Stronger Police Force Is Way to End Horror of Gang Violence

Good journalism brings problems into such sharp focus that the reader is taken beyond the kind of tired terminology that no longer raises appropriate alarm.

By that, we mean such terms as “street gang” or “crew” and “turf” and “colors” and “collapsed truce.” We mean terms like “gangbangers” and “homeboys.” These words fall pathetically short of an accurate description of what went on throughout much of the San Fernando Valley for most of last year. That’s what Times’ Valley Edition editors, reporters, correspondents, researchers, artists and photographers demonstrated so clearly a week ago in the special package: “The Human Toll in 1995: Victims of Gang Violence in the San Fernando Valley.”

It’s a start to recognize that these roving bands of thugs and their extreme violence represent the biggest threat to peace and safety in the Valley today.

And it helps to note that rival thugs and crooks are hardly the only victims of this kind of low-level warfare. Many of the 55 members of 1995’s gang violence “Gallery of the Dead” could not be tied into active gang membership. So, we have honest and law-abiding sons and daughters buried in plots intended for their mothers and fathers.

And the violence itself? It is every bit as heinous as this nation’s worst incidents of organized murder and crime. The perpetrators are not just gang members. They are angry, unrepentant and remorseless predators who have no regard for the sanctity of human life. Many might be salvaged, but many have also sacrificed whatever shred of humanity they once possessed.

We’re talking about low-lifes who shoot volleys of bullets into crowds or into restaurants to kill their so-called “intended victims.” And we say “intended” because there is no logic or reason required to become a victim of these killers. No rule book or map will keep you out of harm’s way.

We’re talking about victims who are immolated or shot upward of 40 times. We’re talking about high-speed chases and running gun battles on streets and freeways, reminiscent of the earliest days of criminal mob violence in this country. We’re talking about people being shoved off of balconies, of victims who are beaten, shot and then run over by cars.

For that reason, local society ought to kick itself if it ever again finds any sense of collective solace or relief over the next ballyhooed “truce” between criminal gang terrorists. Such truces mainly mean one thing: The crooks have merely stopped shooting at each other.

And all of the tripe one hears about how good it feels to be in a gang, the sense of loyalty and belonging? It’s time to show the criminal-wannabes and would-bes just how badly that pile of manure really smells. Gang life, even at its fringes, is a death warrant. Once in it or near it, the most likely road out seems to require a hearse.

Sure enough, the “Gallery of the Dead” in last Sunday’s Times included those who had quit gangs, those who were not gang members and were just “hanging out” with them, those who were no longer “active” gang members, even members who were killed by their own gangs, and one gang member who was mowed down after approaching people he thought he knew.

*

It bears repeating that the flare-up of terror on the Valley’s streets last year points out the continuing problem of the Los Angeles Police Department’s numerical inferiority.

It also bears repeating that the taxpayers of Los Angeles have to cough up the funding for strategically placed, new police stations that would allow quicker response times and easier backup when more officers are needed in certain areas.

Why? Because it wasn’t a new truce that finally clamped down on criminal gang activity in November and December.

It was accomplished by adding more officers to the Valley’s patrol force, and by applying the use of the LAPD’s Metro Division. It is pretty apparent that these additional forces ought to remain in place until a more permanent solution is found. Heightened law enforcement is the solution.

We want to stress the importance of social workers, job counselors and others who can make an effort to keep fringe kids away from hard-core gang types. That can save some lives; but it is work that needs to be done along with increased law enforcement. That’s because these gangs too often function on two levels: as a slaughterhouse for innocents and those desperate enough to join, and as a breeding ground for hardened and soulless career criminals.