Police Figures Indicate 31.8% Rise in Gang-Motivated Crimes

Gang-motivated crimes--those directly growing out of gang activity--increased 31.8% citywide in the first six months of this year, compared with the same period a year ago, but gang-motivated homicide showed only a modest 4.6% jump, Los Angeles police said Wednesday.

Some of the increase, said Lt. Fred Nixon, can be attributed to the Police Department’s computerized file of suspected gang members, enhancing its ability to identify gang involvement in criminal activities.

“We now have more than 30,000 names in our gang files,” Nixon said. “That compares to 15,000 just a few years ago.”

He admitted, however, that record keeping alone cannot account for a jump from 1,473 gang-motivated crimes in the first six months of 1988 to 1,941 in the same period this year.

Gang-related crime, a broader category meaning that either the victim or a suspect is affiliated with a gang, is up 41% through June, compared to the same period a year ago.

“We readily admit we don’t know all the reasons,” Nixon said. “When you are making your best effort and you still see numbers that are discouraging, you have to step back and ask if you are doing the right thing.”

Officers have concentrated on education and enforcement, Nixon said, trying to deter youngsters who might otherwise become involved in gangs, and “deploying anti-gang task forces where the crime is.”

Task forces have the mission of arresting gang members, wherever they are, Nixon said.

Nonetheless, the increases in gang-motivated crime have come despite highly publicized mass arrests of suspected gang members. A police gang sweep last weekend, for instance, resulted in the arrest of more than 185 people, including at least 153 suspected gang members, police said.

While all homicides have risen 14.5% to 395 citywide for the first six months this year, gang-motivated homicides have remained nearly the same, up from 65 to 68, police said.