" ); floatwnd.document.close(); floatwnd.focus(); } } function WPHide( WPid ) { if( bInlineFloats ) eval( "document.all." + WPid + ".style.visibility = 'hidden'" ); }

The 1996 Illinois Law Enforcement Gang Analysis Survey:

With a National Comparison Sample

A Preliminary Report

George W. Knox, Ph.D.

Abstract

A national random sample of municipal law enforcement agencies (N = 283 from 48 states) along with an additional case study sample of N = 278 agencies in Illinois constitutes the data used for this analysis. Among the highlights of this study: (1) the gang member population in the USA appears to be much higher than previous estimates by the Department of Justice, (2) currently two-thirds to three-fourths of all U.S. cities have some level of a gang crime problem, (3) about half of those cities with a gang problem first recognized it in the time frame of 1992 to present, (4) for most agencies it is a relatively new problem and thus capability (training, etc) lags behind the scope of the problem, (5) most agencies expect violent juvenile crime to increase in the next two years, and (6) local law enforcement agencies give a low "grade" (D-minus) to federal leadership since 1992 in addressing the gang issue.

INTRODUCTION

The research reported here is a replication and refinement of previous research by the National Gang Crime Research Center (NGCRC). One of the most productive areas of research involves using the municipal police department and the city or local municipality as the unit of analysis. When surveying a police department the data therefore reflects either the experience of the police department personnel or the problems of the city in which the department has jurisdiction.

The NGCRC has a long and productive history of criminal justice agency research such as that reported here. This research and service dates back to 1990. The research itself is probono, no one is paid for the work. The service comes in to play by the fact that the first persons to be educated about the results of the research are the respondents: the police agencies themselves. In the research/service model of knowledge development used by the NGCRC, providing free full reports of the research to criminal justice agency respondents, in a non-technical and easy to understand format, and in a timely manner so that the results are meaningful as feedback to local areas of the U.S.A, is a hallmark of the success of such projects over the years.

METHODOLOGY

The research reported here involves a mail questionnaire research strategy. The survey questionnaire contains mostly forced-choice questions. The instrument was pre-tested on a small focus group of police officers, no items were found to be ambiguous or excessively complex in language level.

For the 1996 Illinois sample, the sampling strategy involved a straight-forward saturation mailing of the survey to all known law enforcement agencies (other than federal agencies) in Illinois today. The vast majority of these are in fact the local city or municipal police departments. Summer is not the best time for survey research as many people are on vacations, which could account for the small sample developed during June and July of 1996 (N = 278).

The national sample (N = 283) was generated from a strict random sampling of municipal police departments in the United States during the time of April and May, 1996. This involved assigning numbers to every municipal police department in the U.S.A., and then selecting every tenth agency as the mailing sample. In late spring of 1996, some N = 283 municipal police departments responded to the mail questionnaire project. This is therefore approximately a 25 percent return rate, which is more than acceptable for a mail questionnaire project where no follow-up calls were made.

In both the Illinois and the national samples, the universe is therefore the geographical political jurisdiction. The national study focused on every city, large or small, and does not focus simply on larger urban or metropolitan areas. Similarly, the Illinois study focused on the entire universe of city, county, and other (campus, forest preserve, etc) units of law enforcement in the state of Illinois. Much of the federally funded research along the same lines has been limited to larger urban areas. Large urban areas have always had gang problems. Most people know that the gang problem is not new to urban areas. Where we really need more information for policy and analysis purposes is in smaller jurisdictions, small towns and rural areas particularly.

The advantage of a strict random sample in the national study and saturation in the Illinois study is that the results are generalizable to American society as a whole and Illinois as a whole respectively, and not just to larger urban areas. Small town America is an important element of any gang study, and the strength of this research is in having such small towns and rural areas represented in the analysis.

Respondents at the national and Illinois level were promised a copy of this report at no cost. The National Gang Crime Research Center views it as an important mission to provide service and education while conducting research. Usually, the results are able to be provided to responding agencies in a short time frame, making the information "timely". Most responding agencies did in fact want the report.

RESULTS OF THE 1996 LAW ENFORCEMENT SURVEY

In presenting the results of the 1996 Law Enforcement Gang Analysis Survey it is important to note that the questionnaire includes not just questions about gangs, but it also includes a host of other interesting policy questions. All of the questions involve law enforcement issues, or issues about which a law enforcement viewpoint is relevant. Thus, the way the results have been organized is to first present what might be considered "background" characteristics describing the samples. The analysis then proceeds to the "gang issues". Finally, "other policy issues" are analyzed.

BACKGROUND CHARACTERISTICS IN THE NATIONAL SAMPLE

In the national sample, only two states did not respond the survey: Hawaii and West Virginia, both of which are known from previous NGCRC research to not be immune to the American gang problem. The size of the populations of the city, town, or jurisdiction ranged from as small as 325 to as large as 1,500,000. However, as is also common to actual American law enforcement, the national sample similarly reflects that about half of the respondents (52%) are agencies with a jurisdiction that contains a population of 10,000 or less. Thus, "small town" America is appropriately represented in this national sample.

The size of these municipal police departments similarly reflected the American diversity of population sizes. The number of full-time sworn personnel in the police departments in the national sample ranged from as low as "1" sworn officer (the one cop town) to as high as 761 police officers. Again reflecting the fact that this sample contains many smaller towns and municipalities in the USA, about half of the responding agencies (52.7%) had 20 or less full-time sworn police officers. There were a total of 13,616 sworn full-time police officers and a total of 1,097 sworn part-time officers employed by the departments surveyed.

The zip code of the responding agency was included in the survey data. This showed the same large range as might be expected in a strict random sample. The only two "missing spots" were the zip codes from Hawaii and West Virginia. The overwhelming majority of the agencies (95.2%) gave permission to use the zip code or geographic identifier of the responding agency in the analysis and reporting of results. So few were "hiding" their problems.

Almost all (97.1%) wanted a full copy of the preliminary report of the research that was promised to be available at no charge by the NGCRC.

BACKGROUND CHARACTERISTICS IN THE ILLINOIS SAMPLE

The Illinois sample mirrors the diversity of the national sample so closely that it appears to be a microcosm of larger American society. The population size of the jurisdictions for the communities served by respondents in this sample of Illinois law enforcement agencies range from as small as 200 (i.e., rural Illinois towns) to as large as 5.6 million in size (Cook County). Almost identical to the national sample, some 52.8 percent of the Illinois sample reflects agencies service communities of a population of 10,000 or less.

Similarly, the size of the police agencies in terms of the number of full-time sworn personnel showed a range in the Illinois sample from as small as one police officer for the town to as large as 560 full-time sworn personnel. Again, very comparable to the national sample, some 60.3 percent of the Illinois sample represented agencies with 20 or less full-time sworn personnel. There were no geographical areas of Illinois that appeared from an analysis of zip code data to reflect any geographical or regional bias in responding, the data is very dispersed in terms of geographical representation throughout the State of Illinois. And like the national sample, over 90 percent of the agencies in Illinois wanted a copy of the research report.

FINDINGS ON GANG ISSUES

A focus on gang issues was the primary thrust of the study. These results provide a more complete picture of the scope and extent of the American gang problem than some previous studies. By building on previous findings and extending the analysis further to new areas of concern, these findings should help clarify what needs to be done in the future.

Two-Thirds Nationally and Three-Fourths in Illinois Report a Gang Problem in their Jurisdiction

The first question on the survey asked "Are youth gangs a problem in your jurisdiction".

In the national sample, two thirds (68.9%, N = 193) of all jurisdictions surveyed reported a gang problem. What is important to also mention is that among the 31.1 percent of the agencies that indicated they do not have a youth gang problem in their jurisdiction, an analysis showed that these were not exactly "gang free" areas. In otherwords, the 31.1 percent are apparently not without gang members or gang crime. The analysis therefore suggests the need to assume that 68.9 percent is a conservative estimate of the extent of the gang problem in American municipalities today.

The "two-thirds" estimate is considered a conservative or under-estimate of the true extent of the gang problem for several reasons.

First, among those 31.1 percent who reported they did not have a gang problem, a fifth of these had a score of 10 on the denial scale; thus, "no gang problem" for them was probably the official position imposed by local government officials. Also, if we simply define "having a gang problem" as expanding to include any of the crime patterns (violence, drug sales, graffiti, etc) that youth gangs cause in the jurisdiction, or if there has been outside gang influence in the jurisdiction, or if a specific year was given for the appearance of gangs in the jurisdiction, or if ten or more gang members are reported as existing in the jurisdiction, or if there has been a "gang disturbance" in the local public schools in the last year --- if we define "gang problem" by these terms, the percentage jumps up to 86.9 percent of local law enforcement agencies "have a gang problem".

So we will use the conservative figure of 68.9 percent, but we know the figure is probably closer to 90 percent if we define it more objectively in terms of what defines a local gang problem.

The Illinois sample showed that 78.4 percent flat-out reported that "yes": youth gangs are a problem in their jurisdiction. So Illinois ranks slightly higher than the national norm primarily because it is an epicenter for national gang activity. Some gangs based in Illinois have "trickled out" to many outlying areas in the USA. We surmise that there are basically three such gang epicenters: Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York representing major urban areas which create a ripple effect in terms of gang proliferation along geographical lines.

Half Indicate Gangs are a Minor Problem

In the national sample, among those who answered "yes" to the question "are youth gangs a problem in your jurisdiction", a follow-up question asked the responding agencies to rate the seriousness of the problem. Only 7.1 percent rated the gang problem as a "major problem". Some 37.8 percent rated it as a "moderate problem". About half (55.1%) rated the gang problem as a "minor problem".

In the Illinois sample, 5.2 percent felt it was a "major problem", 41.3 percent felt it was a "moderate problem", and 53.5 percent felt it was at this time a "minor problem".

Illinois is a Leader In The Use of Computers Designed to Track Gang Members

The survey asked "does your agency use a statewide computer system that is specifically designed to track gang members". Nationally, only 17.3 percent of the respondents (N = 48) indicated they had this technology. In the Illinois sample, some 66.1 percent of the responding agencies indicated that they do in fact use a statewide computer system that is specifically designed to track gang members, making this a very significant positive difference in the war against gang crime. It is clear that Illinois is a leader in this respect when compared to national norms.

Gang Denial By Community Leaders

The survey asked the question "to what extent do community leaders in your jurisdiction deny the gang problem". The response mode scale include values between a low of zero (for NO DENIAL) to a high of ten (for HIGH DENIAL). The results, provided in Table 1,, show only a fourth giving a rating of absolute zero.

Table 1

Levels of Gang Denial in the

National and Illinois Samples

National Sample Illinois Sample

Rating: N % N %

NO DENIAL 0 68 25.6 64 23.7

1 18 6.8 17 6.3

2 11 4.1 35 13.0

3 19 7.1 27 10.0

4 26 9.8 17 6.3

5 31 11.7 30 11.1

6 20 7.5 21 7.8

7 22 8.3 17 6.3

8 16 6.0 19 7.0

9 10 3.8 8 3.0

HIGH DENIAL 10 25 9.4 15 5.6

The interesting result in the "gang denial" score distribution is that in the national sample 35 percent of the agency respondents gave a rating of 6 or higher about gang denial by community leaders. The mean, or average, national rating was a value of 4.12 on a zero to ten point scale for this variable.

In the Illinois sample, 29.6 percent of the agencies gave a rating of 6 or higher on the "gang denial scale". Thus, there is not much difference in terms of the gang denial syndrome in comparing Illinois with the national sample. The mean score for the "gang denial scale" in Illinois was a value of 3.72 on a zero to ten point scale (where the higher the score, the higher the degree of gang denial).

Nationally Four-Fifths of American Police Departments Have Seen Outside Gang Influence

The survey asked "have you seen gang influence from outside of your community or jurisdiction". In the national sample, some 81.3 percent of the agencies did in fact report such outside gang influence. In Illinois, this figure rises to 93.3 percent. Again, we attribute this to the fact that Illinois has Chicago as a gang epicenter. This is not a "blame Chicago" issue, it is a simply the reality of the nature of gang proliferation in the USA today.

Crime Problems Caused by Youth Gangs

Twelve separate crime category variables were used to examine the national trend in local crime problems that can be attributed to youth gangs in the same jurisdiction. The results are provided in Table 2.

Table 2

Local Crime Problems Caused by Gangs

Crime Problem Caused by Gangs?

National Illinois

Crime Category % Yes % Yes

Violence 57.2% 49.3%

Drug Sales 52.3% 66.9%

Graffiti 62.5% 74.5%

Burglary 37.5% 41.5%

Robbery 21.6% 18.3%

Drive-by shootings 24.4% 21.6%

Arson 5.7% 5.8%

Prostitution 2.5% 1.1%

Car Theft 29.7% 24.1%

Extortion 6.7% 4.3%

Retail Theft 23.3% 28.8%

Criminal Damage to Property 58.0% 66.2%

As seen in Table 2, in nearly half of all American municipalities surveyed both nationally and in Illinois, gangs are involved in the following local crime patterns categories: violence, drug sales, graffiti, and criminal damage to property. What this tends to suggest as well in terms of national comparisons is that Illinois is about equivalent to the national picture in regard to most categories.

Percent of Total Crime Caused by Gang Activity

The survey asked "please estimate the percent of total crime in your jurisdiction that is caused by gang activity".

The results from the national sample showed a distribution ranging from a low of zero percent to a high of 90 percent. The overall national mean or average was that 10.6 percent of all local crime was caused by gang activity.

The Illinois data ranged from zero to 85 percent with a mean of 11.9 percent.

Percent of Juvenile Crime Caused by Gang Activity

The survey asked the separate question "please estimate the percent of total juvenile crime in your jurisdiction that is caused by gang activity".

The results for both samples showed a distribution ranging from a low of zero percent to a high of 95 percent. The overall national mean or average was that 18.5 percent of all local juvenile crime was caused by gangs. The mean for Illinois was 18.4 percent.

Percent of Crime Caused by Outside Gang Influence

The survey asked "please estimate what percent of the crime in your community/jurisdiction is caused by gangs or gang members from outside of your same area".

The results for the national sample showed a distribution ranging from a low of zero percent to a high of 99 percent, the Illinois sample ranged from zero to 100 percent. The overall national mean or average was that 8.4 percent of local crime could be attributed to outside gang influence. The Illinois mean was 13.3 percent.

Most Report It is Hard to Get Gang Informants

The survey asked "in your opinion, is it hard to get gang members to be confidential informants". In the national sample, four fifths of the responding police departments (N = 199, 80.2%) reported that it was in fact hard to get gang informants. In Illinois, the figure was 77.4 percent. We will comment on this issue in the summary and conclusion section. But as a prelude, NGCRC research suggests it is much easier to get gang informants than police tend to perceive.

About Half of All Cities Report Gang Problems First Arose From 1992 to Present

The survey asked "in what year did gangs first become recognized as a problem in your jurisdiction". An option was provided for those who did not or who could not provide a "year". They were allowed to indicate "Not yet recognized as a problem". In the national sample, about a third (34.3%) overall indicated that gangs were not yet recognized as a problem", that does not mean gangs are not a problem, it simply means they are not recognized as such a problem. In Illinois, some 22.3 percent indicated gangs were not yet recognized as a problem.

The data on when gang problems first became recognized in these jurisdictions is easy to summarize in Table 3.

Table 3

Year The Gang Problem First Recognized

National Illinois

On or before 1987: 12.6% 17.0%

1988-1991 33.6% 35.8%

1992 12.1% 14.6%

1993 11.0% 11.8%

1994 14.8% 11.8%

1995 12.1% 7.5%

1996 3.8% 1.4%

This shows that in the national sample, some 53.8% of the police departments recognizing a gang problem for this item indicated that the gang problem was first recognized during the time frame of 1992 to present. For Illinois, nearly half (47.2%) of the cities reporting a gang problem first experienced this problem since 1992 to the present.

Pre-Service Training Lags Behind The Extent of the Problem

The scope and extent of the gang problem significantly surpasses the current training capability regarding manpower resources in law enforcement on the issue of dealing with gangs. Nationally, while 68.9 percent of the responding municipal police departments reported a definite gang problem, only 58.5 percent reported that their police officers receive training in "gang awareness" or in handling gang problems. This "lag" is also found in Illinois: where 78.4 percent acknowledged a gang problem, but only 68.4 percent provide pre-service training about gangs. In-service training comes closer to providing a better "fit" with the size of the gang problem. Nationally, some 74.4 percent of the respondents indicated their officers receive in-service training on gang awareness. In Illinois, some 85.5 percent provide in-service gang training.

Level of Cooperation With Federal Agencies in Gang Cases

The survey asked the responding local law enforcement agencies to rate the level of cooperation they get with gang cases from federal agencies (FBI, BATF, DEA, and INS). The results are provided in Table 4.

Table 4

Ratings of Federal Agencies Nationally and in Illinois:

Level of Cooperation With Gang Cases

The National Sample The Illinois Sample

Low Medium High Low Medium High

FBI 52.1% 26.6% 21.4% 53.0 28.0 19.0

BATF 58.0% 22.9% 19.1% 43.2 29.9 26.9

DEA 58.1% 26.7% 15.2% 50.0 33.5 16.5

INS 69.2% 18.9% 11.9% 67.0 21.5 11.5

We should note that the respondents did express why they did not provide ratings in those cases involving missing data for the findings in Table 4. The typical comment was "we have not asked for any help from these agencies on gang cases". However, most did provide such ratings. The FBI and DEA seem to lead slightly in "high" ratings. The fact that most give low or medium ratings could suggest a national strategy of improving the levels of cooperation on gang cases with municipal police agencies. Greater interfacing and informational sharing in gang cases would naturally require greater resources devoted to these same federal agencies.

Total Gang Member Population

The survey asked the responding agencies to estimate the total core and periphery gang membership in their jurisdiction.

National data on this variable was available for N = 229 jurisdictions. The results ranged from a low of zero such local gang members to a high of 6,000 gang members. Overall, a grand total sum of N = 34,506 gang members were indicated in this sample. The way to put the national gang member population into a more meaningful perspective is in comparison with two other variables: (1) the total number of sworn police officers in the same jurisdiction, and (2) the total civilian population in the same jurisdiction.

First, gang members outnumber municipal police officers by a factor of 2.3 to 1 in the national sample is the finding of this research. This is very much consistent with previous research results along the same lines by the NGCRC.

Secondly, gang members in relationship as a component of the overall civilian population gives additional and interesting insight into the size of the gang member population in the USA today. Gang members in the national sample constituted .005 percent of the overall civilian population; the same finding occurred for the Illinois sample. Thus, about 5 in every 1,000 civilians is a gang member is another way of expressing this finding. Given the extent to which large urban areas like Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles were not represented in the current sample, and rather the random sample does in fact contain many smaller towns and cities instead, it is reasonable to assume this figure of national gang density in the civilian at-large population (this excludes the number of gang members in prison, conservatively estimated to be 20% in the 1995 national survey of prison wardens , however the gang density for juvenile facilities is closer to 50%) is also a conservative estimate.

If we extrapolate this parameter of .005 percent to the overall U.S. census population, we get an estimate of over a million gang members in the U.S. today that are on the streets. Add another 200,000 known to be in correctional custody, and we get the figure of about 1.5 million for the best estimate of the total American gang population in 1996. This is far above FBI estimates and previous federally funded gang research.

The Illinois sample, regarding the number of total core and periphery gang members in the jurisdictions surveyed, showed a range between zero to a high of 5,000 such members for the 237 agencies providing such data. The Illinois gang density rate was again tested with the sub-sample of municipal police departments only, and there were N = 202 providing data on both the size of the population of their city and the number of estimated gang members in the same jurisdiction. The Illinois sample mean for gang density was .007 percent at the municipal, city, or township level.

So it is clear that the gang density in the open population also varies geographically. Illinois, containing a gang epicenter, could be reasonably expected to have such a higher gang density factor.

Many Cities Report an Increase in Gang Graffiti in the Last Year

The survey asked "have you noticed an increase in gang graffiti or tagging in the last year". In the national sample, some 49.3 percent indicated that they had in fact noticed an increase in gang graffiti or tagging in the last year. In the Illinois sample, some 40.7 percent reported an increase in gang graffiti in the last year.

Half Nationally and Two-Thirds in Illinois Report Gang-Dress Code Prohibitions at Local Schools

The survey asked "to your knowledge, are certain color patterns or modes of dress identified as gang related prohibited in local public schools". In the national sample, some 50.7 percent indicated that such gang-dress code prohibitions now existed in public schools in their jurisdiction. In Illinois, we find this figure rises to 66.1 percent. Again, we attribute the difference here to the fact that Illinois as a gang epicenter will have correctional populations with higher gang density and a greater local gang problem generally. It is a function perhaps of both time since the gang problem first arose interacting with the fact that a gang epicenter is in the geographical area of Illinois (i.e., Chicago).

Nationally a Fourth, and in Illinois a third, of All Municipalities Have Now Passed Laws Specifically Aimed at Gangs

The survey asked "has your city/county jurisdiction passed any laws recently that are specifically aimed at gangs (e.g., curfew, etc)". The results show that in the national sample, 28.3 percent of the responding law enforcement agencies report that such local ordinances and laws have recently been passed aimed specifically at gangs. Thus, about a fourth of all American communities have had a serious enough concern about gangs to enact local ordinances. In Illinois, this rises to 34.8 percent.

Few Local Police Departments Have Produced Public Brochures About Gangs

The survey asked "has your Department produced any public education brochures or pamphlets related to gangs". In the national sample, only 16.8 percent of the police departments indicated they had in fact produced such public brochures about gangs. In the Illinois sample, 30.8 percent of the police agencies had produced such brochures.

Over Half Report Outside Gang Contacts

The survey asked "have gang members recently made even temporary visits (of at least a few days, for whatever reasons) to your community/jurisdiction".

In the national sample, some 57.7 percent indicated that such outside gang contacts had occurred recently. Two follow-up questions were used as well. The first asked "if yes, were any of these gang members from Chicago", and 38.9 percent reported Chicago as the origin for outside gang contacts. The second question asked "if yes, were any of these gang members from Los Angeles", and here 38.8 percent indicated "yes". So, Chicago and Los Angeles are about equal in terms of the source or origin for common outside gang influences in the data from the national sample.

In the Illinois sample, some 77.4 percent of the police agencies reported outside gang contacts had occurred recently. Some 81.2 percent indicated a Chicago connection. Only 11 percent indicated a Los Angeles connection. Thus, Chicago is the gang epicenter most directly affecting Illinois communities, not Los Angeles. Although, we recognize a growing presence of Crip and Blood gang members in Illinois, just as some Chicago-based gangs like the Black P. Stones now have a presence in the L.A. gang epicenter.

Beliefs About the Origin of Local Gangs

The survey asked "which do you believe accounts for most of the gang problem in your area of the United States: ___the gangs arose by normal residential relocation and local genesis, or ___the gangs arose by deliberate migration of gangs into new areas".

In the national sample, some 63.1 percent indicated the first option: gangs arose by normal residential relocation and local genesis. Some 39.9 percent expressed the belief, however, that gangs arose by deliberate migration.

The results for the Illinois sample were almost identical: 59.1 percent believed that "the gangs arose by normal residential relocation and local genesis", while 40.9 percent believed "the gangs arose by deliberate migration of gangs into new areas".

For the record, it is not a matter of either or; both are true, as both scenarios can and do unfold to help add momentum to the problem of gang proliferation in the United States today. There are many ways in which gang proliferation occurs.

Most Have Seen Cases of the Familial Gang Transplant Phenomenon

The survey asked the question about the familial gang transplant phenomenon as an explanation for gang proliferation. The nature of this phenomenon is apparently universal as explained in the gang research literature by Laskey (1996). The wording spelled out in detail what was meant by the question: "have you seen cases where a parent relocates to your area (knowing their child was involved with a gang and perhaps thinking they can simply move away from the problem), and basically transplants the gang problem to your area". In the national sample, some 67.5 percent of the responding law enforcement agencies indicated they had in fact seen such cases of the familial gang transplant phenomenon. In the Illinois sample, some 83.2 percent of the agencies reported seeing cases of the "familial gang transplant syndrome".

Over A Fourth Consider Some of the Gangs in Their Area An Organized Crime Problem

The survey asked "do you consider any of the gangs in your jurisdiction to be an organized crime problem". In the national sample, some 28.3 percent indicated they did consider some of the gangs in their area an organized crime problem. In Illinois, this figure rose to 39.6 percent.

Two-Fifths Report Gangs Are a Problem in Their Public Housing

Among those who did have public housing in their jurisdiction, other than that for the elderly, some 44.1 percent in the national sample and 66.1 percent in Illinois indicated that gangs have been a problem in these public housing areas.

Over Two Thirds Believe The Federal Government Should Play a Greater Role in the Prosecution of Gang Crimes

The survey asked "do you believe the federal government should play a greater role in the prosecution of gang crimes". In the national sample, some 71 percent of the responding local law enforcement agencies did in fact express the belief that the federal government should play a greater role in the prosecution of gang crimes. In the Illinois sample, this was very similar (75.6%) to the national picture.

Low Level of Gang Involvement in Local Politics

The survey asked "are any gangs in your jurisdiction getting involved with or active in politics". Nationally, only 3.1 percent of the responding cities indicated there were any gangs in their jurisdiction that were getting politically active. In Illinois, again only 5.2 percent indicated gang involvement in local politics.

Drug Sales, Turf Issues, and Bias Crime: Racial Differences for Gang Involvement

Three separate questions addressed the matter of racial differences for gang involvement in (1) drug sales, (2) turf issues, and (3) bias crime. The survey asked "which type of gang is most active in illegal drug sales in your area". As seen below, the largest single category was "all races". The survey asked "which type of gang is most active in turf issues in your area". As seen below, white gang members have a razor edge lead in this regard. Finally, the survey asked "which type of gang is most active in racial extremism and bias crime in your area".

As seen in Table 5, whites lead in this category in the national sample.

Table 5

The National Sample Results:

What Type of Gang is Most Active in Various Functions

Black Hispanic White All Races

Illegal Drug Sales 23.6% 19.1% 22.6% 34.7%

Turf Issues 19.8% 26.7% 27.3% 26.2%

Bias Crimes 21.3% 14.8% 42.6% 21.3%

In the Illinois sample, we added the category "Asian", but basically found little action in this sector. The Illinois results are not dissimilar then from the national results in most respects. These results are provided in Table 6.

Table 6

The Illinois Sample Results:

What Type of Gang is Most Active in Various Functions

Black Hispanic White All Races Asian

Illegal Drug Sales 31.6 11.4 23.3 33.2 0.5

Turf Issues 22.6 26.6 26.6 22.6 1.7

Bias Crimes 26.9 9.1 42.9 20.0 1.1

Part of the difficulty in trying to reduce this issue to a research issue where the gang is the unit of analysis is the problem of assuming complete homogeneity in gangs. That is, there is the perception that many gangs are thought to be homogeneous with respect to race or ethnicity. The Latin Kings, for example, while clearly Hispanic/Latino/Puerto Rican/Mexican American/Chicano in origin, today is a gang that has long since learned the value of having members of almost every conceivable ethnic background, racial group, and nationality. White and Black members of the Latin Kings are not uncommon today nor twenty years ago. Nor is it uncommon for first wave foreign immigrant youths, from a variety of world sources, to find their way into a highly established gang with a long tenure such as the Latin Kings.

The results in Tables 5 and 6 must therefore be understood as providing a definitive basis for rejecting the idea that any particular gang with an ethnic "identity" may have a monopoly on a form of psychological motivation that would account for crime problems. Thus, it is not possible to conclude that any support exists for a previous claim in federally funded gang research that Hispanic gangs are more "expressive" and that Black gangs are more "instrumental" in their motivations for crimes. This data suggests it is a lot more complicated than simply applying a concept designed to describe the individual level of analysis to a social construct involving the gang as an organization or group. As other research by NGCRC has consistently shown: no ethnic group and no race has any monopoly on any type of psychological motivation for any type of gang crime. Gangs are an equal opportunity danger. The only significant tendency in Tables 5 and 6 is for white gangs to figure more prominently in bias crimes. However, this is not a simple psychological issue of "motivation", it is rather an issue of racial enmity and racism itself. And as such, it was never of course investigated in the one small piece of federally funded gang research which did in fact conclude that Hispanic gangs were more "expressive" and Black gangs were more "instrumental".

Gangs Considered Forms of Organized Crime

The survey asked "do you feel any of the following gangs could be considered forms of organized crime" and the respondents were instructed to "check all that apply". The results for six specific gang categories are provided in Table 7.

Table 7

Percentage Who Considered These Gangs Forms of Organized Crime

National Illinois

Type of Gang Sample Sample

Crips 64.0% 50.2%

Bloods 60.7% 48.3%

Gangster Disciples 53.9% 90.0%

Vice Lords 43.9% 72.3%

Latin Kings 51.7% 75.6%

Aryan Brotherhood 58.8% 53.1%

The significant issue that emerges in the findings of Table 7 is that Illinois police agencies, whom can be considered to be more intimately acquainted with the Gangster Disciples, Vice Lords, and Latin Kings, which are gangs from the epicenter of Chicago, are much more likely than the national sample to regard these gangs as forms of organized crime. The issue of threat attribution to gangs should probably first investigate the basic hypothesis of whether familiarity breeds contempt: troublesome local gangs are more likely to be assigned high threat ratings. However, this is beyond the scope of the preliminary report provided here.

Only Half Report the Gang Members in their Area are Predominantly Racial and Ethnic Minorities

The survey asked "are the gang members in your area predominantly racial and ethnic minorities".

In the national sample, some 52.6 percent indicated "yes". Thus, 47.4 percent indicated "no".

In the Illinois sample, some 56.3 percent indicated "yes", and 43.7 percent indicated "no".

Thus, the conclusion is clear: only half report the gang members in their areas are predominantly racial and ethnic minorities. This supports the notion that gangs are an equal opportunity danger to children in Illinois and larger American society today.

Few Police Agencies Have A Specialized Gang Unit

This may be another issue of the "lag" between the rapid onset of the gang problem in most communities and the ability to respond in policy to the gang problem. Having a specialized gang unit to handle gang problems is a factor of modern police organization and management: new problems require new solutions. Large urban centers (Chicago, L.A., etc) as gang epicenters have always had such specialized gang units. However, having a gang unit per se is often an aspect of organization available only to medium sized to larger police departments. Not surprisingly, in the national sample only 18.2 percent of the responding law enforcement agencies reported that they had specialized gang units to handle gang problems. In the Illinois sample, about a fourth (27.8%) reported having such a specialized gang unit.

Most Believe Some Gangs Can Migrate

The survey asked "do you believe some gangs can migrate to jurisdictions such as your own". Obviously, there are some specialized gangs that may fit this profile. Not surprisingly, in the national sample 96.4 percent of the respondents did believe some gangs can migrate. The figure was almost identical for the Illinois sample (96.8%).

Over Half Attribute Some of Their Gang Problem to Migration

The survey asked "do you believe any of the gang problem in your jurisdiction is due to gang migration". In the national sample 59 percent indicated that some of their local gang problem can be attributed to gang migration. In the Illinois sample this figure was 66.7 percent.

Most Do Not Have a Strategic Plan to Deal With Gangs

The survey asked "does your Department have a strategic plan for dealing with youth gangs". The results show that in the national sample only 30.2 percent of the responding agencies had a strategic plan for dealing with gangs. The results for Illinois were not much better (37.2%).

The Gang Problem Arising Out of Migration or Contagion Effect

The survey asked "please estimate to what extent the gang problem in your area arose because of gang migration (i.e., outside gangs coming into your area to develop their own local franchises or local chapters)", where the response modes varied from a low of zero (for NOT A FACTOR) to a high of ten (for MAJOR FACTOR). For the national sample the mean, or average score, was 3.2 on a zero to ten point scale for this factor; compared with a mean of 4.17 for the Illinois sample.

Another question asked "please estimate to what extent the gang problem in your area arose because of the 'copy cat' phenomenon (i.e., youths who use names of national groups without really having ties to the same groups in other areas)", and again the same response mode system was used (0-10). For the national sample the mean, or average score, was 5.0 on a zero to ten point scale for this variable; compared to a mean of 4.0 for the Illinois sample.

Under a Fourth Report Hate Group Crime Problems

The survey asked "do you feel that hate groups (KKK, neo-nazis, skinheads, etc) are a crime problem in your area". In the national sample some 23.9 percent of the respondents did in fact report such hate group crime problems; compared with 16.2 percent for the Illinois sample.

Few Report Motorcycle Gang Problems

The survey asked "do you feel that motorcycle gangs are a crime problem in your area". In the national sample a fifth (20.9%) reported that they did feel that motorcycle gangs are a crime problem in their area; compared to 16.5 percent in the Illinois sample.

The Spread of the "Better Growth and Development" GD Front Problem

Gangs use a number of political front or public relations gimmicks to portray themselves as something other than a gang. The idea is to give the image of "do gooders" for the "hood" or community. This is helpful to the gang in a number of ways: to build political power, to cool off "heat" from law enforcement investigations, to silence good citizens who may otherwise cooperate with law enforcement and gang prosecution, etc.

In early 1994 Wallace "Gator" Bradley, the political front group representative for Larry Hoover's Gangster Disciple gang, was at the top of his image polishing in terms of public relations for the GDs. Gator Bradley on 24 January 1994 was able to meet personally face-to-face with President Bill Clinton in the oval office of the White House. A photograph shows Gator while face-to-face with President Clinton (see Chicago Tribune, Friday, Feb. 18, 1994, section 2, p. 6). According to one source Gator actually had the audacity to introduce himself to President Clinton as representing a group called "Better Growth and Development".

One thing is certain: the spread of gang public relations gimmicks is on the increase. The 1996 survey therefore asked the question "have any gang members in your jurisdiction used the phrase Growth and Development or Better Growth and Development to refer to the Gangster Disciples or Black Gangster Disciples respectively". In the national sample some 10.6 percent of the respondents, nationally, did in fact indicate that this gang phenomenon had now hit their jurisdictions. Some 13 different states indicated this Chicago-based phenomenon had now spread to their local jurisdictions (Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, and Wisconsin)!

In the Illinois sample, some 28.4 percent of the responding agencies had reported this gang phenomenon.

Most Municipal and Local Law Enforcement Agencies Do Believe in Gang Prevention

The survey asked "do you think that programs could be effective in preventing kids from getting involved in gangs". The response was very strongly in favor of gang prevention. In the national sample some 93.1 percent of the respondents did in fact believe in gang prevention. The Illinois sample was almost identical (93.4%).

Job Opportunities, Strict Enforcement, and Drug Prevention: Their Role in Solving the Gang Problem

Three separate questions sought to evaluate the role that job opportunities, strict enforcement, and drug prevention played in developing a solution to the gang problem.

The first question asked the respondent to agree or disagree (strongly agree, agree, neither agree or disagree, disagree, strongly disagree) with the statement "job training and employment opportunities are the best solution to the gang problem". In the national sample the results showed that some 53.3 percent either strongly agreed or agreed to this idea; compared with 46.9 percent for the Illinois sample.

The second question asked the respondent to agree or disagree with the statement "strict law enforcement is the best solution to the gang problem". Here some 66.4 percent of the national sample either strongly agreed or agreed to this idea; compared to 75.2 percent for the Illinois sample.

The third question dealt with the statement "gang problems can be prevented by means of effective drug prevention and drug education". Here 44.9 percent in the national sample either strongly agreed or agreed with this idea. The results for the Illinois sample were very similar (48.9%).

Over Half Believe Social Workers Can Play an Important Outreach Role

The survey asked "do you think social workers can be effective in reaching out to persons who might want to quit the gang". In the national sample some 62.5 percent believed that social workers could play an important role in this regard. The Illinois sample was almost identical in this respect (63.3%).

Many Believe Social Workers Can Be Effective in Primary Gang Prevention Roles

The survey asked "do you think social workers can be effective in helping kids stay out of gangs". Here the national sample showed that some 65.1 percent of the law enforcement agencies in the national sample indicated that they do believe social workers can be effective in this primary gang prevention role; compared with 65.9 percent for the Illinois sample.

It is Unanimous: Gang Members Like Seeing Themselves on the News

The survey asked "do you think that gang members like seeing themselves on the news". Some 96 percent of the responding law enforcement agencies in the national sample indicated they believe that gang members like seeing themselves on the news. The Illinois results were identical (94.6%).

Three-Fourths Agree: Less Mass Media Attention to Gangs Would Mean Fewer People Joining Gangs

The survey asked "do you feel that if less attention was given to gangs on television, in newspapers, and in movies that fewer people would join a gang". The results indicated that three-fourths (77.7%) of the law enforcement agencies in the national sample did in fact accept this thesis: less media attention to gangs would mean fewer people joining gangs. The results for Illinois were similar (72.6%).

Most Local Police Agencies Believe that a Very Aggressive Gang Suppression Policy Could Reduce the Gang Crime Problem in Their Area

The survey asked "do you believe that a very aggressive gang suppression policy by your agency could substantially reduce the gang crime problem in your area". Three-fourths (75.2%) of the respondents in the national sample did in fact agree that a very aggressive gang suppression policy could substantially reduce the local gang crime problem they faced. Some 84.8 percent of the Illinois sample agreed with this idea.

Strategies Used By Local Police Agencies to Combat Gang Crime

The survey asked "which of the following strategies does your agency employ to combat gang crime (CHECK all that apply)". The results are shown in Table 8.

Table 8

Police Strategies Used to Combat Gang Crime:

Comparing National and Illinois Samples

National Illinois

Type of Police Strategy Used: Sample Sample

Aggressive patrol (66.2%) 77.4%

DARE (64%) 75.2%

Intelligence gathering (55.4%) 66.4%

Use of confidential informants (43.9%) 47.1%

Surveillance (43.2%) 50.0%

Foot patrol (32.7%) 34.7%

Meetings between beat officers and

the community (32.7%) 36.1%

Multi-jurisdictional task forces (32.4%) 40.9%

Targeting gang leaders (25.9%) 27.4%

Citizen block clubs (25.5%) 25.2%

Covert buy-bust operations (19.8%) 25.5%

Gang tracking computer system (19.1%) 51.8%

GREAT (11.9%) 15.3%

Close surveillance of gang parolees

/probationers (11.2%) 12.8%

Gang sweeps (11.2%) 18.2%

Vertical prosecution (9.7%) 8.0%

Formation of citizen patrols (9.4%) 3.3%

Identifying by name and/or photo in

local newspapers gang members who

have been arrested (7.9%) 12.8%

Satellite police stations (7.9%) 6.6%

Wanted posters (6.8%) 11.3%

Civil legal actions against gang members (5.0%) 2.9%

Witness protection (4.0%) 1.8%

Infiltration (1.4%) 2.6%

Table 8 shows mostly that in most of these strategies the Illinois pattern follows the national pattern. Illinois does appear to be somewhat higher in terms of: use of aggressive patrols, intelligence gathering, and the use of a gang tracking computer system.

Most Police Agencies Believe in A Combination of Both Prevention and Suppression

The survey asked "in your opinion, which is the most effective law enforcement strategy for dealing with gang problems: __Prevention __Suppression __Both prevention and suppression". The national and Illinois sample results were very similar.

In the national sample, some 11.7 percent chose prevention only. Only 4 percent chose suppression only. However, the vast majority (84.3%) chose the combination of "both prevention and suppression".

In the Illinois sample, 5.1 percent chose prevention; 3.6 percent chose suppression; and 91.3 percent chose "both prevention and suppression".

About Four Out of Five Agree: Publicity to Gang Arrests Benefits the Gang Whose Members Are Arrested

One theory about gangs and publicity is that gang members crave it even when it is negative attention such as their members being arrested. The theory is that like conflict itself, any attention (good or bad) gives an image boost to the gang. So the survey looked at this issue directly.

The survey asked the question "do you think that media attention to the arrests of gang members (i.e., television or newspapers identifying the name of arrestee and his/her gang affiliation) is a publicity benefit to the same gang whose members are arrested". In the national sample 79 percent did in fact believe that such media attention would be a publicity benefit to the gang. The Illinois results were identical (79.4%).

Two-Fifths Agree With the Reaction-Formation Thesis

The reaction-formation thesis is that where a gang lacked solidarity, aggressively police suppression could inadvertently instill or increase gang solidarity. Theoretically, the gang problem is compounded in this scenario, but it is not a theory that has actually been tested. And all this survey measures is beliefs, it provides no longitudinal test of the issue.

The survey asked "do you believe that a very aggressive gang suppression policy by your agency could inadvertently increase the solidarity of the gang members prosecuted".

In the national sample, some 57.4 percent expressed the view that no such solidarity would ensue. However, 42.6 percent did believe that solidarity might be increased among members in such a situation.

In the Illinois sample, 32.3 percent felt aggressive suppression could increase gang solidarity, while 67.7 percent did not believe in this reaction-formation effect.

The Federal "Report Card" on National Gang Problems Since 1992

The survey asked "what kind of report card grade would you give elected federal government officials for addressing the national gang problem since 1992".

In both the national and Illinois samples, less than one percent (.8%) gave elected federal government officials an "A" for addressing the national gang problem since 1992.

In the national sample, a full third of the sample (33.6%) gave federal officials a "C" grade: average; 40.1 percent gave federal officials a "D" grade. And 20.6 percent gave federal officials an "F". Overall, the national mean or average grade assigned to federal elected officials in their "success" of dealing with the national gang problem since 1992 was a "grade point average" of 1.25 on a traditional 4-point scale (4=A, 3=B, 2=C, 1=D, 0=f) which translates to an unimpressively low grade (i.e., a "D-minus").

The Illinois sample was very similar: 33.8 percent gave a grade of "D" and 15.8 percent gave a grade of "F". But Illinois gave a slightly better grade point average, a GPA (mean) of 1.4 statewide. Which is still not very impressive as grades go: both nationally and Illinois elected federal officials are getting low "D" grades for their fight against gangs since 1992.

The only conclusion one can possibly make from these findings is that the real "troops" out in the trenches of American cities fighting the war against gang crime --- the local and municipal police departments --- are not very impressed with the gang-fighting performance of the federal government during the last four years.

Gang Owned Business Enterprises

The large national study of the economic function and structure of American gangs by the National Gang Crime Research Center (Project GANGECON, 1995) showed that some of the more organized gangs, and even those with regular sources of large illegal income from drugs, are able to buy and operate what may seem to be legitimate business enterprises. This is a common and expected gang development in larger urban areas where gangs have enjoyed a long tenure.

The survey therefore asked "has your agency uncovered any gang involvement in local legitimate businesses". In the national sample, some 9.2 percent of the respondents in 19 states indicated that "yes" in fact gangs had been detected as being involved in business enterprises in their areas. In the Illinois sample, 13.2 percent had uncovered gang involvement in local legitimate businesses.

A follow-up question asked "if yes, what kinds of businesses (CHECK all that apply"" for a list of commonly used gang fronts for laundering their illegal money. Of the 25 respondents in the national sample who indicated that gangs had some involvement in local businesses here are the results for type of business establishments gangs were actually involved in: restaurants and fast food businesses (N = 8), pool halls (N = 6), gang rooms and video arcades (N = 7), car washes (N = 6), taverns (N = 5), car repair businesses (N = 8), dance clubs (N = 8), beeper and cellular phone stores (N = 6), jewelry stores (N = 1), and auto paint and body stores (N = 9). Obviously, some of these types of businesses work well in mixing legitimate business with crime.

In the Illinois sample the most commonly identified types of gang involved businesses were: restaurants and fast food businesses (N = 14), pool halls (N = 8), game/video arcades (N = 5), car washes (N = 11), taverns (N = 9), car repair businesses (N =8), dance clubs (N = 9), beeper/cellular phone stores (N = 12), jewelry stores (N = 2), and paint and body shops (N = 9). One respondent indicated gang involvement with a local motel.

An additional and separate question was addressed to outside gang influence in regard to gang-involved business enterprises. The survey asked "has your agency found any evidence of legitimate businesses being controlled by gangs from outside of your own community". Here, only 3.6 percent (N = 10) of the respondents in the national sample indicated such outside gang control of local business enterprises. Only N = 9 (3.3%) of respondents from Illinois indicated such outside gang control of business enterprises.

Most Believe in Zero Tolerance for Gangs

The survey asked the respondents to agree/disagree with the statement "a zero tolerance policy is the best approach for dealing with gangs and gang members". In the national sample, some 85.8 percent of the respondents either strongly agreed or agreed to this statement. The Illinois sample was very similar (88.4%).

Gangs: Social Problem or Law Enforcement Problem?

The survey asked the respondents to agree/disagree with the statement "gangs and gang members are a social problem and not primarily a law enforcement problem".

In the national sample, some 30.5 percent either strongly agreed or agreed. Some 18.5 percent indicated "neither agree or disagree". But 32 percent disagreed and another 18.9 percent strongly disagreed. Thus, 50.9 percent disagreed or strongly disagreed with the idea that gangs and gang members were primarily a social problem and not a law enforcement problem.

Illinois results were very similar: 33.1 percent either strongly agreed or agreed; 13.6 percent "neither agree or disagree"; and 53.3 percent disagreed or strongly disagreed.

Three-Fourths Report Female Involvement in Local Gangs

The survey asked "are females also involved in the gangs in your area". In the national sample, some three-fourths (74.7%) of the respondents indicated that females were in fact also involved in the gangs in their local gangs. The Illinois results were almost identical (80.5%).

A separate follow-up question asked "if yes, estimate what percentage of the total gang member population in your jurisdiction are females". In the national sample the results ranged from as low as zero percent to 50 percent; but the mean, or average, was that 11.4 percent of the gang members nationally were females. In the Illinois sample, the range was between zero to 60 percent, with a mean of 8.51 percent.

Half of the Cities Report Gang Disturbances in Schools During the Last Year

The survey asked "have there been any gang disturbances in the public schools in your area in the last year". In the national sample, some 51.1 percent of the responding cities did in fact report that there had been gang disturbances in the public schools in their cities during the last year. The results for Illinois were equivalent: 55.4 percent of the Illinois respondents reported gang disturbances in schools during the last year.

Over Two-Thirds Believe Politicians Want Law Enforcement Agencies to Downplay or Deny the Gang Problem

The survey asked "do you believe that some politicians want law enforcement agencies to downplay or even deny the gang problem". In the national sample, some 69.5 percent of the respondents did believe that politicians want the police to downplay or deny the gang problem. Illinois was not much different (73%) in this regard.

Most Do Not Report Asian Gangs or Asian Gang Members in Their Areas

Asian gangs and Asian gang members are obviously not limited to large urban areas any more. But most research on gangs of this type (i.e., agency research) has not tracked the Asian gang problem. The 1996 survey did include this variable.

The survey asked "have any Asian gangs or Asian gang members been active in your jurisdiction". In the national sample, some 25.5 percent of the responding law enforcement agencies did in fact report Asian gangs or Asian gang members in their cities. Asian gangs or Asian gang members are geographically dispersed and showed up in 28 different states (AK, AR, AZ, CA, CT, DE, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, LA, MI, MN, MO, MT, ND, NE, NH, NJ, OH, OR, PA, SC, TN, TX, WA, and WI).

The Illinois results were slightly under the national norm (18.0%) in reporting Asian gangs in their areas.

Rare for Gangs to Be Active in Politics

The survey asked "have any gangs become active in politics in your jurisdiction". In the national sample, only 1.8 percent of the respondents indicated that gangs had in fact become active in politics in their jurisdiction. In the Illinois sample, it was also a low level problem (4.4%).

Rare for Politicians to Be Sympathetic to Gangs

Just like gangs being active in politics, it is not uncommon in large urban areas for politicians to be sympathetic to gangs. But our findings indicate that overall, from a national perspective, this is still a rare politician who is sympathetic to gangs.

The survey asked "are any politicians sympathetic to gangs in your jurisdiction". In the national sample, only 5 percent of the respondents indicated that any politicians were sympathetic to gangs in their areas. In Illinois this figure was also very low (7.8%).

Majority of Police Agencies Do Not Have a Gang Prevention Program

The survey asked "does your agency currently have a gang prevention program". In the national sample, some 24.7 percent reported their agency does in fact have a gang prevention program. In the Illinois sample some 39.3 percent reported that they had a gang prevention program.

Low Level of Foreign Involvement With Gangs in Illinois

For the Illinois sample, the survey asked "have you noticed any foreign involvement with gangs in your area". Only 9.6 percent of the Illinois respondent reported such foreign involvement with gangs.

Largest Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs in Illinois

For the Illinois sample, the survey asked "what is the name of the largest outlaw motorcycle gang in your area". The Outlaws clearly dominated (42.4%), followed by Hells Angels (10.4%) and the other following groups: Grim Reapers (7.6%), Sons of Silence (4.2%), D.C. Eagles (4.2%), and the Hells Henchmen (7.7%). A number of smaller motorcycle gangs were reported including: 5th Column, Back Doorsmen, Brotherhood, Brothers, Hells Demons, Invaders, Iron Dogs, Iron Sleds, Pagans, Phantoms, Pharoahs, Saddle Tramps, Screaming Eagles, Silent Rage, Sojourners, Storm Riders, Straight Shooters, Untamed Brothers, and Wind Tramps.

Most Have Not Noticed an Increase in Asian Gang Activity in Illinois

For the Illinois sample, the survey asked "have you noticed an increase in Asian gang activity in your area". Some 90.6 percent of the Illinois respondents indicated they had not noticed an increase in this regard. Thus, only 9.4 percent had noticed an increase in Asian gang activity.

The Largest Gangs in Illinois Cities Today

The survey asked the responding agencies to report the names of the largest three gangs in their area. The trend was very clear: Gangster Disciples, Latin Kings, and Vice Lords were the three largest gangs operating in Illinois cities today. Gangster Disciples accounted for 31.5 percent of the "top three gangs". Latin Kings accounted for 25.4 percent of the top three gangs. And Vice Lords accounted for 16.8 percent of the top three gangs.

Other frequently mentioned gangs included: Satan's Disciples (2.4%), Two-Sixers (3.7%), and the Black P. Stone Nation (2.6%).

FINDINGS ON OTHER POLICY ISSUES

As stated earlier in this report, while most of the focus in this study was on gangs, some additional general or contemporary issues on policing were also examined. This section presents these other findings.

Crime Attributable to Non-Residents of the Same Community

The survey asked "please estimate what percent of all arrests in the last year were of non-residents of your community or your jurisdiction". This is the "outsider did it" phenomenon. The results showed a distribution ranging from a low of zero percent to a high of 100 percent in the national sample, and 0 to 99 percent in the Illinois sample. In the national sample the overall national mean or average was that 36.1 percent of all local arrests could be attributed to such outsiders or non-residents. In the Illinois sample, this was 41.6 percent.

Local Economic Indicator

The survey asked the local police department chiefs to "rate the extent to which you believe your jurisdiction is economically declining (e.g., loss of jobs, etc) or improving". The response modes included a range of values between a low of zero (for DECLINING) to a high of 10 (for IMPROVING). The overall national mean or average for this local economic indicator was a value of 6.0 on a 0 to 10 point scale in the national sample, and 6.0 in the Illinois sample.

Most Report Political Influence on the Law Enforcement Function

The survey asked "do you believe that local politicians have influence on local law enforcement agencies". Most (87.9% in the national sample, and 90.8% in the Illinois sample) indicated that they believe there is political influence on the law enforcement function.

Two-Fifths Report A Correctional Institution in or Near Their Community

The survey asked "is any state or federal correctional institution located in or very near your community". Some 43.5 percent in the national sample, and 46.5 percent in the Illinois sample, indicated having a correctional institution in or near their community.

Few Report Political Corruption is a Big Problem in their Area

The survey asked "to what extent is political corruption a problem in your jurisdiction (Check one rating, higher the number higher the problem, lower the number the lower the problem)", and response modes from a low of zero (NOT A PROBLEM) to a high of ten (A BIG PROBLEM) were provided. In the national sample some 61 percent gave an absolute rating of zero (NOT A PROBLEM), and 63.6 percent gave an absolute zero rating in the Illinois sample. Only 6.2 percent gave a rating of 6 or higher on a zero to ten point scale in the national sample, compared to 2.6 percent in Illinois.

Youngest Age Someone Should Qualify for the Death Penalty

The survey asked "in your opinion, what is the youngest age at which a person should face the death penalty for a capital offense". The results ranged from a low of 7 years of age to a high of 25 years of age in the national sample, and 9 to 25 in the Illinois sample. The mean, or average, in the national sample was 15.4 years of age; compared to 15.5 years of age in the Illinois sample.

Few Agencies Sued in Last Five Years for Employment Discrimination

The survey asked "in the last five years, has your agency been sued for employment discrimination". The results in the national sample showed that 11.9 percent reported being sued in the last five years for employment discrimination; compared to 10.0 percent for Illinois.

Brady Bill: Not Generally Effective

The survey asked "since the Brady Bill went into effect in early 1994, have you seen fewer illegal firearms among the offenders in your jurisdiction". The results suggest the Brady Bill was more "eye wash" than substance when it comes to effectiveness. Both the national sample and the Illinois sample were identical in terms of results.

In the national sample, some 90 percent of the responding police agencies answered the question "NO". Only ten percent reported seeing fewer illegal firearms among the offenders in their jurisdiction.

In the Illinois sample, some 90.3 percent reported not seeing fewer illegal firearms among the offenders in their jurisdiction since the Brady bill went into effect in early 1994.

Strong Support for Boot Camps (For First Offenders)

The survey asked "in your opinion, can boot camps be effective in reducing continued criminal behavior among younger first offenders". In the national sample, some 92.4 percent of the respondents did in fact believe that boot camps could be effective in this capacity; compared to 93.8 percent in the Illinois sample.

Most Expect Violent Juvenile Crime to Increase in the Next Two Years

The survey asked "in your opinion, do you expect the number of violent crimes committed by juveniles to increase or decrease within the next two years".

In the national sample, some 81.4 percent expected violent juvenile crime to increase in the next two years. Only 3.6 percent expected a decrease. And 15 percent felt it would remain about the same as current levels of violent juvenile crime.

In the Illinois sample, 89.5 percent expected violent juvenile crime to increase in the next two years, and 10.1 percent expected it to remain about the same. Only one respondent in Illinois (0.4%) expected the problem of violent juvenile crime to decrease within the next two years.

Most View Crack as A Greater Public Safety Threat Than Powder Forms of Cocaine

The survey asked "in your opinion, which kind of drug would pose the greatest threat to public safety in your jurisdiction". In the national sample, some 16.7 percent chose "powder cocaine". But most (83.3%) chose "crack cocaine".

In the Illinois sample, similarly, 13.3 percent chose "powder cocaine" and 86.7 percent chose "crack cocaine" as the greater public safety threat.

Most Believe Parents Should Be Held Financially Responsible for Crimes Committed by their Children

The survey asked "do you believe parents should be held financially responsible for crimes committed by their children". In the national sample, some 12 percent did not believe in the idea of holding parents financially responsible for the offenses committed by their children. But most (88%) said parents should be held financially responsible for crimes committed by their children.

The results for the Illinois sample were identical: 88.4 percent felt parents should be held financially responsible for crimes committed by their children.

Half Report an Increase in Arrests for Female Offenders

The survey asked "has your jurisdiction seen an increase in arrests among female offenders in the last one year time period". In the national sample, some 50.4 percent reported such an increase, compared to 47.7 percent for the Illinois sample.

Under Half of the Police Departments Have a Policy of Random Drug Testing for All Sworn Officers

The survey asked "does your Department have a policy of random drug testing for all sworn officers". In the national sample, some 42.1 percent said "YES"; compared to 28.5 percent for Illinois.

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

We now summarize the overall results of this study and provide some commentary where appropriate. While further analysis is expected in the future on this data, the present report has provided a full descriptive analysis of the basic findings, and some of these findings are worthy of comment here.

Overall, these results are largely consistent with intensive statewide surveys of law enforcement agencies. In 1995, the states of Georgia and Wisconsin were studied intensively, with many of the same items used in the present survey. The results are remarkably consistent, suggesting similar levels of the gang problem. Thus, the scope and extent of the gang problem revealed in this report is consistent with other recent research as well (see Project WISCONSIN95; Project GEORGIA95). Our best estimate is that about three-fourths of all American cities now face some degree of a local gang problem (i.e., gang members are present, gang disturbances and/or crimes can be attributed to gang members, etc).

The Illinois case study basically mirrored most of the same findings in the national sample. It is helpful to briefly summarize where Illinois differed from the national sample. Illinois as a gang epicenter area was more likely:

*** to admit a gang problem (78.4%) than in the national sample (68.9%).

*** to use of computer technology to track gang members.

*** to report outside gang influence.

*** to report gang involvement in drug sales and graffiti.

*** to report gang dress code prohibitions exist in public schools.

*** to report producing brochures to educate public about gangs.

*** to report having seen cases of the familial transplant phenomenon.

*** to view some gangs as an organized crime problem.

*** to have a specialized gang unit.

*** to have seen the "Growth and Development" linguistic fad to refer to the Gangster Disciple gang.

*** to believe that a very aggressive gang suppression policy could reduce the gang crime problem in their area.

*** to use strategies of aggressive patrol, DARE, intelligence gathering, and use of gang tracking computer systems.

*** to have gang prevention programs.

One issue is an apparent discrepancy between perception and reality when it comes to the difficulty of developing confidential informants among gang members. Four-fifths of the police departments reported that it was hard to get gang members to be CI's. Research on gang members shows about a third will flip on their gang, given the right incentive. The research by Laskey on developing gang CI's may help investigators better understand this process. The Laskey research will be published in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Gang Research.

A large issue that emerged in this research was that of the estimated gang member population in the United States today. Our estimate is admittedly a "rough" estimate, and using statistical techniques could certainly harden it up a little in terms of adjusting for the size of the jurisdiction in relationship to gang density. However, the fact remains: the finding does prompt some attention when the estimate exists that 5 of every 1,000 members in the population "at-large" are estimated to be gang members nationally.

Therefore the national estimate of the true size of the American gang population, once we add the 200,000 from the U.S. correctional population, is probably around 1.5 million. This far exceeds any previous estimate including that provided by federal investigative agencies. Frankly, we are not surprised by this. The FBI is not currently required in its Uniform Crime Report to statistically isolate gang members in the arrestee population, so technically there is no statistical responsibility in the UCR that can address this fundamental issue. Should the FBI's U.C.R. data be changed to reflect a tracking capability for what is obviously a significant national policy concern? Yes, certainly. Perhaps if we had such basic statistics from the U.C.R. data the findings presented here would not be surprising.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Perhaps it is time to modify crime reporting in Illinois so that the population of gang members can be more effectively estimated and controlled.

* It is time to make all arrests anywhere in the State of Illinois, juvenile or adult, and all criminal (misdemeanor and felony) and juvenile delinquency court cases begin to be required to report to the state level one new important data element consistent with the onset of a new social phenomenon affecting public safety in Illinois and the United States as a whole: whether or not the arrestee or defendant was a gang member. Citizens have a right to know how many of the arrestees and defendants in their county are gang members.

* We would recommend statutory revision of crime reporting to the Illinois State Police to require a new data element on all arrests juvenile or adult in the State of Illinois: whether the person was or was not a gang member.

* We would recommend courts be required to do the same thing, in reports to the Illinois Office of Administrative Courts. Our data does not support the premise of a strong across the board high level of cooperation that local police departments get regarding gang cases in relationship to the major federal investigative agencies (FBI, BATF, DEA, INS). Over two-thirds (71%) of the responding local police departments did express the opinion that there should be a stronger federal involvement in the prosecution of gang crime. Many regard some of today's modern gangs as new forms of organized crime.

* Greater interagency cooperation and interfacing on basic gang intelligence could be of substantial benefit to local law enforcement agencies.

A large number of the American cities represented in this study reported the onset of a gang problem since 1992. Not surprisingly, local police departments are still "gearing up" to confront this problem.

* Gang training, the use of computer tracking systems, having specialized gang units in the organization, the use of various strategies to suppress the gang problem --- all lag behind the rapid recent onset of the gang problem.

Finally, there appears to be little merit to the claim that the federal government in the last four years has had a strong record of successful leadership in combatting the Nation's gang crime problem. When asked to give a "report card" grade to elected federal officials on their success in addressing the gang problem, the national average grade from local police chiefs is a D minus.

References

Laskey, John A.

1996 "Techniques For Developing Confidential Informants

Among Gang Members", (forthcoming), Journal of Gang

Research.

Project GANGECON

1995 The Economics of Gang Life: A Preliminary Report of

Project GANGECON. Chicago, IL: National Gang Crime

Research Center.

Project GEORGIA95

1995 Preliminary Results of the Statewide Survey of Law

Enforcement Agencies in Georgia. Chicago, IL: National

Gang Crime Research Center and the Chicago Crime Commission.

Project WISCONSIN95

1995 Preliminary Results of the Statewide Survey of Law

Enforcement Agencies in Wisconsin. Chicago, IL:

National Gang Crime Research Center.

ENDNOTES: