Gang study recommendations already in use in Lowcountry

COLUMBIA — Findings released Wednesday by a gang prevention committee will help agencies across the state launch a coordinated attack against gang activity, but many of the suggestions already are being put to use in the Lowcountry, local officials said.

The state Gang Prevention Study Committee, created by the Legislature last year, made five recommendations on how the state can curb gang violence: use the grand jury to prosecute gang-related crimes; provide specialized education for law enforcement; mandate a reporting system to track activity; educate the community; and develop a comprehensive plan.

North Charleston Police Chief Jon Zumalt said the more information collected at a statewide level the better.

"It's been an issue for us for some time," Zumalt said. "All five of these things we've been doing and we support."

State Attorney General Henry McMaster said the primary finding of the Gang Prevention Study Committee is simple.

"We do have a gang problem in South Carolina and a lot of people don't believe that," McMaster said. "But it's trueand they are going to stay unless we do something about it."

The study committee is one measure included in legislation that came out of the Senate Criminal Justice System Task Force last year. The committee was formed in the summer of 2006 and continues to examine ways to curb violence.

The legislation also gave the state grand jury authority to investigate gang crimes. The grand jury has investigated three cases since the legislation was signed by the governor in June, McMaster said.

Charleston Police Sgt. Debbie Fritts, who is head of the department's crime intelligence and crime analysis units, said the department has not yet had a case that matches the criteria spelled out in the law. The law states that a known gang composed of at least five members must be connected to four gang-motivated incidents, three of which have to occur since the law was passed in June.

She said officers are being trained to look at cases in a new way.

"They need to understand what gangs are and how to get the information back to us," she said.

One of the first hurdles the state must address is the lack of data on gang activity. The committee wants the state to pass a mandatory reporting system through the State Law Enforcement Division. McMaster said he thinks the starting point would be to have law enforcement agencies add another check box on police reports to indicate whether a crime was gang-related.

Fritz said the department added the check box two weeks ago and also revamped field contact cards that will help officers identify possible gang members they come in contact with.

In addition to giving law enforcement the tools they needed, the key to addressing gang activity is bringing interested parties together, McMaster said.

He said the committee — made up of legislators, church leaders and the state's social service agencies — will continue its work. He also encouraged the public to get involved.

"There's all sorts of things that the average citizen can do and we're calling on those citizens now," McMaster said.

While it's hard to measure the specifics of the problem, Bill Byars, director of the state Department of Juvenile Justice, said he has seen the growing problem through the detained juveniles and their stories.

"It is time that we took action," Byars said. "These are South Carolina's children who are in danger. These are South Carolinians who are being hurt by the gang activity."

Byars encouraged the public to turn to their local sheriff or Juvenile Justice office to help in dealing with gangs.

A.V. Strong, executive director of A Better Way "Project Gang Out," a nonprofit, faith-based group in Columbia, said that last year, 1,000 youths participated in the group's programs and 95 percent were involved in gangs.

"This is not a time for panic," Strong said. "This is a time for process. We just don't want to believe we can't get this problem under control."

Josh Lorick, director of the youth mentor program in the Attorney General's Office, said he gets calls from families and teens looking for help. One conversation with a young man sticks out in his mind, and, although there is no easy answer, it is a call for action.

"Our concern is being able to get ahead of the curve," Lorick said. "As one young man asked me, 'If I get out of the gang, can you protect me?' Of course, I didn't have an immediate answer for him."

The Rev. Eddie Guess of Good News Global Ministry in Columbia said law enforcement and faith-based communities have different responsibilities and that what the public and churchgoers can do is to let young men and women know they are loved and that someone cares about them.

"There are absent fathers. There are teenagers with babies and they don't have the slightest clue as to how to parent them," Guess said. "I believe the faith-based community has a responsibility."

Among the committee's finding is that the average age of a gang member is 15.8 years old and two of the main reasons they join is poverty and a lack of adult supervision, McMaster said.

Reach Andy Paras at 745-5891 or aparas@postandcourier.com. Reach Yvonne M. Wenger at 803-799-9051 or ywenger@post andcourier.com.