NCJ Number
149366
Journal
FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin Volume: 63 Issue: 5 Dated: (May 1994) Pages: 13-16
Date Published
1994
Length
4 pages
Annotation
The Youth Gang Unit of the Cleveland, Ohio, public school system works closely with the city police department's Youth/Gang Unit to combat the gang problem.
Abstract
The police Youth/Gang Unit is divided into two squads, a youth squad and a gang squad. The youth squad investigates juvenile, non-gang-related crimes, while the gang squad investigates gang-related crimes committed by both adult and juvenile offenders. Gang squad members also conduct investigations to identify gang members, to obtain detailed information on gang territories and operational methods, and to ensure the successful prosecution of gang members. The school Youth Gang Unit addresses gang crimes and school rule violations. It consists of four school security officers and a unit coordinator and serves 127 schools with over 73,000 students. During its first year of operation, unit personnel investigated approximately 400 gang-related school incidents; identified over 1,000 gang members; and trained over 7,000 staff, parents, students, and youth service providers to recognize gang problems. Benefits of police- school collaboration and management issues associated with operating parallel gang units are discussed. 3 endnotes