out their territory and started recruiting new members.
However, if law enforcement takes a proactive approach to addressing gang crime through MAGTFs and not just investigating gangs on a case-by-case basis, they can minimize the negative impact street gangs have on local municipalities.
If you want more information on developing a MAGFT or want to merge an existing gang unit with several others to form a MAGFT, contact your local FBI office. They can provide information on the procedures for developing one.
Coming to Your Town
According to the FBI, these threats are on the rise.


All-Female Gangs: Often middle-class girls, 14–16 years old, who are in school and maybe even holding down a job—all while gangbanging on the side.


Haitian Gangs: Often former Haitian police officers and gang members who have relocated to the U.S., Haitian gangs differ from traditional American gangs: They might not have a recognized leader; they integrate men and women; they’re familiar with heavy weaponry; and money determines their behavior almost exclusively.

[American Patriot]

There's more to this story. Just trying to get the articles to come up on my screen.

4 teen girls held in taped beating of Philadelphia woman

ASSOCIATED PRESs September 28, 2012 10:02AM



CHESTER, Pa. — Four teenage girls have been arrested outside Philadelphia in connection with the beating of a woman that was recorded on video and posted to Facebook.


Authorities say the teens will be charged as adults in the beating in the city of Chester. Police are looking for two more suspects.


Detective James Nolan said Friday the fourth suspect is a 16-year-old girl who was turned in by her father Thursday night. He says the teens appear to have attacked the woman “for fun” this week.


Video shows a group of girls walking along before suddenly deciding to attack the woman sitting on her stoop. They follow the victim into her home as she tries to escape, taking turns beating her.


Police describe the woman as “mentally challenged.” She is being treated.

[American Patriot]

Teen Girls in Videotaped Beating of Woman Are Remorseless, Cop Says

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By CHRISTINA NG (@ChristinaNg27)

Sept. 28, 2012



Four teenage girls caught on videotape laughingly beating a defenseless woman are remorseless and defiant even as they are about to be arraigned on criminal charges in a Philadelphia court, police said today.


The girls videotaped the beating and posted it on Facebook. Someone who saw the video called the cops.
Four of the six teens involved have been arrested and they are aged 16 and 17, according to the Chester Police Department. Authorities are searching for the other two girls.


The cell phone video shows five girls standing on the street Tuesday night, playing around for the camera before the assault began.


"It's a group of girls on a corner chatting, rapping, goofing around," Chester Police Det. James Nolan told ABCNews.com.. "Then they decide, from the audio, you hear them say they're going to 'f**k this b***h up.' They plot the thing as they walk up."


The teens approach a woman sitting on her doorstep and a girl takes the first punch. They chase her into the house where the woman screams as the girls laugh and beat her with their hands, fists, feet and a chair. The video shows the girls pushing each other out of the way and then delivering a flurry of punches to the defenseless woman.

"It's 90 seconds or so that they beat on her and then they run out," Nolan said, calling the beating "senseless."


Surveillance footage from outside shows the six girls run out of the house and down the street. The victim did not call the police. Police said it "seems to be the case" that the woman suffers from "some diminished capacity," but they do not know the details of her mental capacity.


After the video was reported to police, the 48-year-old victim was interviewed by police and treated for injuries. She sustained treatment for her injuries.


The girls have been charged with simple assault, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, burglary, harassment, and criminal trespass, Nolan said. The district attorney's office has decided that the girls will be tried as adults and they could face up to 20 years in prison, if convicted.


Police knew of only one attorney retained so far for one of the suspects and the attorney did not immediately respond to request for comment.


Nolan said that the girls are not showing any remorse.


"It was a big party and they're still defiant," Nolan said. "There's no discernible reason for what happened other than fun, sport."


Nolan said that for the community and even for veteran law enforcement officials, the assault has hit a nerve.


"You can see it. Things like this happen, but we usually get the end result," he said. "To actually see it go on, that's what's got everyone's attention. To actually see the crime happen, it's almost like we're all witnesses, which is something we don't often have."


"It's people's greatest fear to be attacked unwarranted," Nolan said. "It's the one fear people have, to be attacked."

[American Patriot]

Teen girls arraigned on adult charges in beating of woman

By Mari Schaefer
Inquirer Staff Writer


Four teenage girls were arraigned today on adult charges in the video taped beating of a 48-year-old mentally challenged woman in Chester.Two others were sought in the attack, which the assailants allegedly recorded and then posted on Facebook.
The four alleged attackers arraigned today were Anye Dennis, 16; Rahmiyah Henderson, 16; Jamia Davis, 15 and Jonyea Bell 16
They are charged with aggravated assault, reckless endangerment of another person, harassment, burglary and other offenses.
Confusion reigned at Chester District Court as Judge Dawn L. Vann first arraigned the teens via video in a closed courtroom and then arraigned them again in an open courtroom.
Vann set bail at $50,000 each. Each girl must post $5,000 to be released.
The judge had no comment unusual repeat arraignments.
The assault, as shown on the video, began with one girl walloping the head of the victims as she sat, defenseless, on the low front step of her Chester house earlier this week.
Then a pack of half-dozen girls swarmed in and whaled mercilessly on the victim. They rushed inside her Morton Avenue home and threw her to the sofa.
Arms windmilled. A girl in a white T-shirt removed a shoe and used it to smack the victim. Another yanked away one assailant - so she could jump in and throw punches, too. After a minute, the attackers fled.
Posted on Facebook, the video has a soundtrack, too, with tough talk, expletives, and girlish laughter.
"Talk to her first, talk to her first," one attacker squealed, suggesting how to set the victim up for a sucker punch.
A parent brought the video to the attention of Chester police Thursday after she saw it on the social-networking site.
Watching it so sickened Police Commissioner Joseph Bail Jr. that he ordered a citywide dragnet for the suspects, using every resource, including the detective bureau, the juvenile division, the major crimes unit, and every patrol officer.
"That's basically the same template we use for a homicide," said Detective James Nolan.
The victim did not report the crime on the night it happened, but did seek medical attention for cuts and bruises, police said.
"They beat the bejesus out of her," said Nolan. "But the attack was more degrading than physically damaging."
The Facebook video, which shows the attackers hooting, hollering, and dancing triumphantly, appears to have been posted as a sort of visual validation.
"It's the fastest way to let the town know what you did," said Nolan.
"The mayor came and viewed it" and was disgusted, said the detective. "What gets most people is the lack of concern for human life. They are treating this person as if she were an 'it.' "

[Ryan Ruck]

I heard about this but hadn't had a chance to dig into it.

My thought on reading the headline was that I'd post it in the "Hate Crimes That Aren't Hate Crimes" thread. Would I be wrong in my assumption?

[American Patriot]

Probably. I forgot there was a thread for that. Sorry.

[Malsua]

I heard about this but hadn't had a chance to dig into it.

My thought on reading the headline was that I'd post it in the "Hate Crimes That Aren't Hate Crimes" thread. Would I be wrong in my assumption?

Lessee here... Anye Dennis, 16; Rahmiyah Henderson, 16; Jamia Davis, 15 and Jonyea Bell 16

Reads like a random sampling of people who have Obama fone. They got foo stance, got this ability, so shall security and lo inca.

[American Patriot]

Damn Mal, I didn't know you groked ebonics....

[Malsua]

Damn Mal, I didn't know you groked ebonics....

You could say I'm a stranger in a strange land.

[American Patriot]

I believe us all to be strangers in an even stranger land.....

What was it Reagan said? "I didn't leave the party, the party left me!"

We didn't leave the country, the country left US.

[Malsua]

I believe us all to be strangers in an even stranger land.....

What was it Reagan said? "I didn't leave the party, the party left me!"

We didn't leave the country, the country left US.

Look at the origin of Grok

[American Patriot]

I know the origin of Grok. LOL

[Malsua]

Ok....so now does my comment seem to have a different duality? heh.

[American Patriot]

Yes. lol I got it the first time.


You know.... I am so frustrated with everything. Every time I turn, someone throws a road block in my way, something to make my blood pressure go up.

Every time I look at this country, I see stupid people around me.

Like that movie, "I see stupid people, and they don't know they're stupid...."

lol

Life in the United States has changed alright, and not in a good way.

A few days ago I had a conversation with my daughter. She's actually a "conservative". However... she is refusing to vote for Romney because she's bought into the bullshit being fed to her and everyone else on television.

She hates Rush Limbaugh because of things she's HEARD about him.

My wife, who is a registered Democrat hates Limbaugh (or did until a couple of days ago, another story here, lol) because of things she's HEARD about him.

Now, my wife is actually a Conservative too. She's a gun nut, she believes in hunting and thinks the dumbfucks out there who are "environmentalists" have hurt the country, she believes in Free Speech and she believes Obama HAS GOT TO GO.

But both these women in my life don't believe the world will blow up around us.

Neither of them are "stupid" and in fact are highly intelligent ladies, but over the years they have been indoctrinated by the schools and television.

(One of the reasons I shut down cable and the television besides saving money was to FORCE my wife into reading more and looking up news instead of getting it from some Liberal asshole on television).

[Ryan Ruck]

So you guys are saying that if Obama had (more) daughters they'd look like them?

[Malsua]

So you guys are saying that if Obama had (more) daughters they'd look like them?

Well, they'll certainly have Obama fo and be part of the 113 million people on foo stance.

[American Patriot]

*I* didn't say that.

But... how's that go? "Fake but accurate"?