Gang Injunctions
Gang Injunctions & Civil Abatement in Los Angeles
A gang injunction in Los Angeles is when the City Attorney’s Office with approval from a judge issues a restraining order against specific gang members of a particular gang. With information gathered from police officers, a judge will grant a restraining order against identified members of a gang, in essence suing them. In the lawsuit, the actual gang members are mentioned, and they are forbidden to engage in a host of activities, some of which are already illegal such as selling drugs, vandalizing property and possessing weapons. Other activities that they are restricted from doing have included associating with other named gang members, curfew or riding bicycles. Each gang injunction must define a geographic area where these activities are restricted known as a “safety zone.”
Los Angeles first started experiencing with gang injunctions in the early 1980s in Pomona, West Covina, and E. LA, but the injunction against the Play Boy Gangster Crips in 1987 is when these civil abatement strategies first gained national attention. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) challenged the constitutionality of the injunctions and city attorney James Hahn was forced to modify his lawsuit. Since then, several injunctions have been implemented in LA County including in Inglewood against the Crenshaw Mafia Bloods, in Los Angeles against 18th Street and the Harpys, and in Norwalk against the Orange Street Locos to name a few. There have been just over 30 injunctions in LA County. The ACLU has continued to take the position that gang injunctions violate civil rights and in a report published in 1997 the ACLU has claimed that they are not that effective in abating crime.
The popularity of the injunctions have seen places such as San Diego and San Jose, California, San Antonio, Texas, and Chicago, Illinois to adopt similar strategies against their gangs. Although the California Supreme Court ruled that the city of San Jose may implement gang injunctions when it overturned a 1995 appellate court decision in the ACLU case, People v. Acuna, because of the vague language of Chicago’s 1992 anti gang ordinance, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1999 that it was unconstitutional and challenged individual freedoms (see Chicago v. Morales).
In the San Diego injunction, the California appeals court stated that gang members can keep their pagers and cited that restricting pagers for any purpose violates ones freedom of speech.
ARTICLES on GANG INJUNCTIONS
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
Chicago Law Targeted at Street Gangs Up for Review, Dec 9, 1998
Superior Court Judge Grants Preliminary Injunction in Gang Case, Dec 1, 1998
California appeals court strikes down ban on carrying pagers, Oct 28, 1998
L.A. attempts to curb gang activity against Compton Varrio Tortilla Flats, Sept 1, 1998
A Notorious Swath of Drugs and Violence, August 14, 1998
Judge Approves Injunction Against Harpys, August 8, 1998
Local district attorney in Corpus Christi wants to create similar law preventing people from gathering, July 8, 1998
Suspected Gang Members Get Restraining Order Subpoenas in Texas, July 3, 1998
Injunction Targets Hollywood Gang, the Mara Salvatrucha, April 14, 1998
1997
Police in Los Angeles are finding that reams of paperwork can stop gang violence, Nov. 11, 1997
Judge Puts More Heat on 18th Street Gang, August 29, 1997
L.A. to Gang Members: Don’t Even Whistle, Aug 14, 1997
L.A. tries to hold back 18th Street Gang with tough measures, Aug 7, 1997
Judge Bans 18th Street Gang, July 11, 1997
Injunction Issued Against Long Beach Gang, June 10, 1997
City tries gang ban , July 11, 1997
Gangbusters: Enjoining the Boys in the ‘Hood, May-June 1997
ACLU Report Says Gang Injunction Failed to Reduce Crime, May 28, 1997
Culver City Gang Faces Injunction, May 20, 1997
High Court Upholds San Jose’s Anti-Gang Injunction, March/April 1997
Court upholds right to restrict gang activity, February 1, 1997
State High Court Allows Injunctions, Jan 31, 1997
1996
California Supreme Court to Hear Challenge to San Jose Anti-Gang Injunction, October 29, 1996
1995
1994
1993
Unusual Anti-Gang Injunction Leads to Conviction of Man for Having Pager, August 26, 1993
1992
Great moments in free assembly, The San Fers and Shakin Cats, Jan 27, 1992
For Safe Parks, Put Gangs on the Peace Path, Jan 20, 1992
1991
1990
1989
1988
Rethinking gang’s rights vs. our rights, Feb 5, 1988
1987
Judge Raps City Atty.’s bid to nuetralize gangs, Dec. 11, 1987
Court Rejects City Attorney’s bid to curb westside gangs’s movements, November 6, 1987
1983
Los Angeles gangs heeding court order to erase graffiti, Feb 13, 1983
I was born and raised in san fernando valley right on the barrio…kewen coronel hungtington , pico workman all the streets are my entire life…both my father and mother family are SAN FERS…and not only am I going to say they are nice ppl..but also they are human just like you and me…they chose to be in a gang and dress the way they do….THIS DONT MAKE THEM OR THERE HOMEBOYS BECOME BAD PERSONS…THE COMMUNITY MAKES THEM BECOME BAD PPL…I AM NOT FROM THE BARRIO BUT ALL THEPL THAT KNOW ME THINK AND POINT ME OUT as a chola…I wish I was and I would walk proud to be from SAN FER BUT I AM NOT…SO TO THE NEW RESIDENTS AND ALL THE POLICE OFFICERS JUST LEAVE THE SAN FERS AND ALL THE OTHERS THAT ARE BAGGY PANTS AND BALD JUST LEAVE THEM AND ME ALONE…WE DNT BOTHER U…SO DNT BOTHER US…CUZ THEN WE WILL BECOME WHAT U ALREADY BLAFF ABOUT US….ALL WE WANT IS TO LISTEN TO OLDIES SMOKE DRINK BE WITH OUR FAMILY BRAGG ABOUT OUR FIRME TATTOOS AND RANFLAS…WE AINT BADD….AND U POLICE OFFICERS PLEASE STOP HARRASING US AND GO CATCH THOSE SEX OFFENDERS THAT WALK IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD..OR WHO DO U WANT US THAT WANT TO JUST LISTEN TO OLDIES OR THEM MOLESTING OUR CHILDREN…I WALK PASS BY THEM FREE REGISTERED SEX OFFENDERS EVERYDAY…WHY ARE THEY FREE..UT THEM AWAY…AND ST HARRASSING THE GOOD HARD WORKING GUY THAT HAS TATTOOS AND DRIVES A NICE FIRME CHEVY…
i know how u all feel my dad is in18 street its hard to be around him
haha.i feel yhuu my dads from wet town.
sWaG efFecTs
nigGA?
ryan dunn stupid DRUNK….
you are in reality a good webmaster. The website loading velocity is amazing. It sort of feels that you are doing any distinctive trick. Furthermore, The contents are masterpiece. you’ve performed a magnificent process in this matter!
what a poor excuse for being lazy doesnt anybody know how to mow lawns cut wood make things with there hands and some tools come on didnt we learn anything while locked anybody somebody so no excuses we cant find jobs cuz really how hard r we trying
wop killaz???
The society needs reform for all these problems to go away.
Ffs wise up
187 on jay Z wheRE he AT ??
1807 2047 ON CROOKED I HE BOUT TO BE DA NEX LEFT EYE
FUK HEADSUCKERS LA MIRADA LOCOS LOS MIRADEROS GANG
Hi, i read your blog occasionally and i own a similar one and i was just curious if you get a lot of spam remarks? If so how do you stop it, any plugin or anything you can advise? I get so much lately it’s driving me insane so any support is very much appreciated.
I love your website, blogs important. I’ll bookmark it and come back soon.
we need Jobs and a lot of this crap will go away