Criminal Investigations & Forensic Science

Street gangs, prison gangs and biker gangs -- made up of every kind of criminal, from vandals and drug dealers to the most violent predators -- present an especially difficult problem for law enforcement. Gang Investigator's Handbook is a comprehensive guide to combating these dangerous groups, based on the successes of many of the best gang detectives in the field. Written by an experienced gang investigator from a major metropolitan prosecutor's office, Gang Investigator's Handbook contains dozens of strategies and tips for identifying and suppressing gangs in any community. The text is supported by more than 400 photos with detailed analysis of the gang activity they document, making Gang Investigator's Handbook invaluable not only to street cops, specialized gang units and prosecutors but also to criminal justice students, probation and parole agents, corrections officers, judges, counselors, civic leaders, journalists and ordinary citizens who want to learn how to reduce gang activity in their communities.

Over the past several decades, there has been a continuous and growing focus on street gangs, outlaw motorcycle gangs, and domestic extremist groups. Many of these groups have members with military training, and some actively recruit from current and former military veterans and retirees. That military experience adds to the dangerousness of veteran gang members, as well as those groups they associate with. Communities everywhere are experiencing the damaging impact of gang criminal behavior. By observing gang activity from the Revolutionary War to today Smith examines the presence of military-trained, often veteran, gang members in the communities. He looks at the turning points in gang investigations in the military, and also looks at the laws and policies designed to specifically counter the criminal activity the threats of gang activity pose on a community. Grounded in current knowledge and research, Gangs and the Military successfully addresses the growing presence of criminal gang members in the United States. As well as reflects on how the authorities that counter and combat them are doing so on a national and global level.

Throughout the history of the United States, gangs have existed in one form or another, from the violent thugs of old New York to the holdup gangs of the Old West and from Prohibition-era bootleggers to modern-day street gangs. Each type of gang has posed a serious problem for law-enforcement authorities. Police have developed numerous techniques for identifying gangs, tracking their activities, breaking up illegal rackets, and addressing the social issues that contribute to the formation of gangs. Gangs and Gang Crime details the history of criminal gangs and law-enforcement efforts to fight them, from the nineteenth century to the present.a

Gang membership and gang-related criminal activity has increased over the past 10 years, and gang violence is making increased demands on law enforcement resources. In Jan. 2007, the DoJ announced the establishment of three new entities: (1) the Nat. Gang Intell. Center (NGIC) integrates the gang intell. assets of all DoJ agencies and other partners; (2) the Nat. Gang Targeting, Enforce., and Coord. Center (GangTECC) serves as a coordinating center for multi-jurisdictional gang invest.; and (3) the Gang Unit develops and implements strategies to attack the most significant gangs. This report examined the intell. and coord. activities of NGIC and GangTECC and assessed the effectiveness of their contributions to DoJ¿s anti-gang initiatives.