Data on that issue was not systematically collected and was beyond the scope of the study. Interview conversations consistently referred to 8-balls of cocaine, crack in very small portions, but mostly to other kinds of drugs including heroin, the use of which seemed to be on the increase. Conversations never referred to centralized activity or cartels or syndicates. Most law enforcement agencies will readily admit that their gang files do not accurately represent all gang members within their cities. Even with better technology, they are not able to keep track of new and old members who fade in and out in a very gradual process.
Members sometimes graduate into prison gangs, or out grow the gang and even move away.
Others become independent agents of sorts. But certainly how any agency would go about keeping a reliable count of these young people is obscure. There are two competing views about the role of gangs and gang members in drug sales. Instead, in the current field investigation, gang members frequently acted independently of the total group. More often than not, the proceeds from drug sales benefitted no one but the individual vendors.