Source: http://virginiarules.com/virginia-rules/gangs
Timestamp: 2017-04-27 03:14:59
Document Index: 142088065

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 18', '§ 18', '§ 18', '§ 18', '§ 18', '§ 16', '§\n18', '§ 18', '§ 8']

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Virginia law enforcement officials have reported an increase in gang involvement in every region of the state. Street gangs are typically involved in activities that break the law and accept violence as a method of operation. What is a gang?
Virginia law defines a “criminal street gang” as any group, organization or association of three
or more persons, whether formal or informal,
which has as one of its primary objectives or activities the commission of one or more criminal acts,
which has an identifiable name or identifying sign or symbol, and
whose members individually or collectively have engaged in the commission of, attempt to commit, conspiracy to commit, or solicitation of two or more predicate criminal acts, at least one of which is an act of violence. (Code of Virginia § 18.2-46.1) Which other laws address gangs?
Code of Virginia § 18.2-46.2 – Makes it a Class 4 or 5 felony for gang members to commit
certain criminal acts on behalf of a gang. Examples include robbery, assault, arson, gang
recruitment, trespassing, and damage to property.
Code of Virginia § 18.2-46.3 – Prohibits recruitment of juveniles for criminal street gang. Specifically, Any person aged 18 years or older, who solicits, invites, recruits, encourages, or otherwise
causes or attempts to cause a juvenile to actively participate in or become a member of a
criminal street gang, shall be guilty of a Class 6 felony.
Any person who, regardless of age, solicits, invites, recruits, encourages, or otherwise
causes or attempts to cause another to actively participate in or become a member of a
criminal street gang, shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.
Any person who uses threats or force against a person or that person’s family to recruit that
person into a gang, or force him or her to remain in the gang or to submit to a demand by a
gang to commit a felony shall be guilty of a Class 6 felony.
Code of Virginia § 18.2-46.3:3 – Establishes Gang-Free School Zones in which there are
enhanced penalties for gang participation and recruitment. The zones include school property,
public property within 1,000 feet of school property, and school buses.
Code of Virginia § 18.2-55.1 – Prohibits hazing of youth gang members. Anyone who causes
bodily injury by hazing any member or person seeking to become a member of a youth gang
or street gang shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. It does not matter whether or not the
victim of the hazing participated voluntarily in the prohibited activity.
Code of Virginia § 16.1-260(G) – Requires that the school division superintendent be notified
when a juvenile commits a violation of any gang statute, whether on or off school property.
What kinds of crimes do gang members commit?
Most street gang members are involved in activities that are crimes in the community. Some examples are:
dealing drugs;
theft and dealing in stolen property;
assault and battery and serious injury to other people;
threats and intimidation of others; and
destroying public and private property.
What do I need to know about gangs?
Here are 10 facts about gangs:
Street gangs recruit members as young as elementary school age.
Street gangs may be composed of boys, girls or both.
Street gangs may be a mix of different races and cultures.
Street gang members must prove themselves to their gangs.
Street gang members are typically involved in activities that break the law.
Street gang members accept violence as a method of operation.
Street gang members are often arrested for their crimes.
Street gang members are feared and not respected by their peers.
Street gang members are followers, not leaders.
Street gang members are breaking the law by committing certain crimes
on behalf of the gang.
How do you recognize a person who is in a gang?
One way to recognize a person who is in a gang is to look at the way he or she dresses.
Gang members tend to dress alike.
Members may wear the same colors.
Many gangs wear specific team athletic wear.
Many gang members tend to wear baseball caps backwards.
Many gang members display tattoos or body piercing.
Many gang members wear the same type of shoes.
Other signs that a person may be in a gang:
photos of themselves displaying gang hand signs, weapons, money, drugs, or graffiti;
drawing graffiti in notebooks or on other belongings;
new nicknames;
unexplained injuries; and/or
tattoos or branding.
Remember that everyone who dresses like a gang member may not be connected to a gang. It is
important not only to look at a person, but pay attention to the friends he or she hangs out with.
If everyone in the group is dressed the same, they may be gang members.
Some people may not be in a real gang, but instead are part of a group that acts, dresses, and
presents itself as a gang. These people are typically called “wannabes.”
Whether someone is in a gang or is a “wannabe,” if he or she commits a crime; the legal system
Tagging is graffiti placed on property, often by gangs, to mark a
territory. When there is a great deal of graffiti in an area, it is a
strong indicator of gang-related activity.
Virginia law says that tagging is destroying or defacing property.
Anyone who destroys or defaces any property, real or personal,
not his own, shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor if the
damage to the property is less than $1,000 or a Class 6 felony
if the value of or damage is $1,000 or more. (Code of Virginia §
18.2-137)
Anyone who destroys or defaces public property shall be guilty of
a Class 1 misdemeanor if the damage to the property is less than
$1,000 and a Class 6 felony if the damage is $1,000 or more.
(Code of Virginia § 18.2-138)
The parents or guardians of a child may be ordered to pay up to $2,500 for damages their child
caused to public property. (Code of Virginia § 8.01-43)
Here are some of the main reasons young people choose to join a gang:
They are looking for excitement.
They do not feel good about themselves and want to be popular.
They have problems at home.
They do not feel loved or accepted and want a "family."
They choose the wrong friends.
They think they can make money in gangs.
They use alcohol and other drugs.
They do not have goals.
They feel they need protection.
They believe membership in a gang will bring them status and respect.
What can students do to avoid gangs? Source: Adapted from “Understanding and Avoiding Gangs” Metropolitan Police department, Washington, DC. Be proactive.
Tell a trusted adult immediately if you are approached by a gang member attempting to recruit you.
Treat gang members respectfully if approached, but let them know you are not interested.
Attend school regularly and work hard.
Find others who want to stay out of gangs. develop friendships with peers you trust. Ask for help. Find a mentor.
A mentor can be a family member, a teacher, a counselor, or a police officer. Choose a mentor with whom you feel comfortable. Community agencies can help with this. Talk to him or her about problems that concern you. Listen and be open to new ideas. Be too busy to get involved.
Get involved in school activities or other community organizations. Change your environment.
Remove yourself from the area. Gradually limit your involvement with other known gang members.
If you have become involved with a gang and want out, talk to your parents about moving to another school or neighborhood. In some cases, this may be necessary to permanently remove yourself from the gang by putting distance between you and your old school and neighborhood. Moving to another neighborhood may help resolve any issues. How do gangs impact a community? The impact of gangs on communities varies in accordance with the scope and nature of gang activity. The impact is notably worse in more densely populated areas – those with populations of 50,000 or more – but still takes a negative toll on even small communities. Impact of juvenile gang members’ criminal activity 1. Juvenile gang members are responsible for far more than their share of all self-reported criminal activity, and are also far more likely to be the victims of such acts. Here in Virginia, studies show that students involved in gang activity are:
17 times more likely (31.6 percent) than all respondents (3.9 percent) to take a gun to school, and five times more likely (11.9 percent) to attack someone to harm them.
Over four times as likely (36.7 percent) than all respondents (8.6 percent) to be threatened or injured.
Five times more likely (31.3 percent) than all respondents (6.4 percent) to ever be suspended. 2. Gang members are significantly more criminally active during periods of active gang membership, particularly in serious and violent offenses. 3. Gang members commit more serious crimes; violent crime rates are seven times higher than for those not in gangs. 4. The influence of gang membership is long-lasting; their crime rates remain high even after leaving gangs. Impact on gang members’ lives 1. Gang members are more likely to be victimized themselves. They are also at greater risk of arrest, juvenile court involvement, detention, confinement to juvenile correctional facilities, and, later, imprisonment. 2. Gang involvement dramatically alters young peoples’ life changes. The gang acts as “a powerful social network” constraining and limiting members so they are cut off from conventional pursuits such as education and employment. Rather than making successful transitions to adulthood, their lives are disordered in a cascading series of difficulties including school dropout, early pregnancy, teen parenthood, and unstable employment. Impact on communities 1. Community residents’ fear of gangs and of becoming victims of gang crime is very great in the most gang-infested communities. 2. Youth gangs are responsible for a disproportionate number of homicides. In Los Angeles and Chicago – arguably the most gang-populated cities in the United States – over half of reported homicides are attributed to gangs. 3. Nationwide, the complete costs of gun violence indicate a value of approximately $1 million per assault-related gunshot injury; a single adolescent criminal career of 10 years can cost taxpayers between $1.7 and $2.3 million. Impact on schools 1. There is a strong correlation between gang presence in schools and guns as well as drug availability in schools. 2. The presence of gangs more than doubles the likelihood of violent victimization at school and is very disruptive to the school environment, creating fear among students and staff.
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About Youth Gangs
National Gang Center, Institute for Intergovernmental Research