GUARDIAN ANGELS LEADER VOWS TO 'PEEL AWAY' GANG TROUBLES

New York-Based Anti-Crime Group Targets Calgary

The only thing better than a guardian angel is a whole chapter of
them -- especially when it comes to cleaning up gang crime, says the
leader of the namesake U.S.-based anti-crime group.

The head of the tough-talking, street-strutting, New York-based
Guardian Angels wants to start a chapter in Calgary.

"What we are best known for in our 27 years is our gang
intervention," said Curtis Sliwa, who researched Calgary's gang
problems and says his famous red beret approach can work.

"Streets run through our veins. We develop a sixth sense and follow
the trail," said Sliwa, who has started chapters in 60 cities in six countries.

"We hope to be visiting Calgary after the Easter holiday to start
laying the groundwork."

But the Calgary Police Service's response is cautiously lukewarm.

"To the best of my knowledge, we've not received anything from them,
so its premature to talk about anything to do with the Guardian
Angels' plans for Calgary because we don't know what they are," said
CPS spokesman Robert Palmer. "If they give us some kind of proposal,
we'll take a look at it."

Palmer said the CPS operates as a community-based police service,
part of a "large comprehensive network" that makes the city a safe
place to live.

He cited Block Watch, Neighborhood Watch and Radio Patrol as three
examples of that network.

In 2005, five homicides in the city -- all unsolved murders of young
Asian men -- were gang-related.

"The gangs the Guardian Angels have targeted wander the streets.
Gangs in Calgary do not have turf. They don't roam the streets. They
travel in cars and have cellphones to take drug orders," said Palmer.

The Guardian Angels formula is simple, said Sliwa. Unarmed patrols
deter crime, alert police when a crime takes place and provide
medical attention to a victim when necessary.

Local volunteers are put through a three-month training program that
includes CPR and martial arts.

Then the "cherry picking" targeting youth involved with gangs begins.

"We start with the wannabes. They like the feeling of being a gang
banger but don't want to go the whole nine yards. We start
manipulating them, challenging them and offering them an alternative
to join us," said Sliwa.

The Guardian Angels "peel away the layers" by targeting prospects --
those who hot-wire cars and shake down victims to prove themselves.

"They're buying into the gang thing lock, stock and barrel," he said.

"The last group poses the biggest threat. They live, eat, walk and
talk gang. They know it is a matter of time before they are dead or
incarcerated."

Sliwa admits U.S. streets have been deadly for Guardian Angels.

"We had six Guardian Angels shot and killed in the line of duty," he
said. "I was shot five times."

Local chapters raise money for radios and the trademark red berets
that cost about $7.50 US each. "We cost zip. We incur the costs in New York."

Some have dismissed the Guardian Angels as a vigilante group.
Recently, Sliwa was told to leave Toronto.

"We're not wanted in Toronto. In Canada, that's the norm -- treating
me like I was (President) George W. Bush with missiles in my
pockets," he said. "Don't reject this notion simply because it's American."

Still, while many Americans embrace the Guardian Angels, others like
law officials in Houston express concerns.

Houston's gang problems have escalated on the heels of the arrival
last September of 150,000 refugees of hurricane Katrina. Invited by
concerned citizens, the Guardian Angels arrived there last week to
set up a chapter.

"What we are not interested in is them taking matters into their own
hands. I have heard that is more the rule than the exception," said
Sgt. David Crain, spokesman for the Houston Police Department.

That Guardian Angel volunteers are trained in martial arts leads
Houston police to worry that they lean more to "intervention, rather
than reporting crime to police," he said, adding citizen volunteers
may expose themselves to injury and civil liability if someone is injured.

Calgary's David Baxter, a father of three, initiated contact with the
Guardian Angels about a year ago.

"I kinda like what they do," said Baxter, a Calgarian since 1977.

"When I got here, there were less than a half a million people.
Nobody was afraid to go out or take the bus at night. You can't say that now."

Baxter is concerned there is no one willing to tackle the gang problem.

"There doesn't seem to be anyone willing to do it. There's a valid
fear of repercussions," he said.

After his daughter was bullied on a C-Train, Baxter researched the
Internet and found the Guardian Angels. It was Baxter's call that
ultimately convinced the group to come to Calgary.

Madelyn McDonald, with the EXIT Outreach program which helps youth in
crisis, grew up with the Guardian Angels in New York.

"They are not a vigilante group. They are the eyes and ears of the
community. They do good work," said McDonald, who is familiar with
the drug, prostitution and gang-related activity haunting Calgary's youth.

"These are citizens. They may have more impact than police in uniform."