Gang Deconstruction

Prosecuting gang offenders using vertical prosecution, enhanced sentencing,
and Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations and conspiracy statutes.[1]
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Gang Membership as a Prosecution Enhancement
Federal legislation allows U.S. Attorneys to enhance the penalty for crimes committed
by gang members. A growing number of states have passed or are considering passing
similar enhanced prosecution legislation. In practice, it is challenging to prove that an
offender is a member of a gang or that the crime benefits the gang; therefore, it can be
difficult to bring enhancement to bear on prosecuting criminal activity.
California, which leads the nation in the trend to enhance prosecution, describes the
process this way: "any person who is convicted of a felony committed for the benefit of,
at the direction of, or in association with any criminal street gang, with the specific intent
to promote, further, or assist in any criminal conduct by gang members, shall, upon
conviction of that felony, in addition and consecutive to the punishment prescribed for
the felony," become subject to additional terms, enumerated in the code. Guidance is
provided under the California code for persons convicted of misdemeanor offenses.
In many instances, prosecution of gang crime at the federal level relies on codes that
are specific to the crime involved. Other statutes may be brought to bear - for example,
the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) statute or various
conspiracy statutes.
There is a federal statute specific to gangs: "Criminal Street Gangs" 18 U.S.C. § 521.
This statute holds that "the sentence of a person convicted of an offense described in
subsection (c) [subsection enumerates offenses] shall be increased by up to 10 years if
the offense is committed under the circumstances described in subsection (d)." [See] 18
U.S.C. § 521.
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[Selected] Research and Evaluation Projects on Gangs
NIJ has sponsored evaluations of anti-gang and anti-gun-violence programs ranging
from Chicago CeaseFire to Project Safe Neighborhoods. These programs were
informed by the strengths and weaknesses of past efforts, such as Boston Ceasefire
and the Strategic Approaches to Community Safety Initiative.
Process and Outcome Evaluation of G.R.E.A.T.
The Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T.) program is a school-based,
law enforcement officer-instructed classroom curriculum for middle-school youth. The
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