The recent conference at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice focused on addressing national trends in prosecution, crime prevention, and criminal justice strategies.  Among the Opening Day speakers was Cyrus Vance, the New York County District Attorney (DA), who set the tone for the conference with his thesis “a crime prevented is much more valuable than a crime prosecuted.”

to read the full story and learn more about "Community Prosecution" - click here

I am soooo excited! Yesterday we held a bidder's conference for a recent Request for Proposal (RFP) to secure gang prevention and intervention services in the County. The focus of the funds is to build collaboration and coordination, as such, the RFP has a preference for partnerships implementing the proposed activities.

Without prompting, one of the agency representatives ask to find out where each of the other agencies provided services, so that they could better develop partnerships for the proposal. Many of the agencies expressed that this was the first time they had come into contact with the others. Everyone agreed on sharing their information and I am excited to see what develops and the proposals that come in!

To that end - if you are an agency interested in applying for one of the available mini-grants through this RFP and would like to find out where the other agencies provide services, but did not attend the bidder' conference - HERE IS YOUR CHANCE! In the comments section for this blog, enter your: Name, Agency/Program Name, Phone Number, and what Board of Supervisor District you provide services. come back often over the next week to see who posts!

Getting under their skin

By Scott Kraft, Los Angeles Times

August 17, 2010

A boy's tattoo calls into question his father's judgment — and stirs a community to confront how it deals with street gangs. Read the full story by following this link http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-tattoo-20100817,0,2054410.story

grant funds in Visalia.pdf (20.42 kb)

An article from the Visalia Times Delta (link above) speaks to one of the City's strategies to fund gang prevention efforts by refocusing an exisiting funding stream. Having prioritized addressing gangs as an issue they instituted a means to support that priority within current available resources.

Applicants for the grant program need to attend a grant-writing workshop to be eligible; details include

Nonprofit workshops

The city of Visalia, working through Visalia's Citizens Advisory Committee, awards $160,000 a year to nonprofit groups. Applicants for upcoming grants must attend a grant-writing workshop at City Hall West, 707 W. Acequia Ave., Visalia, on one of the following dates and times:

The following is information pulled from an independant newsletter diseminated by Dr. Harold Schweizer, Criminology Department at CSU Fresno. To see the entire newsletter, down the file here. June 2010 CSUF Criminology Newsletter.pdf (1.03 mb)

Japanese businesses who cooperate with police and agree to deny service to gang members or members of organized crime, are given a decal that indicates their cooperation and which they place at the entrance of their business. Japanese police also have significant flexibility in their investigations involving organized crime. A relative recently recognized a photo of a Boryokudan robbery suspect shown in a TV newscast as a customer of his business. He called police and detectives came by and presented him with some delicious pastries to show their appreciation.   This blue decal on the entrance door to a business in Kurokawa, Japan shows the Japanese police logo and states that it assists police by not allowing gang (Boryokudan) members to frequent the business. Such gang members are typically identifiable based on tattoos and hair/clothing styles.*
 

*There are apparently no civil rights Lawyers in Japan.

I think this post warrants revisiting. http://fcgpc.org/blog/post/2008/01/Reclaiming-Youth-How-Los-Angeles-Can-Be-a-Model-for-Gang-Violence-Prevention.aspx

Enjoy,

Debra

In speaking with a colleague regarding the young boy in Fresno who was tattooed with a dog paw as a gang marking, there was mention that if under 18 a young person could obtain permission from a parent or legal guardian to get a tattoo. I was sure this was not the case.

To clear the air, I looked up the California Penal Code in regards to tattooing minors, and in fact it is illegal to tattoo anyone under the age of 18 with or without parental permission.

"California Penal Code 653.  Every person who tattoos or offers to tattoo a person under the age of 18 years is guilty of a misdemeanor.
   As used in this section, to "tattoo" means to insert pigment under the surface of the skin of a human being, by pricking with a needle or otherwise, so as to produce an indelible mark or figure visible through the skin.
   This section is not intended to apply to any act of a licensed practitioner of the healing arts performed in the course of his practice."

Unlike body piercing in California, which allows for notarized parental consent or in the presence of a parent for a minor to receive the service - tattoos make no such exception.

from LATimes.com

An educated weapon will combat gangs

City-sanctioned intervention workers are studying for a unique assignment: preventing the next crime.

By Scott Gold, Los Angeles Times

May 23, 2010

If you live in the 93706 Zip Code or are concerned about that community, then please join the Fresno Mayor's Gang Prevention Initiative to learn more about Fresno Ceasefire. A new strategy being implemented in Fresno County.

Two Community Forums are being held:

Wednesday, May 26th 6:00pm - 7:30pm at West Fresno Seventh Adventist Church, 2750 Martin Luther King Blvd, Fresno CA 93706 or

Wednesday, June 2nd 6:00pm - 7:30pm at Westside Church of God, 1422 W. California Avenue Fresno CA 93706

Please see the attached flyer for more information and contact info.

Community Forum Announcement 5-2010.pdf (191.56 kb)