PROSECUTOR TO CONVENE SUMMIT ON GANGS

Conference to Focus On Law, Culture, Protecting Children

Gangs are a growing problem in Maryland, from international networks
such as Mara Salvatrucha to loosely affiliated groups selling drugs on
street corners, said Maryland U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein.

His office, along with the Governor's Office of Crime Control and
Prevention and the Maryland Crime Prevention Association, will sponsor
the state's first gang summit next month to bring together law
enforcement officials, juvenile justice agents, corrections workers,
educators and others to address the issue. The summit will be June 1
in Columbia.

At the conference, experts will provide an analysis of gangs in
Maryland, and participants will discuss local gang problems and
possible solutions.

One of the main areas of focus will be public perception.

"The first problem is, we have a romanticism in American culture about
gangs," Rosenstein said. "Many of them are extremely violent and
extremely bad. They're not romantic at all. Some gang initiation
involves getting beaten up by members of the gang or going out and
committing crimes against innocent people."

Several of the gangs are also highly disciplined.

"It's frightening how organized they can be," Rosenstein said. "They
make a decision to kill somebody, and then it gets done."

Another key topic will be how to reach middle school students before
they are influenced by gangs. Rosenstein wants to reach young people
through community organizations, religious leaders, educators and
other important figures in young people's lives.

"There need to be alternatives. People feel like there isn't enough
structure in their lives," he said. "Gangs sometimes become an option
for people who are uprooted. Immigrants who lack a social structure
are more likely to join gangs."

California has faced serious gang problems for decades, going back to
the origins of the Bloods and the Crips. Many gangs with national
reach started in California prisons, Rosenstein said.

According to the 2005 National Gang Threat Assessment prepared by the
National Alliance of Gang Investigators' Associations, incarceration
does little to disrupt gangs. High-ranking gang members often are able
to exert their power on the street from prison, according to the findings.

Rosenstein said he hopes that the conference will analyze these issues
in hopes of finding solutions.

"One of our goals is to generate ideas. We'll have people talk about
what works in different places," he said. "Because challenges vary,
there will be different solutions in different counties."

This is a new approach for his office, he said. "U.S. attorneys are
usually more focused on prosecution after the crimes happen," he said.

Rosenstein's office has received $2 million from the U.S. Department
of Justice to combat gang violence throughout Maryland. The Justice
Department has allocated an additional $2 million for gang enforcement
and prevention in Prince George's and Montgomery counties.

In those counties, a hub of gang activity has emerged in the Langley
Park-Takoma Park area, as is evident from widespread gang graffiti in
some neighborhoods and the contents of gang members' Web sites and
personal Web pages.

According to the National Gang Threat Assessment, gangs are the
primary distributor of drugs throughout the country and are
increasingly technologically savvy, being able to communicate fluidly
and secretly via computer.

A study from 2002-03 conducted by the Tallahassee-based National Youth
Gang Center says there are 731,500 youth-gang members across the
country. In the Northeast, homegrown gangs are becoming more common
than ever, the National Gang Threat Assessment says.

If the gang summit is a success, Rosenstein said, it will become a
yearly event.

"The Maryland Gang Summit: Combating Gangs & Violent Crime in
Maryland" will take place June 1 at the Sheraton Hotel in Columbia,
10207 Wincopin Cir. The cost is $10 per person. Registration begins
at 8:30 a.m. and is limited to 300 people, and the program runs from
9 a.m. to 4 p.m. For information, call Troy Williams, community
specialist in the U.S. attorney's office, at 410-209-4940.