Gangs and Cartels-2 How to Stop

IN THIS SECTION    Cartels/Gangs-General-1a    Cartels/Gangs-1b (FARC)     Cartels/Gangs-3 (Female Gang Members, Traffickers)    Cartels/Gangs-4 (New Mexico)    Cartels/Gangs-5 (Smuggling Tunnels)     Cartels/Gangs-6 (Books) Cartels/Gangs-2 here (How to Stop)       Dept of Justice on Intnl Narco-Terrorism/Venezuela-2020       Presidential Executive Order of 2017       Resources (includes orgs, univ. research studies, dept of justice reviews, etc)     Books       Articles       Violence: Psychol./Bio Impacts on Brain       Blogs See also Turfing DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE On International Narco-Terrorism/Venezuela See also Department of Justice separate section Definition of Narcoterrorism https colon //en dot wikipedia dot org/wiki/Narcoterrorism Excerpt:       Narcoterrorism   is   a   term   coined   by   former   President   Fernando   Belaúnde   Terry   of   Peru   in   1983   when describing   terrorist-type   attacks   against   his   nation's   anti-narcotics   police.   In   its   original   context,   narcoterrorism   is understood   to   mean   the   attempts   of   narcotics   traffickers   to   influence   the   policies   of   a   government   or   a   society through   violence   and   intimidation,   and   to   hinder   the   enforcement   of   anti-drug   laws   by   the   systematic   threat   or use   of   such   violence.   Pablo   Escobar's   violence   in   his   dealings   with   the   Colombian   government   is   probably   one   of the   best   known   and   best   documented   examples   of   narcoterrorism.      The   term   has   become   a   subject   of   controversy, largely   due   to   its   use   in   discussing   violent   opposition   to   the   US   government's   War   on   Drugs.      The   term   is   being increasingly   used   for   terrorist   organizations   that   engage   in   drug   trafficking   activity   to   fund   their   operations   and gain   recruits   and   expertise.   Such   organizations   include   FARC,   ELN,   AUC   in   Colombia,   PCP-SL   in   Peru,   Hamas   and the Taliban.[1][2][3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narcoterrorism Justice dot gov 2020/03/26   Attorney General Barr and DOJ Officials Announce Significant Law Enforcement Actions Relating to International Narco-Terrorism https://www.justice.gov/opa/video/attorney-general-barr-and-doj-officials-announce-significant-law-enforcement- actions Includes important video.  Attorney General Barr. FARC. Nicolás Maduro Moros and 14 current and former Venezuelan officials charged with narco-terrorism, corruption, drug trafficking and other criminal charges. Related Subjects Drug Trade news before DOJ announcement in March 2020 CNN 2019/04/17  CNN uncovers Venezuela's multi-billion dollar drug trade.   Nick Paton Walsh International Correspondent https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xv9hJ0L4Q_8 Cocaine trafficking from Venezuela to the US is soaring, even as the country collapses. And the US and other regional officials say it's Venezuela's own military and political elite who are facilitating the passage of drugs in and out of the country on hundreds of tiny, unmarked planes. Venezuela Oil and gas Venezuela crisis: US blacklists Russian oil firm for helping Maduro 2020/02/18 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-51549166 The US has sought to increase financial pressure on Venezuela by blacklisting a subsidiary of Russia's state- controlled Rosneft oil giant.  The move freezes any US-held assets of the Switzerland-based Rosneft Trading SA and its chairman, Didier Casimiro.The firm is accused of helping President Nicolás Maduro to evade US sanctions on Venezuela's oil industry.The US accuses Mr Maduro of leading a corrupt and brutal regime, a charge he has repeatedly rejected. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-51549166 China Al Jazeera 2019/07/14   Opinion:  China will determine future of Venezuela. By Carlos Eduardo Pina  https colon //www dot aljazeera dot com/indepth/opinion/china-determine-future-venezuela- 190709143930431.html There are a number of reasons why Beijing continues to back Maduro's government despite suffering financial losses. Hezbolla Foreign Policy 2019/02/09  Hezbolla is in Venezuela to stay:  Regime change in Caracas won’t change the country’s problematic relationship with the terrorist group. By Colin P. Clarke https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/02/09/hezbollah-is-in-venezuela-to-stay/ Excerpt:  Responding to a question on current instability in Venezuela and the presence of terrorist groups in the region, specifically Lebanese Hezbollah, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo confirmed in a recent interview that the Trump administration believes that the “Party of God,” as Hezbollah is known, maintains “active cells” in Venezuela. He went on to say that “Iranians are impacting the people of Venezuela,” because Hezbollah is trained, financed, and equipped by Tehran. Hezbollah has long maintained a presence in Latin America, especially in the infamous Tri-Border Area, a semi-lawless region where Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil converge. But even beyond the Tri-Border Area, Hezbollah is well-entrenched in Venezuela, where the Shiite terrorist group has long worked to establish a vast infrastructure for its criminal activities, including drug trafficking, money laundering, and illicit smuggling. For example, Margarita Island, located off the coast of Venezuela, is a well-known criminal hotbed where Hezbollah members have established a safe haven. Under the regime of former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, the government took a more active approach to offering sanctuary to Venezuela- based supporters of Hezbollah. More controversial than what Pompeo said, however, should have been what he implied—namely, that regime change would rid Venezuela of Hezbollah. Whatever the benefits of replacing the current Venezuelan regime with Washington’s preferred alternative, there’s reason to doubt that it would change the country’s problematic relationship with the terrorist group. Hezbollah has a long and sordid history in Venezuela. A cocaine-smuggling ring active throughout the 2000s led by a Hezbollah-linked Lebanese national named Chekry Harb—a drug trafficker and money laundering kingpin who went by the nickname “Taliban”—used Panama and Venezuela as critical hubs in an operation that sent narcotics from Colombia to the United States, West Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. Proceeds from the cocaine-trafficking ring were laundered into Colombian pesos or Venezuelan bolivars, with Hezbollah netting between 8 and 14 percent of profits…. …There is also the issue of Iran.   Hezbollah is backed by a regime in Tehran that provides it with upward of $700 million annually, according to some estimates. Venezuela serves as Iran’s entry point into Latin America, a foothold the Iranians are unlikely to cede without putting up a fight.Venezuela serves as Iran’s entry point into Latin America, a foothold the Iranians are unlikely to cede without putting up a fight. Moreover, Russia retains a vested interest in propping up Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and keeping him in power, given the longstanding relationship between the two countries. Moscow recently warned the United States against intervening in Venezuela militarily. Further, after cooperating closely in Syria, Hezbollah is now a known quantity to the Kremlin and an organization that President Vladimir Putin could view as an asset that, at the very least, will not interfere with Russia’s designs to extend its influence in the Western Hemisphere. If the Maduro regime is ultimately ousted from power, it will likely have a negative impact on Hezbollah in Venezuela. After all, the group’s tentacles extend into the upper reaches of Venezuela’s current government—Tareck El Aissami, the minister of industries and national production, was designated by the U.S. Treasury Department under a counter-narcotics authority and allegedly has a close relationship with Hezbollah. Yet on balance, Hezbollah has deep roots in Venezuela, and completely expelling the group—no matter how high a priority for the Trump administration—remains unlikely. The best-case scenario for Washington could be an ascendant Guaidó administration that agrees to combat Hezbollah’s influence—if the new government is willing to accept a U.S. presence in the country to begin training Venezuelan forces in the skills necessary to counter terrorism and transnational organized criminal networks with strong ties to Venezuelan society. But that scenario, of course, is dependent on the United States offering such assistance in the first place. Colin P. Clarke is a senior research fellow at the Soufan Center and an assistant teaching professor in the Institute for Politics & Strategy at Carnegie Mellon University. Twitter: @ColinPClarke https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/02/09/hezbollah-is-in-venezuela-to-stay/ Communism Venezuela People’s World Venezuelan Communists say Maduro government not responding to workers’ demands November 9, 2018 12:48 PM CDT  BY PAUL DOBSON https colon //peoplesworld dot org/article/venezuelan-communists-say-maduro-government-not- responding-to-workers-demands/ EXECUTIVE ORDER Presidential Executive Order 2017 On Enforcing Federal Law with Respect to Transnational Criminal Organizations and Preventing International Trafficking:  National Security & Defense: Issued on: February 9, 2017 https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/presidential-executive-order-enforcing-federal-law-respect- transnational-criminal-organizations-preventing-international-trafficking/ Excerpt:  By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1.  Purpose.  Transnational criminal organizations and subsidiary organizations, including transnational drug cartels, have spread throughout the Nation, threatening the safety of the United States and its citizens.  These organizations derive revenue through widespread illegal conduct, including acts of violence and abuse that exhibit a wanton disregard for human life.  They, for example, have been known to commit brutal murders, rapes, and other barbaric acts. These groups are drivers of crime, corruption, violence, and misery.  In particular, the trafficking by cartels of controlled substances has triggered a resurgence in deadly drug abuse and a corresponding rise in violent crime related to drugs.  Likewise, the trafficking and smuggling of human beings by transnational criminal groups risks creating a humanitarian crisis.  These crimes, along with many others, are enriching and empowering these organizations to the detriment of the American people. A comprehensive and decisive approach is required to dismantle these organized crime syndicates and restore safety for the American people…. https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/presidential-executive-order-enforcing-federal-law-respect- transnational-criminal-organizations-preventing-international-trafficking/ RESOURCES NCJRS Publications https://www.ncjrs.gov/App/Publications/abstract.aspx?ID=192019 US Department of Justice 1998/05   Addressing Community Gang Problems:A Practical Guide https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles/164273.pdf Research Gate dot net 2011/05   Gang Membership as a Turning point in the Life Course.  By Chris Melde Michigan State University https://www.researchgate.net/publication/227753318_Gang_Membership_As_A_Turning_Point_In_The_Life_C ourse Article (PDF Available) in Criminology 49(2):513 - 552 · ASU Gang Research at ASU about Walter B. Miller https://ccj.asu.edu/gangresearch ISR Results from the New Mexico Gang Threat Assessment:  Prepared for: Project Safe Neighborhoods Task Force District of New Mexico Prepared by: Danielle Albright, M.A.; Lisa Broidy, Ph.D.; Kristine Denman, M.A. https://isr.unm.edu/reports/2008/gang-threat-assessment-phase-i.pdf Journals Sage Pub 1993/05/01  Youth Gangs In Southern New Mexico: A Qualitative Analysis.  G. Larry Mays https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/104398629300900205?journalCode=ccja BOOKS 2019   Gangs of the El Paso–Juárez Borderland A History By Mike Tapia Excerpt:  This thought-provoking book examines gang history in the region encompassing West Texas, Southern New Mexico, and Northern Chihuahua, Mexico. Known as the El Paso–Juárez borderland region, the area contains more than three million people spanning 130 miles from east to west. From the badlands—the historically notorious eastern Valle de Juárez—to the Puerto Palomas port of entry at Columbus, New Mexico, this area has become more militarized and politicized than ever before. Mike Tapia examines this region by exploring a century of historical developments through a criminological lens and by studying the diverse subcultures on both sides of the law.  Tapia looks extensively at the role of history and geography on criminal subculture formation in the binational urban setting of El Paso–Juárez, demonstrating the region’s unique context for criminogenic processes. He provides a poignant case study of Homeland Security and the apparent lack of drug-war spillover in communities on the US-Mexico border. No COLORS: 100 Ways To Stop Gangs From Taking Away Our Communities by Bobby Kipper, Bud Ramey Hacking: 10 Most Dangerous Cyber Gangs, Book 5 (audio book) By: Alex Wagner Narrated by: Matyas J James Densley:  How Gangs Work https://www.jamesdensley.com/howgangswork 2011/04/11   An Ethnography of Youth Violence, Palgrave Macmillan, St. Antony's Series In the wake of the 2011 UK riots and the British government’s new American-style ‘war on gangs’, this book is the definitive account of ‘how gangs work’. Based on two years of ethnographic fieldwork with gangs and drawing on a variety of sources, How Gangs Work provides a vivid portrayal of gang life, but not as the British traditionally know it. James Densley deconstructs the mythology of gangs to make sense of the profiles and motivations of gang members in straightforward, rational terms. How Gangs Work examines the vital processes of evolution, organization, and recruitment within gangs and gangmembers’ instrumental and expressive uses of violence, media, and technology. Special attention is paid to the role of gangs in the drugs trade and the relationship between gangs and organized crime. Densley concludes with a critical appraisal of gang desistance and the precarious future of gang prevention and intervention, with practical advice for practitioners, police and policy- makers. Gang Leader for a Day: A Rogue Sociologist Takes to the Streets (12.11.2007) Hardcover – December 11, 2007 by Sudhir Venkatesh ARTICLES AND WEBSITES Common Sense http://www.csdp.org/news/news/8steps.htm Excerpt:  Below are eight steps that are effective methods of controlling drugs and reducing drug-related harms. (To download a copy of this as a PDF, click here.) 1. Shift Resources Into Programs That Work 2. Make Treatment Available on Request Like Any Other Health Service 3. Prevent Drug Abuse By Investing in American Youth and Providing Them with Accurate Information 4. Focus Law Enforcement Resources on the Most Dangerous and Violent Criminals 5. International Drug Control Efforts Should Be Demilitarized and Focus on Economic Development 6. Restore Justice to the US Justice System 7. Respect State's Rights and Allow New Approaches to Be Tried 8. Make Prevention of HIV and Other Blood Borne Diseases a Top Priority Back to top Shift Resources Into Programs That Work: US drug control strategy has been approached primarily as a law enforcement issue. Police have done their jobs with record arrests, drug seizures and record incarceration of drug offenders yet drug problems continue to worsen. Expensive eradication and interdiction campaigns abroad have brought few results and many costs. Two- thirds of the federal drug control budget continues to go to incarceration, interdiction and law enforcement programs while treatment, prevention, research and education divide the remaining third. Government needs to accept that the law enforcement paradigm will never work and shift to treating drug abuse as a health problem with social and economic implications. The solutions are in public health approaches which focus on addicts and abusers – not all users – as well as social services to reduce many of the root causes of abuse, economic strategies to develop alternative markets and also control drug markets. The federal drug budget should recognize this by shifting resources to prevention, treatment and education. Click here for more info. Back to top Make Treatment Available on Request Like Any Other Health Service: Making treatment services widely available undermines the drug market and reduces the harms from drug abuse. Treatment needs to be defined broadly to not only include abstinence-based treatment but also easier access to methadone and other alternative maintenance drugs. In addition it is important to provide mental health treatment, as well as services for victims of sexual abuse, spousal abuse and child abuse in order to resolve the underlying causes of addiction. Treatment also needs to be user friendly, i.e. designed to meet the needs of special populations, especially women, children and minorities. Finally, it needs to be focused on abusers and addicts rather than all drug users. The best way to accomplish this distinction is to allow people who need treatment to choose it, rather than law enforcement choosing treatment for people who happen to get caught. Click here for more info. Back to top Prevent Drug Abuse By Investing in American Youth and Providing Them with Accurate Information: The most effective way to prevent adolescent drug abuse is to invest in youth and keep them interested and involved in life. Government should increase funding for after school programs, mentor programs, skills building/job training programs and summer job programs. The Higher Education Act provisions denying college aid to students convicted of drug offenses should be repealed as barriers to education and employment are counterproductive to preventing drug abuse. Education needs to be fact-based, accurate and taught by trained educators and health professionals, not by police. Resources should be shifted away from ineffective programs like the ONDCP media campaign and the DARE program and toward research to develop more effective drug education approaches and programs to keep youth active. Focus Law Enforcement Resources on the Most Dangerous and Violent Criminals: Half of drug arrests in the United States are for marijuana offenses and possession cases. Low-level, non-violent drug-using offenders dominate police time, waste the time of courts and fill US prisons. The drug war has resulted in record-breaking prison populations giving the US the highest incarceration rate in the world. Arrest and incarceration also have a devastating impact on individuals and families. The focus of the federal government in drug enforcement should be large cases that cross international and state boundaries. Smaller cases that are intra state should be left to the states. Law enforcement should stop wasting its limited resources on simple possession charges. Small-time dealers who essentially sell to support their habit should be given the choice of treatment instead of prison. Drug offenders, particularly marijuana, should be the lowest law enforcement priority while violent criminals should be priority number one. All correctional systems in the US should be less restrictive in granting parole to bona fide nonviolent drug prisoners at review time, less restrictive in granting compassionate release and less restrictive in allowing family visits. These modest changes would give prisoners a motive for good behavior to earn their way out of prison and back to their families and communities. http://www.csdp.org/news/news/8steps.htm Travel Arsenal dot com 10 Ways to Stop Gangs Without Money! Help children learn how to become centered. Create a network of love and support. Teach children the buddy system. Encourage them to listen to their self-protective instincts... Include children in your home safety program: Create a safe neighborhood. Join a neighborhood group or start one. 10 Ways to Stop Gangs Without Money! - travelerarsenal.com/10-ways-to-stop-gangs-without-money/ [the website seems gone] How Stuff Works: Street Gangs https://people.howstuffworks.com/street-gang3.htm Photo: Forming neighborhood groups to clean up graffiti and maintain the area can help to drive out gangs. Excerpt:  There is no easy way to stop gangs, because the underlying conditions that lead to gangs are complex. Police crackdowns can temporarily lower gang influence…. A Literature Review on Gang Violence Kittle, Jolene MS, RN, ACCNS-AG, CCRN, CEN, TCRN, CFRN Journal of Trauma Nursing: July/August 2017 - Volume 24 - Issue 4 - p 270–279 doi: 10.1097/JTN.0000000000000303 Excerpt:  Gangs and gang violence are a concerning cause of preventable injuries and death in the trauma community. The number of gangs and gang members has been on an upward trend since 2003 with an estimated 30,000 gangs in the United States. This includes approximately 850,000 gang members. Trauma centers are in a unique position to participate in the prevention of gang violence. This review compiles current, relevant literature on gangs and gang violence covering the following topics: prevention/intervention, contributing influences, and experiential reflections. The purpose of the literature review is to deepen understanding of gangs and gang violence and potentiate further research in this area in order to help promote successful prevention efforts. Trauma nurses can use this information in developing culturally sensitive, compassionate care and trauma centers will find this useful in the development of injury prevention programs aimed at the reduction of gang and street violence. The High School Journal 1995   The Choice for Gang Membership by Mexican-American Adolescents, Raymond L. Calabrese and Julio Noboa The High School Journal, Vol. 78, No. 4, The Mexican-American Educational Experience (Apr. - May, 1995), pp. 226-235 Published by: University of North Carolina Press https://www.jstor.org/stable/40660716 Blogs Quora blog site Two posted answers shown below.  Police Factor thought the answers held merit. https://www.quora.com/What-are-some-ways-to-stop-prison-gangs https://www.quora.com/Why-do-so-many-prisoners-once-out-wind-up-back-in-prison-Doesn-t-freedom-mean-a-lot-to- them https://www.quora.com/profile/Chuck-Nelson-6 How to Stop Prison Gangs: an answer by Chuck Nelson, I deal with the post convicted. Answered Nov 17 2017 · The best way to stop prison gangs is to put all of the gang members in a single prison (or prisons by affiliation) and never move them. Make every effort to validate inmates and move them to the proper location as soon as possible. You need to minimize contact with non-gang inmates to eliminate, or at least reduce, recruitment. https://www.quora.com/What-are-some-ways-to-stop-prison-gangs Managing Prisons/Security Threat Groups http://www.corrections.com/news/article/35652-managing-prison-gangs-security-threat-groups Excerpt:  Prisons are responsible for housing convicted inmates in a safe and secure environment. This also includes identifying an inmate’s custody level, program needs, medical, mental health issues, and housing assignment. An assessment is completed to determine if the inmate is involved with a gang and/or security threat group. This verification can be completed in a variety of ways, including self-admission, gang tattoos, written materials, and other means. The following questions need to be answered: Does the inmate pose a threat to other inmates and staff? Is the inmate deemed an escape risk and/or security threat? Does the inmate require protection from other inmates, or pose a threat to the safety, security, and good order of the prison? A compilation of the assessment allows for identifying proper security level, housing assignment, program needs, and other. We may ask why there is a concern for security threat groups. These security threat groups are involved in violating various prison rules. This may consist of, but is not limited to, trafficking and trading in contraband, sexual acts and exploitation, participating and ordering assaults on inmates and staff, disrupt activities, exhibit extreme violent acts, and other. If left uncontrolled and not effectively managed, these violent actions can lead to serious disruption and even riots. These groups pose a serious management problem and concern for prisons. http://www.corrections.com/news/article/35652-managing-prison-gangs-security-threat-groups Why Do People End Up Back in Prison? Chuck Nelson, Correctional Officer in a Prison Hospital Answered Oct 15, 2019 · Author has 754 answers and 738.7k answer views Many inmates return because committing crime was what they did for a career (or serious hobby) before they finally got a charge they couldn’t dodge and caught some prison time. When they get out, they go back to what they know. This is especially true when they return to the area they grew up in. They start hanging out with the people they hung out with prior to prison and get right back into trouble again. Placing an inmate in new surroundings on release and providing them with support (employment help, housing, financial assistance) is the best way to prevent recidivism. There are inmates that were not regular offenders before they did THE ONE CRIME that got them into prison. They will become institutionalized because you have to in order to survive in a prison setting. This may lead them to a life of crime after prison but it is less likely as prison does not necessarily give you the criminal mindset, it gives you the inmate mindset. There are some similarities but learning how to sneak peanut butter out of the kitchen or light a cigarette with steel wool are not the things that lead you into crime. Some of the things you learn in prison may even be helpful on the street. For example, unless you are already the kind of person that likes to fight, you are going to have to learn conflict resolution and mediation.  THE ONE CRIME is usually murder so those guys are generally not getting out anyway. The other guys that get caught for a single crime with no background history are often sex offenders because you get caught for most sex offenses you don’t get back on the street for a long time. Sex offenders are usually repeat offenders, they just don’t get caught because they are abusing within their family and the abuse goes unreported. You ask any inmate and they will tell you they don’t want to be locked up. What they don’t say is that if retaining their freedom means they have to live the life of a citizen, they are going to take their chances with get arrested and convicted. https://www.quora.com/Why-do-so-many-prisoners-once-out-wind-up-back-in-prison-Doesn-t-freedom-mean-a-lot-to- them Research Gate dot net 2011/05   Gang Membership as a Turning point in the Life Course.  By Chris Melde Michigan State University https://www.researchgate.net/publication/227753318_Gang_Membership_As_A_Turning_Point_In_The_Life_Course Article (PDF Available) in Criminology 49(2):513 - 552 · Getting Out of Gangs, Staying Out of Gangs GANG INTERVENTION AND DESISTENCE STRATEGIES National Gang Center Institute for Intergovernmental Research Post Office Box 12729 Tallahassee, FL 32317 Phone (850) 385-0600 • Fax (850) 386-5356 Michelle Arciaga Young, National Gang Center Victor Gonzalez, Houston Mayor’s Anti-Gang Office [extracted 2020/04/10] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/317000601_Understanding_the_Psychology_of_Gang_Violence_Implications_for_Designing _Effective_Violence_Interventions Updates: 2020/04/13 Narco-Terrorism/Venezuela added; 2020/04/10 Getting Out of Gangs/Staying Out/Gonzalez/Houston added; Research Gate- Chris Melde/Turning Point added; 2019/11/02 csdp common sense 8 steps website link added; Page started 2019/10/18