CIs, INTEL AND THE CONSENT DECREE
Today's LA TIMES ran a story about a policy change regarding use of informants by LAPD uniformed cops. The story is a little cloudy on the facts. Apparently the LAPD asked the federal monitor Michael Cherkasky for permission to let uniformed gang cops develop informants. The DOJ, Cherkasky and US District Court Judge Gary Feess gave the LAPD permission to do so.
What's not mentioned in the article is whether this permission slip will allow uniformed gang cops to pay CIs for information. The truth is, with or without permision from authorities, uniformed gang cops have never stopped using street informants. It's part of what they do as gang cops. Developing gang intelligence would be next to impossible without informants.
It's no big secret that within hours after a gang-related shooting or a homicide, gang cops usually get strong leads on the shooter(s) and the motive from contact with informants. The key to a filing is whether informants have first-hand knowledge of the incident or whether it's hearsay and thus inadmissible in court. The other obstacle is whether the informant is willing to come forward and testify in court in a case where he or she has first-hand knowledge of the crime.
The LAT article mentions that the ACLU has concerns about this "new" CI policy. The fear is that street informants or cops could put a case on a innocent party out of personal retribution or internal gang squabble. This is a genuine concern. I just witnessed a case where a CI made up a story out of whole cloth and basically framed a defendant in a murder case. It turns out the defendant was guilty anyway and eventually copped a plea in exchange for a reduced sentence. But the fact remains that the CI was lying and will probably be charged with perjury. So the danger is there. You can see where the possibility exists of an innocent guy being set up and framed not necessarily by police, but by his own crimies.
We know how slick some players can get. It's not out of the realm of possibility that three of four criminals conspire to kill somebody, agree to finger some guy they want out of the picture to clean up their books and conspire to put the case on him.
The use of CIs can cut both ways. It can make huge cases like the Aguirre and Detevis federal RICO cases but it can also take cases completely off the rails and make LE look like fools and maybe send innocent defendants to jail. Street cops may not like it, but the solution is to impose rigid guidelines, provide close supervision and evaluate the validity of information at every step of the process right up to a DA's filing. We've seen first-hand how the best intentioned investigations conducted by straight-arrow, ethical cops can go completely sideways based on believable but ultimately bad information. It's rare, or course, but all it takes is one bad case to put the entire issue back on shelf and remove a potentially valuable tool of law enforcement. The Perez case was a once in a lifetime incident and look what it do to the city. We're still paying for it.
Saturday, August 13, 2005
Friday, August 05, 2005
INSANITY AT THE BORDER
While I was away, a regular reader sent me an item from the July 28 issue of the Tucson Citizen. According to the article, Police Commander Jesus Zamora of San Luis Colorado, a Mexican town just across the border from San Luis, Arizona, will "work with a local gang" in exchange for an "end to what they [the gang] say is police harassment." There are so many things wrong with this that it's tough to know where to start.
According to the Arizona cops, the gang (which goes un-named in the article) is responsible for smuggling drugs and illegal border crossers and committing at least two homicides. Police Commander Zamora's deal is nothing more than a declaration of unconditional surrender. Coming on the heels of the chaos in Nuevo Laredo, this item rates as small potatoes. But it underscores Mexico's freefall into anarchy. Last week the NY TIMES ran a very long and well-researched story on corruption south of the border that claimed the heart of the rot starts right in Vicente Fox's office. It's no surprise then that Commander Zamora, manning a lawless border outpost threw up his hands and basically said, "Whatever."
The concept of coming to some kind of detente between a criminal organization and legitimate authority is a seductive one that pops up regularly and flames out in a death spiral every time it's been tried. It doesn't work. It has never worked. It will never work. We need only to look at the track record of these misguided attempts.
Let's start with the LCN during WWII. After the NORMANDIE was torched in NEW YORK harbor, the US NAVY and the FBI made a deal with mob boss LUCKY LUCIANO. Because the Cosa Nostra controlled the docks, Lucky would make sure the troop ships and cargo heading for Europe would get loaded on time and only a tolerable level of theft would be allowed to happen. In exchange, Lucky would be released from prison at the end of the war and deported to Sicily. Bad deal.
The LCN didn't suddenly become Mother Teresa. The deal gave the LCN total control of the docks and the longshoreman's union and made a lot of wise guys wealthy beyond their dreams. The deal legitimized the LCN in the eyes of a lot of people who should have known better.
With Lucky free to operate in Sicily, he traveled to Cuba with Meyer Lansky and established cordial relations with corrupt president Fulgencio Bautista. The math is simple. LCN + corrupt Bautista = Fidel Castro. Gee, all the government wanted was to make sure the beans and bullets got to the Western front. What we got was the Russian missile crisis and 50 years of the lights going off every night at 8:00 PM in Cuba. Plus the gulags for AIDS patients and firing squads for "counter-revolutionaries."
In post-war Sicily, Mafiosi no longer worked in the shadows as they had to when Mussolini was in power. They ran for office and became mayors, governors and national representatives. LCN controlled everything, legitimate and otherwise.
Fast forward to the Neopolitan Camora in the 1970s. The big money-maker for the Camora wasn't dope. It was cigarettes. In Italy, cigarettes are a state-owned monopoly. That means the government imports and produces all the smokes. There are no private sector cigarette companies. Which means no competition and therefore, the government sets the price.
At a time when smokes sold for 40 cents a pack in the US, Italian smokers paid over a dollar for the same pack with the government tax stamp on the bottom. The Camora saw this as a golden business opportunity. They bought up entire cargo ships of US smokes and parked them 20 miles off the coast of Naples. Every afternoon at 3:00 PM, squadrons of 35-ft power boats would depart from Naples harbor and lash up next to the mother ship to load up on roughly a ton of smokes per trip.
The boats would offload at a thousand little places on the coast. The smokes were ultimately sold on street corners by little old ladies and young kids. The illegal trade cost the government millions of dollars a year in tax revenue. The Finanza (Italian customs dept.) started cracking down on the fast boats. When the Camora felt the heat, they started killing cops and launched a wave of armed robberies, hijackings, assaults and tourist attacks.
To make a very long story short, the Camora made a deal with the cops. Let us run the cigarette business unmolested and we'll stop killing cops, robbing tourists and hijacking cargo trucks. The cops said okay.
When the Corsicans, French and Sicilians found out that the Camora was running in and out of Naples without so much as a raised eyebrow, they started piggybacking heroin, hashish and weed on the cigarette shipments. Naples became a main port of entry for every illegal substance known to dope fiend. The expected spike in murder, overdoses and fat dirty bank accounts ensued. Bad deal.
In the US, we have the examples of the Gangster Disciples. That social experiment, funded with taxpayer dollars, let the Detroit gangs "police" themselves. The end result was a trip to Lybia, a pact with Qadaffi, a rocket launcher, El Rukn assassination squads, more dope on the streets and more dead bodies in alleys. Bad deal.
To a lesser extent, we had the same situation with Project Get Going here in LA. A lot of you old timers remember that one and I'll leave you all to flesh out the details in the comments section.
The historical precedents to what Commander Zamora is doing in San Luis Colorado are clear. You don't legitimize criminal orgs by making deals with them. It's bad policy that will always burn society. Deals with individuals is another story that can bear untainted fruit. But that's a whole other discussion.
While I was away, a regular reader sent me an item from the July 28 issue of the Tucson Citizen. According to the article, Police Commander Jesus Zamora of San Luis Colorado, a Mexican town just across the border from San Luis, Arizona, will "work with a local gang" in exchange for an "end to what they [the gang] say is police harassment." There are so many things wrong with this that it's tough to know where to start.
According to the Arizona cops, the gang (which goes un-named in the article) is responsible for smuggling drugs and illegal border crossers and committing at least two homicides. Police Commander Zamora's deal is nothing more than a declaration of unconditional surrender. Coming on the heels of the chaos in Nuevo Laredo, this item rates as small potatoes. But it underscores Mexico's freefall into anarchy. Last week the NY TIMES ran a very long and well-researched story on corruption south of the border that claimed the heart of the rot starts right in Vicente Fox's office. It's no surprise then that Commander Zamora, manning a lawless border outpost threw up his hands and basically said, "Whatever."
The concept of coming to some kind of detente between a criminal organization and legitimate authority is a seductive one that pops up regularly and flames out in a death spiral every time it's been tried. It doesn't work. It has never worked. It will never work. We need only to look at the track record of these misguided attempts.
Let's start with the LCN during WWII. After the NORMANDIE was torched in NEW YORK harbor, the US NAVY and the FBI made a deal with mob boss LUCKY LUCIANO. Because the Cosa Nostra controlled the docks, Lucky would make sure the troop ships and cargo heading for Europe would get loaded on time and only a tolerable level of theft would be allowed to happen. In exchange, Lucky would be released from prison at the end of the war and deported to Sicily. Bad deal.
The LCN didn't suddenly become Mother Teresa. The deal gave the LCN total control of the docks and the longshoreman's union and made a lot of wise guys wealthy beyond their dreams. The deal legitimized the LCN in the eyes of a lot of people who should have known better.
With Lucky free to operate in Sicily, he traveled to Cuba with Meyer Lansky and established cordial relations with corrupt president Fulgencio Bautista. The math is simple. LCN + corrupt Bautista = Fidel Castro. Gee, all the government wanted was to make sure the beans and bullets got to the Western front. What we got was the Russian missile crisis and 50 years of the lights going off every night at 8:00 PM in Cuba. Plus the gulags for AIDS patients and firing squads for "counter-revolutionaries."
In post-war Sicily, Mafiosi no longer worked in the shadows as they had to when Mussolini was in power. They ran for office and became mayors, governors and national representatives. LCN controlled everything, legitimate and otherwise.
Fast forward to the Neopolitan Camora in the 1970s. The big money-maker for the Camora wasn't dope. It was cigarettes. In Italy, cigarettes are a state-owned monopoly. That means the government imports and produces all the smokes. There are no private sector cigarette companies. Which means no competition and therefore, the government sets the price.
At a time when smokes sold for 40 cents a pack in the US, Italian smokers paid over a dollar for the same pack with the government tax stamp on the bottom. The Camora saw this as a golden business opportunity. They bought up entire cargo ships of US smokes and parked them 20 miles off the coast of Naples. Every afternoon at 3:00 PM, squadrons of 35-ft power boats would depart from Naples harbor and lash up next to the mother ship to load up on roughly a ton of smokes per trip.
The boats would offload at a thousand little places on the coast. The smokes were ultimately sold on street corners by little old ladies and young kids. The illegal trade cost the government millions of dollars a year in tax revenue. The Finanza (Italian customs dept.) started cracking down on the fast boats. When the Camora felt the heat, they started killing cops and launched a wave of armed robberies, hijackings, assaults and tourist attacks.
To make a very long story short, the Camora made a deal with the cops. Let us run the cigarette business unmolested and we'll stop killing cops, robbing tourists and hijacking cargo trucks. The cops said okay.
When the Corsicans, French and Sicilians found out that the Camora was running in and out of Naples without so much as a raised eyebrow, they started piggybacking heroin, hashish and weed on the cigarette shipments. Naples became a main port of entry for every illegal substance known to dope fiend. The expected spike in murder, overdoses and fat dirty bank accounts ensued. Bad deal.
In the US, we have the examples of the Gangster Disciples. That social experiment, funded with taxpayer dollars, let the Detroit gangs "police" themselves. The end result was a trip to Lybia, a pact with Qadaffi, a rocket launcher, El Rukn assassination squads, more dope on the streets and more dead bodies in alleys. Bad deal.
To a lesser extent, we had the same situation with Project Get Going here in LA. A lot of you old timers remember that one and I'll leave you all to flesh out the details in the comments section.
The historical precedents to what Commander Zamora is doing in San Luis Colorado are clear. You don't legitimize criminal orgs by making deals with them. It's bad policy that will always burn society. Deals with individuals is another story that can bear untainted fruit. But that's a whole other discussion.
Thursday, August 04, 2005
BACK FROM VACATION
Before I left for the ultra-montane serenity of the Grand Tetons, I was thinking of asking a guest blogger to carry on. When I got back, I realized you all kept the chatter going at a high pitch. Awesome! I didn't realize so many wise-guys checked in. I got huge laughs from the sniping and I didn't even mind the un-PC jokes. But then again, I've got a thick skin. I did a quick tabulation and it seems like every ethnic and racial group got its turn in the barrel. So I guess that makes it fair.
For those who wondered where I went, the answer is Wyoming. We kayaked, hiked, camped out, got rained on, sunburned, hailed on in Yellowstone, bitten by a zillion bugs, went into lakes cold enough to stop your heart, drifted down the Snake River, and had close encounters with moose, elk, marmots, bison, bald eagles, otters, ospreys, grouse and hawks. And no, we didn't witness or hear about any float-bys.
The biggest crime story in the papers the week we were there involved a streaker at the Jackson Hole demolition derby. Like Mutton Bustin' and greased pig wrestling, streaking the demo derby is some kind of annual tradition. Hey, it's Wyoming. And July is the only month when they don't get snow. This year, there was "huge" controversy when one of the streakers grabbed a fire extinguisher off the firetruck that was hosing down the dirt between demo heats. A Teton County deputy sheriff and a security guard tried to wrangle the naked guy. When it looked like nude boy was getting ready to spray the cop, the copper tased him with 50,000 volts. The crowd went nuts, booed the cop and threw beer cups and trash into the arena.
The streaker was arrested and released and could face a $750 fine for indecent exposure. A lawyer in the crowd volunteered to defend the guy for free. Chances are, that'll be the biggest crime story of the year. Nothing much happens in Wyoming compared to LA. The entire state has less than 500,000 residents. And at last count, there were 1,500 inmates behind bars in the entire prison system, and that includes juvi, half way houses, honor ranches etc. Barely enough to qualify as a decent sized single neighborhood in LA.
Vice President Dick Cheney flew into town the day after we landed. He's a resident and avid fly fisherman. A fishing guide told me that local anglers get bent out of shape when the Veep goes fishing. When he's on the river, Blackhawk choppers do security sweeps and that scares the crap out of the trout, ruining everybody's fishing.
With so much land and so few people, you'd think real estate would be a buyer's market. Think again. Raw land in "desirable" locations can go for a million per acre. A modest house in downtown Jackson will run you half a million to $600,000. Right on the corner of Cache and Broadway in Jackson, Sotheby's has a real estate office where you can look at ranch property on the Snake River that goes from 5 to 10 million dollars. Kinda makes Highland Park look like a bargain.
Gotta go. There's 143 emails I need to read and a pile of mail that needs sorting.
Before I left for the ultra-montane serenity of the Grand Tetons, I was thinking of asking a guest blogger to carry on. When I got back, I realized you all kept the chatter going at a high pitch. Awesome! I didn't realize so many wise-guys checked in. I got huge laughs from the sniping and I didn't even mind the un-PC jokes. But then again, I've got a thick skin. I did a quick tabulation and it seems like every ethnic and racial group got its turn in the barrel. So I guess that makes it fair.
For those who wondered where I went, the answer is Wyoming. We kayaked, hiked, camped out, got rained on, sunburned, hailed on in Yellowstone, bitten by a zillion bugs, went into lakes cold enough to stop your heart, drifted down the Snake River, and had close encounters with moose, elk, marmots, bison, bald eagles, otters, ospreys, grouse and hawks. And no, we didn't witness or hear about any float-bys.
The biggest crime story in the papers the week we were there involved a streaker at the Jackson Hole demolition derby. Like Mutton Bustin' and greased pig wrestling, streaking the demo derby is some kind of annual tradition. Hey, it's Wyoming. And July is the only month when they don't get snow. This year, there was "huge" controversy when one of the streakers grabbed a fire extinguisher off the firetruck that was hosing down the dirt between demo heats. A Teton County deputy sheriff and a security guard tried to wrangle the naked guy. When it looked like nude boy was getting ready to spray the cop, the copper tased him with 50,000 volts. The crowd went nuts, booed the cop and threw beer cups and trash into the arena.
The streaker was arrested and released and could face a $750 fine for indecent exposure. A lawyer in the crowd volunteered to defend the guy for free. Chances are, that'll be the biggest crime story of the year. Nothing much happens in Wyoming compared to LA. The entire state has less than 500,000 residents. And at last count, there were 1,500 inmates behind bars in the entire prison system, and that includes juvi, half way houses, honor ranches etc. Barely enough to qualify as a decent sized single neighborhood in LA.
Vice President Dick Cheney flew into town the day after we landed. He's a resident and avid fly fisherman. A fishing guide told me that local anglers get bent out of shape when the Veep goes fishing. When he's on the river, Blackhawk choppers do security sweeps and that scares the crap out of the trout, ruining everybody's fishing.
With so much land and so few people, you'd think real estate would be a buyer's market. Think again. Raw land in "desirable" locations can go for a million per acre. A modest house in downtown Jackson will run you half a million to $600,000. Right on the corner of Cache and Broadway in Jackson, Sotheby's has a real estate office where you can look at ranch property on the Snake River that goes from 5 to 10 million dollars. Kinda makes Highland Park look like a bargain.
Gotta go. There's 143 emails I need to read and a pile of mail that needs sorting.
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
A HISTORY LESSON
There's a a lot of action that goes on in the comments section. I'm not sure that everyone who logs on takes the time to read all the comments. Some are just too good to leave there. I picked this one to run as a post because it's important and it's the absolute straight deal. You're not going to hear anything more authentic than this. It's from regular commenter TIJUANAJAILER. This is the gospel. Everything between quote marks is his. Enjoy and be edified.
"Before people get their feathers ruffled any further it is important to understand that the EME, AB, BGF and NF (California's AXIS of EVIL) does not care about ethnic pride. From Day One, EME began exploiting fellow Chicanos. According to one former EME member's description: "they are an Equal Opportunity Exploiter". End of story. The NF formed out of their being abused by EME and they evolved into a criminal cartel with NO regard (I repeat NO regard) for their people, be they campesinos or northern California gang members. If anyone is being "punked" (as many posters are fond of saying), it is the north AND south gang members by these two groups. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure this out.
The AB started out as biker "types" and white racist, black-hating warriors. They too evolved into gangsters who could care less about white supremacy and more about the green almighty dollar. The BGF, led originally by James "Doc" Holliday has long since surrendered its
anti-establishment ideology for good old capitalist living. I doubt that the proceeds from their meth labs go back to furthering the "Black Cause".
There are two historical components to the EME-AB alliance and the NF-BGF alliance. There is the racial component and the power component. In prison, it was well known that the blacks and whites were "natural" enemies. Due to the color of their skin, this "natural" racial divide would always separate these groups.
When the EME emerged, they were into power and control and they didn't care who you were nor what color your skin was. Domination, exploitation and terrorizing (there's that dreaded word again) the main population was what they were about. Their power struggle was one that was fresh from the CYA, county jail facilities and wherever Chicanos and Blacks were housed together. The fact that they shared similar social plights on the outside was not a relevant factor on the inside. They never thought about the fact that they indeed shared common dilemnas.
So understand this: EME and southern gang members never really hated blacks because of the color of their skin but more because of the numerical threat they represented. It was about power. Those of you who have done time for many years (especially those of you who were "state raised") will attest to the fact that a handful of Chicanos could confront a large group of blacks and send them "running" like a stampede of cattle by just blinking their eyes.
Then you had your "cream of the crop". The BGF and hard core radicals. They actually respected and admired EME members. In fact, when George Jackson, Hugo "Yogi" Pinell & company decided to take over the San Quentin Adjustment Center, who was there fighting alongside them: Luis "Bala" Talamantez and Louie "Rock On Lou" Lopez, two fierce EME enforcers. In an unholy alliance, they "teamed up" to execute three (3) prison guards and left a stack of injured guards in a cell presumably dead. Read the following link for some interesting stuff: http://rwor.org/a/v20/960-69/969/talam.htm
There is a strange bond (sealed in blood) that unites the EME and the BGF. Their old timers could probably swap some very interesting war stories.
Their unique power struggle was joined by two other groups with axes to grind. The AB loved the fact that the EME's power struggle with BGF (mostly in the CDC's lock-up units) dove tailed perfectly with their "racial" struggle against the black militants. They became EME's natural allies in this battle. Then the NF entered the scene. Their agenda was to resist EME's exploitation of "farmers" and oppressed raza and the flag they initially flew was the flag of ridding oppressed people from the tyranny of La EME. Of course, they found a natural ally in the BGF. Once the NF found themselves effectively separated from EME members, their agenda changed to organized criminal endeavors and this North-South thing became a way of keeping the proverbial pot stirred for the purpose of maintaining control over nortenos (NF) and surenos (EME). And life became a "beautiful" thing for these groups.
There was no real "love" between EME and AB, just a common "business goal". There was no real "love" between NF and BGF, just a self-serving and common "business goal". The prison administration played a major role in "divide and conquer" (as the convicts liked to say) but it was really "divide and control".
Had the prison administration not succeeded in separating these groups there is absolutely no doubt that EME and AB would have run the Yards today and life in prison (if you think it is a horrible experience today) would have been sheer misery.
For all the posters (farm workers specifically) who become offended at the "farmero" label, you should not. First off, Northern Farmers (NF) was a derisive term which originated in late-1970 at San Quentin. EME and NF had a prearranged "cease fire" at that time. A then future EME member by the name of Ramon "Mundo" Mendoza (aka: Machine Gun Mundo) from VNE in Boyle Heights (East L.A.) began referring to them by this term. This wasn't a secret thing as he actually addressed NF members to their faces on the upper yard. It was Mundo's hope that they would get angry enough to break the truce since he could not "fire the first shot" and get the EME upset.
The NF put up with Mundo's abuse and he later would be responsible for the killing of (5) NF members and (2) BGF members both in and out of prison before he defected.
Through the years, EME and its allies have succeeded in getting under the skin of Northern Cal gang members by referring to them as "country yokels", farmers, fruit pickers, etc. Now you know that this is not a literal insult but a continuation of the derisive and disrespectful behavior directed at what EME has always and will always consider an inferior breed of Chicanos. Although we all know this is not true, this is their attitude guys.
With no axe to grind, I hope this enlightens some who maybe needed to see some of this in some organized perspective.
Peace."
There you have. Lots to think about and consider. Many thanks to TJ JAILER. Keep 'em coming.
There's a a lot of action that goes on in the comments section. I'm not sure that everyone who logs on takes the time to read all the comments. Some are just too good to leave there. I picked this one to run as a post because it's important and it's the absolute straight deal. You're not going to hear anything more authentic than this. It's from regular commenter TIJUANAJAILER. This is the gospel. Everything between quote marks is his. Enjoy and be edified.
"Before people get their feathers ruffled any further it is important to understand that the EME, AB, BGF and NF (California's AXIS of EVIL) does not care about ethnic pride. From Day One, EME began exploiting fellow Chicanos. According to one former EME member's description: "they are an Equal Opportunity Exploiter". End of story. The NF formed out of their being abused by EME and they evolved into a criminal cartel with NO regard (I repeat NO regard) for their people, be they campesinos or northern California gang members. If anyone is being "punked" (as many posters are fond of saying), it is the north AND south gang members by these two groups. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure this out.
The AB started out as biker "types" and white racist, black-hating warriors. They too evolved into gangsters who could care less about white supremacy and more about the green almighty dollar. The BGF, led originally by James "Doc" Holliday has long since surrendered its
anti-establishment ideology for good old capitalist living. I doubt that the proceeds from their meth labs go back to furthering the "Black Cause".
There are two historical components to the EME-AB alliance and the NF-BGF alliance. There is the racial component and the power component. In prison, it was well known that the blacks and whites were "natural" enemies. Due to the color of their skin, this "natural" racial divide would always separate these groups.
When the EME emerged, they were into power and control and they didn't care who you were nor what color your skin was. Domination, exploitation and terrorizing (there's that dreaded word again) the main population was what they were about. Their power struggle was one that was fresh from the CYA, county jail facilities and wherever Chicanos and Blacks were housed together. The fact that they shared similar social plights on the outside was not a relevant factor on the inside. They never thought about the fact that they indeed shared common dilemnas.
So understand this: EME and southern gang members never really hated blacks because of the color of their skin but more because of the numerical threat they represented. It was about power. Those of you who have done time for many years (especially those of you who were "state raised") will attest to the fact that a handful of Chicanos could confront a large group of blacks and send them "running" like a stampede of cattle by just blinking their eyes.
Then you had your "cream of the crop". The BGF and hard core radicals. They actually respected and admired EME members. In fact, when George Jackson, Hugo "Yogi" Pinell & company decided to take over the San Quentin Adjustment Center, who was there fighting alongside them: Luis "Bala" Talamantez and Louie "Rock On Lou" Lopez, two fierce EME enforcers. In an unholy alliance, they "teamed up" to execute three (3) prison guards and left a stack of injured guards in a cell presumably dead. Read the following link for some interesting stuff: http://rwor.org/a/v20/960-69/969/talam.htm
There is a strange bond (sealed in blood) that unites the EME and the BGF. Their old timers could probably swap some very interesting war stories.
Their unique power struggle was joined by two other groups with axes to grind. The AB loved the fact that the EME's power struggle with BGF (mostly in the CDC's lock-up units) dove tailed perfectly with their "racial" struggle against the black militants. They became EME's natural allies in this battle. Then the NF entered the scene. Their agenda was to resist EME's exploitation of "farmers" and oppressed raza and the flag they initially flew was the flag of ridding oppressed people from the tyranny of La EME. Of course, they found a natural ally in the BGF. Once the NF found themselves effectively separated from EME members, their agenda changed to organized criminal endeavors and this North-South thing became a way of keeping the proverbial pot stirred for the purpose of maintaining control over nortenos (NF) and surenos (EME). And life became a "beautiful" thing for these groups.
There was no real "love" between EME and AB, just a common "business goal". There was no real "love" between NF and BGF, just a self-serving and common "business goal". The prison administration played a major role in "divide and conquer" (as the convicts liked to say) but it was really "divide and control".
Had the prison administration not succeeded in separating these groups there is absolutely no doubt that EME and AB would have run the Yards today and life in prison (if you think it is a horrible experience today) would have been sheer misery.
For all the posters (farm workers specifically) who become offended at the "farmero" label, you should not. First off, Northern Farmers (NF) was a derisive term which originated in late-1970 at San Quentin. EME and NF had a prearranged "cease fire" at that time. A then future EME member by the name of Ramon "Mundo" Mendoza (aka: Machine Gun Mundo) from VNE in Boyle Heights (East L.A.) began referring to them by this term. This wasn't a secret thing as he actually addressed NF members to their faces on the upper yard. It was Mundo's hope that they would get angry enough to break the truce since he could not "fire the first shot" and get the EME upset.
The NF put up with Mundo's abuse and he later would be responsible for the killing of (5) NF members and (2) BGF members both in and out of prison before he defected.
Through the years, EME and its allies have succeeded in getting under the skin of Northern Cal gang members by referring to them as "country yokels", farmers, fruit pickers, etc. Now you know that this is not a literal insult but a continuation of the derisive and disrespectful behavior directed at what EME has always and will always consider an inferior breed of Chicanos. Although we all know this is not true, this is their attitude guys.
With no axe to grind, I hope this enlightens some who maybe needed to see some of this in some organized perspective.
Peace."
There you have. Lots to think about and consider. Many thanks to TJ JAILER. Keep 'em coming.
WILSON MURDER FINALLY HITS PRINT
I've gotten a few emails since last Thursday asking me to comment on the LA WEEKLY story on the racial murders committed by Avenues gangsters in HIGHLAND PARK. I've got a few issues to resolve with certain parties before I feel free to comment.
As regular readers of INTHEHAT know, I started a campaign almost three years ago trying to get the LA media interested in Wilson's homicide and the racial homicides of close to a dozen other blacks in HP and other parts of the County. Check out my September 4, 2004 posting about this saga.
I've gotten a few emails since last Thursday asking me to comment on the LA WEEKLY story on the racial murders committed by Avenues gangsters in HIGHLAND PARK. I've got a few issues to resolve with certain parties before I feel free to comment.
As regular readers of INTHEHAT know, I started a campaign almost three years ago trying to get the LA media interested in Wilson's homicide and the racial homicides of close to a dozen other blacks in HP and other parts of the County. Check out my September 4, 2004 posting about this saga.
Saturday, July 16, 2005
RED DOGS GO "UNCENSORED"
File this one under "What the hell were they thinking?" Last week, 23 FRESNO BULLDOGS were taken into custody after they appeared in a DVD called "FRESNO UNCENSORED." In the DVD, they showed off tattoos, flashed signs, handled weapons, dissed cops, barked like dogs and showed off dope. Stuff like this doesn't look good in your parole report. On July 13, six DOGS appeared in court for a prelim to determine whether there's enough evidence to hold them for prosecution. Anybody up there ever hear of self-admission?
File this one under "What the hell were they thinking?" Last week, 23 FRESNO BULLDOGS were taken into custody after they appeared in a DVD called "FRESNO UNCENSORED." In the DVD, they showed off tattoos, flashed signs, handled weapons, dissed cops, barked like dogs and showed off dope. Stuff like this doesn't look good in your parole report. On July 13, six DOGS appeared in court for a prelim to determine whether there's enough evidence to hold them for prosecution. Anybody up there ever hear of self-admission?
HYBRID GANGSTER TO BE DEPORTED
On July 8, the Houston Chronicle ran a story about the deportation of LESTER RIVERA PAZ. He's the MARA shot-caller who escaped from a Honduran jail and hot-footed across the border to the U.S. He was caught on February 10 in Falfurrias, Texas after shooting up a busload of innocent civilians around Christmas in Chamelecon, Honduras. PAZ and his crimies executed 28 men, women and children to send a message to the Honduran government that he was stone serious and that LE should back off.
There's been discussion on this site in the past as to whether street gangsters and prison gangs could be considered terrorists. I've maintained they're not. Some disagree and they certainly have strong arguments. There was an interesting exchange in the comments section between STILLNOSCRIPT and TIJUANA JAILER. Worth reading. My point has always been that what separates a gangster from a terrorist is a political agenda and the cold-blooded taking of innocent life.
Street level thuggery like drug taxation, witness intimidation, set tripping and the rest of it is, in one way or another, connected to "business." And the business doesn't involve bringing down a government, changing government policy or taking revenge on innocents in response to political oppression, whether real or imagined.
If everything PAZ is accused of is true, this is one homie that crossed the line into political posturing and wholesale slaughter. In other words, a hybrid gangster who would logically fit into the category of terrorist. Let's hope there aren't a lot more like him out there.
On July 8, the Houston Chronicle ran a story about the deportation of LESTER RIVERA PAZ. He's the MARA shot-caller who escaped from a Honduran jail and hot-footed across the border to the U.S. He was caught on February 10 in Falfurrias, Texas after shooting up a busload of innocent civilians around Christmas in Chamelecon, Honduras. PAZ and his crimies executed 28 men, women and children to send a message to the Honduran government that he was stone serious and that LE should back off.
There's been discussion on this site in the past as to whether street gangsters and prison gangs could be considered terrorists. I've maintained they're not. Some disagree and they certainly have strong arguments. There was an interesting exchange in the comments section between STILLNOSCRIPT and TIJUANA JAILER. Worth reading. My point has always been that what separates a gangster from a terrorist is a political agenda and the cold-blooded taking of innocent life.
Street level thuggery like drug taxation, witness intimidation, set tripping and the rest of it is, in one way or another, connected to "business." And the business doesn't involve bringing down a government, changing government policy or taking revenge on innocents in response to political oppression, whether real or imagined.
If everything PAZ is accused of is true, this is one homie that crossed the line into political posturing and wholesale slaughter. In other words, a hybrid gangster who would logically fit into the category of terrorist. Let's hope there aren't a lot more like him out there.
Saturday, July 09, 2005
KILROY ACCIDENT CONFIRMED
The rumor of Kilroy's traffic accident has now been confirmed. Here's the note from a guy who has first-hand knowledge.
"Ernesto (Kilroy) Roybal is alive but not well right now. He owns a trucking business, is active in a local church, does speaking engagements with Art and others who are or have been affiliated with Victory Outreach. He was in a terrible accident and is in a trauma center and is expected to recover. Please keep himn in your thoughts and prayers as he goes through this difficult time. He is a survivor and as he would say.."with God's grace I will survive this as well."
con respecto..."
The rumor of Kilroy's traffic accident has now been confirmed. Here's the note from a guy who has first-hand knowledge.
"Ernesto (Kilroy) Roybal is alive but not well right now. He owns a trucking business, is active in a local church, does speaking engagements with Art and others who are or have been affiliated with Victory Outreach. He was in a terrible accident and is in a trauma center and is expected to recover. Please keep himn in your thoughts and prayers as he goes through this difficult time. He is a survivor and as he would say.."with God's grace I will survive this as well."
con respecto..."
Monday, July 04, 2005
TRUTH OR RUMOR?
I've now heard from two separate sources that KILROY ROYBAL was involved in a very serious car accident. I haven't been able to confirm this so it may be one of those rumors that feeds on itself. Still, it's worth finding out and either put it to rest or veerify it. If anybody out there knows "for sure" let's hear about it.
I'll be off the air for the next few days on some business but I'll be checking emails and comments frequently. Until then, celebrate safely and hang out that flag.
I've now heard from two separate sources that KILROY ROYBAL was involved in a very serious car accident. I haven't been able to confirm this so it may be one of those rumors that feeds on itself. Still, it's worth finding out and either put it to rest or veerify it. If anybody out there knows "for sure" let's hear about it.
I'll be off the air for the next few days on some business but I'll be checking emails and comments frequently. Until then, celebrate safely and hang out that flag.
Thursday, June 23, 2005
THE SUMMER OF RICO
We haven't seen this level of LE activity in ten years. First we had the big SANA bust in the OC. Following quickly on the heels of that, we've now got a RICO case on the VINELAND BOYZ. US ATTORNEY DEBRA YANG has clearly been a busy lady and the TASK FORCE has been working at what the military calls a high operational tempo.
Just before dawn on June 21, 1300 Federal and local cops brought the big fist down on 36 Vineland soldados and shot callers in North Hollywood, Sun Valley, Simi and the Antelope Valley. Most of them were arrested in their underwear or PJs.
VINELAND last made a big noise in 2003 when one of their soldiers, DAVID GARCIA, killed BURBANK police officer MATT PAVELKA. Garcia escaped to Mexico where hundreds of other suspected murderers and criminals have found a safe haven and protection under Mexico's vile judicial system. Mexico won't surrender fugitives if they face a death sentence or even LWOP in US courts.
Garcia wasn't as lucky as the rest. For reasons I still don't understand, Mexico gave up Garcia. I posted something after his arrest wondering aloud if Garcia's return was the beginning of a new Mexican policy. Apparently not. It looks like Garcia's give-up was one of those non-recurring phenomenons. Since Garcia is also named in this recent RICO indictment, chances are he'll get yanked from County and taken into Federal custody.
It doesn't take much imagination to figure out why VINELAND was targeted by the TASK FORCE. After Officer Pavelka's murder, that neighborhood got an awful lot of LE "attention." Something Vineland resented. Instead of taking their lumps and laying low, the BOYZ went on the offensive and even declared open season on LE. Bad move. A loser move. Especially since TASK FORCE headquarters is right there in the SF Valley. Vineland is in the TF's back yard.
So here we are 18 months later and VINELAND is practically no more. When you murder cops and then openly challenge them, you're just begging for it. What would have been shorter County or State time for low level beefs is now longer Federal time someplace far, far away. The Feds have the manpower and money to sustain the long-term surveilance and investigation that local cops can only dream about. Local cops clock out at the end of their shifts. Not because they want to or they're lazy. It's just impossible to get enough bodies assigned and overtime pay approved. It's a mundane matter of city budgets. The Federal Task Force on the other hand never sleeps. It's also a lot easier for the FBI to get wiretap authority than local LE. Plus they've got better security and relocation programs for CIs. All of which adds up to bad news for anyone who gets in their crosshairs. VINELAND found that out the hard way.
We haven't seen this level of LE activity in ten years. First we had the big SANA bust in the OC. Following quickly on the heels of that, we've now got a RICO case on the VINELAND BOYZ. US ATTORNEY DEBRA YANG has clearly been a busy lady and the TASK FORCE has been working at what the military calls a high operational tempo.
Just before dawn on June 21, 1300 Federal and local cops brought the big fist down on 36 Vineland soldados and shot callers in North Hollywood, Sun Valley, Simi and the Antelope Valley. Most of them were arrested in their underwear or PJs.
VINELAND last made a big noise in 2003 when one of their soldiers, DAVID GARCIA, killed BURBANK police officer MATT PAVELKA. Garcia escaped to Mexico where hundreds of other suspected murderers and criminals have found a safe haven and protection under Mexico's vile judicial system. Mexico won't surrender fugitives if they face a death sentence or even LWOP in US courts.
Garcia wasn't as lucky as the rest. For reasons I still don't understand, Mexico gave up Garcia. I posted something after his arrest wondering aloud if Garcia's return was the beginning of a new Mexican policy. Apparently not. It looks like Garcia's give-up was one of those non-recurring phenomenons. Since Garcia is also named in this recent RICO indictment, chances are he'll get yanked from County and taken into Federal custody.
It doesn't take much imagination to figure out why VINELAND was targeted by the TASK FORCE. After Officer Pavelka's murder, that neighborhood got an awful lot of LE "attention." Something Vineland resented. Instead of taking their lumps and laying low, the BOYZ went on the offensive and even declared open season on LE. Bad move. A loser move. Especially since TASK FORCE headquarters is right there in the SF Valley. Vineland is in the TF's back yard.
So here we are 18 months later and VINELAND is practically no more. When you murder cops and then openly challenge them, you're just begging for it. What would have been shorter County or State time for low level beefs is now longer Federal time someplace far, far away. The Feds have the manpower and money to sustain the long-term surveilance and investigation that local cops can only dream about. Local cops clock out at the end of their shifts. Not because they want to or they're lazy. It's just impossible to get enough bodies assigned and overtime pay approved. It's a mundane matter of city budgets. The Federal Task Force on the other hand never sleeps. It's also a lot easier for the FBI to get wiretap authority than local LE. Plus they've got better security and relocation programs for CIs. All of which adds up to bad news for anyone who gets in their crosshairs. VINELAND found that out the hard way.
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
OC REGISTER OFF THE RAILS
I don't want to beat the "clueless reporter" thing to death but I was just made aware of the OC Register's story on the SANA bust. The reader who sent it to me underlined the relevant sentences. The reporters, LARRY WELBORN and RACHANEE SRISAVASDI, are talking about SANA and his past.
"Once, the repeat criminal tried to turn away from crime. In 1992, Ojeda unsuccessfully tried to broker a gang truce among local street gangs to stop a spree of drive-by killings."
I have no idea how they came to this bizarre conclusion or who they talked to, but it's clearly bogus. It will probably stand uncorrected and eventually cited as gospel by someone down the road.
On another topic, I want to send out props to everyone that comments. I've noticed the haters have either decamped to other sites or changed their confrontational manner to one that's more respectful. I'm even more gratified to hear from people in the neighborhoods and those who have been through the county and state systems. You're helping make this site what I want it to be. Namely, a place to get the straight deal without the filters.
I don't want to beat the "clueless reporter" thing to death but I was just made aware of the OC Register's story on the SANA bust. The reader who sent it to me underlined the relevant sentences. The reporters, LARRY WELBORN and RACHANEE SRISAVASDI, are talking about SANA and his past.
"Once, the repeat criminal tried to turn away from crime. In 1992, Ojeda unsuccessfully tried to broker a gang truce among local street gangs to stop a spree of drive-by killings."
I have no idea how they came to this bizarre conclusion or who they talked to, but it's clearly bogus. It will probably stand uncorrected and eventually cited as gospel by someone down the road.
On another topic, I want to send out props to everyone that comments. I've noticed the haters have either decamped to other sites or changed their confrontational manner to one that's more respectful. I'm even more gratified to hear from people in the neighborhoods and those who have been through the county and state systems. You're helping make this site what I want it to be. Namely, a place to get the straight deal without the filters.
Monday, June 20, 2005
LAT FINALLY GETS IT RIGHT
In a follow-up story to SANA's bust in OC, Sam Quinones makes a couple of startling but long overdue admissions in the LA Times. For the first time, the LAT finally cops to the fact that the famous EME gang "truce" way back in 1992 was a "ruse." Anyone familiar with the subject knows that it was never a truce. It was merely a change in the rules of engagement. The edict from Sana, Chuco and Boxer was not "no more killing." It was "no more drivebys." A big difference. If somebody needed to be checked, it was going to be up close and personal. They said as much on FBI surveilance tapes which have always been available to the public after they were used as evidence in the big RICO cases mentioned in my previous post. The Times never bothered to look.
For years after the 1992 "park meetings" the LAT has held the opinion that LE was making the violence worse by taking "peace keeping" shot callers off the streets. The Times would back up that contention by quoting the usual suspects like Malcolm Klein, Diego Vigil, Greg Boyle and more recently, Tom Hayden. Hayden, in fact, repeated the "peace keeper" myth in his book "Street Wars." And like an echo chamber, the myth was picked up from that book and repeated in other media. If the Times writers were at all familiar with the dynamics of the relationship between the Eme and the neighborhoods, they'd know that a shot caller doesn't need to be on the street to control activity. They can do it from the SHU or anywhere.
The Times has also never written about the other items on the park meeeting agenda: taxation and organizing SOCAL gangs under the Sureno flag. This piece by Quinones finally sets the record straight.
Correct me if I'm wrong on this one, but I think this article is the first major media acknowledgement that Boxer has debriefed. I follow this stuff as closely as I can, but I don't recall ever reading about Boxer debriefing prior to this piece.
Quinones went to some savvy guys for his piece: Rich Valdemar, Leo Duarte and Al Valdez. The collective knowledge of those three is encyclopedic and anyone who has worked with them or watched them testify as gang experts knows they go deep and way back. They all get props from both sides of the street for being fair and even-handed in their assessement of crimes and criminals.
In a follow-up story to SANA's bust in OC, Sam Quinones makes a couple of startling but long overdue admissions in the LA Times. For the first time, the LAT finally cops to the fact that the famous EME gang "truce" way back in 1992 was a "ruse." Anyone familiar with the subject knows that it was never a truce. It was merely a change in the rules of engagement. The edict from Sana, Chuco and Boxer was not "no more killing." It was "no more drivebys." A big difference. If somebody needed to be checked, it was going to be up close and personal. They said as much on FBI surveilance tapes which have always been available to the public after they were used as evidence in the big RICO cases mentioned in my previous post. The Times never bothered to look.
For years after the 1992 "park meetings" the LAT has held the opinion that LE was making the violence worse by taking "peace keeping" shot callers off the streets. The Times would back up that contention by quoting the usual suspects like Malcolm Klein, Diego Vigil, Greg Boyle and more recently, Tom Hayden. Hayden, in fact, repeated the "peace keeper" myth in his book "Street Wars." And like an echo chamber, the myth was picked up from that book and repeated in other media. If the Times writers were at all familiar with the dynamics of the relationship between the Eme and the neighborhoods, they'd know that a shot caller doesn't need to be on the street to control activity. They can do it from the SHU or anywhere.
The Times has also never written about the other items on the park meeeting agenda: taxation and organizing SOCAL gangs under the Sureno flag. This piece by Quinones finally sets the record straight.
Correct me if I'm wrong on this one, but I think this article is the first major media acknowledgement that Boxer has debriefed. I follow this stuff as closely as I can, but I don't recall ever reading about Boxer debriefing prior to this piece.
Quinones went to some savvy guys for his piece: Rich Valdemar, Leo Duarte and Al Valdez. The collective knowledge of those three is encyclopedic and anyone who has worked with them or watched them testify as gang experts knows they go deep and way back. They all get props from both sides of the street for being fair and even-handed in their assessement of crimes and criminals.
Friday, June 17, 2005
SANA BUSTED
Just when you thought that the FBI was too busy chasing terrorists in the US to worry about ORGANIZED CRIME, here they are taking out the legendary PETER "SANA" OJEDA and 23 of his alleged crimies.
On Wednesday, 300 coppers served 40 warrants after a 2-year investigation on Orange County soldiers and shot callers. Ojeda and the other 23 were charged under RICO statutes, making it the first Eme RICO prosecution in Orange County. But not the first in the state.
To us, this looks like the latest installment of an ongoing FBI campaign to rattle the Eme's and NF's cages and get shot callers off the streets. Students of history will recall that similar RICO prosecutions were initiated in NORCAL in OPERATION BLACK WIDOW against the NF. RICO prosecutions also resulted in three major EME trials in LA COUNTY, US vs. AGUIRRE, US vs. DETEVIS and US vs. MARTINEZ. The FBI never gave the LA County prosecutions a butch name. This one in Orange County was apparently called OPERATION NEMESIS.
Eme/NF watchers will also recall that all those cases were made possible by the testimony of confidential informants. OPERATION BLACK WIDOW's informant was ROBERT GRATTON. In the Aguirre case ERNIE "CHUCO" CASTRO wore a wire and rolled on his brothers. In the Detevis case, there was John Turscak who cooperated with LE. And Max Torvisco was the CI in the Martinez case. So you have wonder if there's a snitch in this case as well. There probably is. It's almost impossible to make big cases like this without a guy on the inside.
I know a little bit about SANA's history. But I know for a fact one or more of you readers out there know a lot more than I do. Let's hear about it. This bust is a significant event in Eme history. And now is the time to comment. In fact, I'll take any significant comment and put it up as a regular posting so everyone can read it without going to the comments section.
Just when you thought that the FBI was too busy chasing terrorists in the US to worry about ORGANIZED CRIME, here they are taking out the legendary PETER "SANA" OJEDA and 23 of his alleged crimies.
On Wednesday, 300 coppers served 40 warrants after a 2-year investigation on Orange County soldiers and shot callers. Ojeda and the other 23 were charged under RICO statutes, making it the first Eme RICO prosecution in Orange County. But not the first in the state.
To us, this looks like the latest installment of an ongoing FBI campaign to rattle the Eme's and NF's cages and get shot callers off the streets. Students of history will recall that similar RICO prosecutions were initiated in NORCAL in OPERATION BLACK WIDOW against the NF. RICO prosecutions also resulted in three major EME trials in LA COUNTY, US vs. AGUIRRE, US vs. DETEVIS and US vs. MARTINEZ. The FBI never gave the LA County prosecutions a butch name. This one in Orange County was apparently called OPERATION NEMESIS.
Eme/NF watchers will also recall that all those cases were made possible by the testimony of confidential informants. OPERATION BLACK WIDOW's informant was ROBERT GRATTON. In the Aguirre case ERNIE "CHUCO" CASTRO wore a wire and rolled on his brothers. In the Detevis case, there was John Turscak who cooperated with LE. And Max Torvisco was the CI in the Martinez case. So you have wonder if there's a snitch in this case as well. There probably is. It's almost impossible to make big cases like this without a guy on the inside.
I know a little bit about SANA's history. But I know for a fact one or more of you readers out there know a lot more than I do. Let's hear about it. This bust is a significant event in Eme history. And now is the time to comment. In fact, I'll take any significant comment and put it up as a regular posting so everyone can read it without going to the comments section.
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
JEFF HIGH HEAD ROLLS
After three incidents of violence at Jefferson High School, school supe. Roy Romer has replaced its principal, Norm Morrow. The new principal will be Juan Flecha who will move from his current position at Eagle Rock High School. Something about this smacks of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.
Despite what mayor-elect Antonio V. said about Morrow ("My sense, frankly, is that things are out of control," and "I don't get the sense that anyone was in charge.") my sense is that the problems facing Jeff High and other schools are beyond the capacity of a single individual to fix. Morrow was the sacrificial lamb, a head rolled out for public consumption to create the appearance that "something" was being done. Let's off the principal and maybe the problem will go away.
If only it was that easy.
In addition to changing the principal, JHS will also get 90 (count 'em ninety) surveillance cameras, three more school cops, a new coat of paint and graffiti removed from the campus. A new high school will also open its doors in July to handle 700 students from JHS.
The simple truth is, the fights didn't break out over the lack of fresh paint or overcrowding. The problems go deep into the neighborhoods and beyond. For example, the homicide of Cabrillo HS student DEMETRIUS "BEAR" WILLIAMS in Long Beach back in February had nothing to do with the school environment. Cabrillo is a brand new, $45 million school chock full of programs. It has the highest ratio of computers to students of any major urban school on the West Coast. It's got advanced programs for media, animation and computers, a pre-engineering magnet program, a college prep magnet program, and an academy of finance and information technology. So no one gets left behind, Cabrillo also has a "recovery" program for kids falling behind to help them catch up. Plus there's dance and music, drug and gang counseling, mentoring programs and gang diversion. The Greater Long Beach National Conference for Community and Justice supports an on-campus group called Jaguars United whose purpose is to promote interaction between racial groups. They sponsor events like movie nights, peace rallies and "fishbowl" lunches where students are encouraged to socialize with members of different racial groups. All this was in place way before Williams was killed. If ever there was fertile ground for peace and harmony, Cabrillo should have been it.
Despite all these good intentions, racial tensions persist at Cabrillo. At the end of the school day, black students walk on one side of the street and Latinos on the other. Blacks go to the MacDonald's. Hispanics go to a taco stand. Racial taunts are commonplace. If anything, Williams had taken racial diversity to heart. He fathered an out-of-wedlock child. His girlfriend is a Latina. Instead of bridging the racial divide, his relationship with a Latina, cops say, got some people on both sides bent the wrong way.
Williams also claimed WEST COAST CRIPS, self-admitted on an FI card. The two accused shooters, according to LBPD, are WEST SIDE LONGOS. And there we are back at the neighborhoods.
While JHS hasn't experienced a BEAR incident, it's abundantly clear that video cameras, some new paint and a new principal aren't going to solve its problems. Antonio V., Romer and city leaders should do a little more than change the window dressing.
After three incidents of violence at Jefferson High School, school supe. Roy Romer has replaced its principal, Norm Morrow. The new principal will be Juan Flecha who will move from his current position at Eagle Rock High School. Something about this smacks of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.
Despite what mayor-elect Antonio V. said about Morrow ("My sense, frankly, is that things are out of control," and "I don't get the sense that anyone was in charge.") my sense is that the problems facing Jeff High and other schools are beyond the capacity of a single individual to fix. Morrow was the sacrificial lamb, a head rolled out for public consumption to create the appearance that "something" was being done. Let's off the principal and maybe the problem will go away.
If only it was that easy.
In addition to changing the principal, JHS will also get 90 (count 'em ninety) surveillance cameras, three more school cops, a new coat of paint and graffiti removed from the campus. A new high school will also open its doors in July to handle 700 students from JHS.
The simple truth is, the fights didn't break out over the lack of fresh paint or overcrowding. The problems go deep into the neighborhoods and beyond. For example, the homicide of Cabrillo HS student DEMETRIUS "BEAR" WILLIAMS in Long Beach back in February had nothing to do with the school environment. Cabrillo is a brand new, $45 million school chock full of programs. It has the highest ratio of computers to students of any major urban school on the West Coast. It's got advanced programs for media, animation and computers, a pre-engineering magnet program, a college prep magnet program, and an academy of finance and information technology. So no one gets left behind, Cabrillo also has a "recovery" program for kids falling behind to help them catch up. Plus there's dance and music, drug and gang counseling, mentoring programs and gang diversion. The Greater Long Beach National Conference for Community and Justice supports an on-campus group called Jaguars United whose purpose is to promote interaction between racial groups. They sponsor events like movie nights, peace rallies and "fishbowl" lunches where students are encouraged to socialize with members of different racial groups. All this was in place way before Williams was killed. If ever there was fertile ground for peace and harmony, Cabrillo should have been it.
Despite all these good intentions, racial tensions persist at Cabrillo. At the end of the school day, black students walk on one side of the street and Latinos on the other. Blacks go to the MacDonald's. Hispanics go to a taco stand. Racial taunts are commonplace. If anything, Williams had taken racial diversity to heart. He fathered an out-of-wedlock child. His girlfriend is a Latina. Instead of bridging the racial divide, his relationship with a Latina, cops say, got some people on both sides bent the wrong way.
Williams also claimed WEST COAST CRIPS, self-admitted on an FI card. The two accused shooters, according to LBPD, are WEST SIDE LONGOS. And there we are back at the neighborhoods.
While JHS hasn't experienced a BEAR incident, it's abundantly clear that video cameras, some new paint and a new principal aren't going to solve its problems. Antonio V., Romer and city leaders should do a little more than change the window dressing.
Monday, June 13, 2005
PROSECUTOR TURN OFFS
I've been hearing talk about this ever since ROBERT BLAKE's not guilty verdict and I frankly didn't put much stock in it. It seemed too easy an answer for a case that should have gone the other way. But now I've heard from enough people from all sides of the issue that there may be some truth to it.
Here's the story. During her closing arguments, DA SHELLIE SAMUELS used the word "bullshit." Not once. Not twice. But on five separate occasions. Samuels has a reputation for getting emotional in court. Which is fine. Righteous indignation and passion works when you're making an argument. What doesn't work, according to people who were really close to the investigation, is disrespect. Using "bullshit" five times was over the top, according to people I've spoken to, and turned off the jury. Jurors don't expect prosecutors to wrestle in the gutter. They're expecting class and decorum. Samuels gave them potty mouth.
Close observers also mentioned the famous Limousine Rapists case in Long Beach. The DA on that one was BOB FOLTZ. FOLTZ essentially alienated everybody by his disrespectful antics. He pretended to fall asleep during defense cross examination. He also made a big show of doing a crossword puzzle during defense arguments. He basicaly acted like an ass.
The result was not guilty verdicts on all 23 counts. Foltz hung himself like an old salami by the dopey theatrics.
I didn't follow the Blake case closely so I can't speak with confidence about the "bullshit" prosecution. But if anybody out there can expand on it, let's hear about it.
I've been hearing talk about this ever since ROBERT BLAKE's not guilty verdict and I frankly didn't put much stock in it. It seemed too easy an answer for a case that should have gone the other way. But now I've heard from enough people from all sides of the issue that there may be some truth to it.
Here's the story. During her closing arguments, DA SHELLIE SAMUELS used the word "bullshit." Not once. Not twice. But on five separate occasions. Samuels has a reputation for getting emotional in court. Which is fine. Righteous indignation and passion works when you're making an argument. What doesn't work, according to people who were really close to the investigation, is disrespect. Using "bullshit" five times was over the top, according to people I've spoken to, and turned off the jury. Jurors don't expect prosecutors to wrestle in the gutter. They're expecting class and decorum. Samuels gave them potty mouth.
Close observers also mentioned the famous Limousine Rapists case in Long Beach. The DA on that one was BOB FOLTZ. FOLTZ essentially alienated everybody by his disrespectful antics. He pretended to fall asleep during defense cross examination. He also made a big show of doing a crossword puzzle during defense arguments. He basicaly acted like an ass.
The result was not guilty verdicts on all 23 counts. Foltz hung himself like an old salami by the dopey theatrics.
I didn't follow the Blake case closely so I can't speak with confidence about the "bullshit" prosecution. But if anybody out there can expand on it, let's hear about it.
Wednesday, June 08, 2005
NORTH SOUTH BRAWL
I can't verify how much of this is true but the Monterey Herald ran a story on May 31 about a SUR vs NORTE brawl at a LAKE SAN ANTONIO campground in MONTEREY COUNTY. From the sketchy reporting, apparently a group of NORTENOS were camping when they were invaded by a large group of southsiders. A fight broke out involving some 50 people. A 17-year-old who claimed Southside was arrested for ADW and 4 others were arrested on outstanding warrants. Unknown affiliation on those four.
Nortes were wearing red and tatted up with XIV and NSC (NORTH SIDE CASTROVILLE). SURs flew blue. At least that's what the paper said.
Although no one was shot, LE found a bunch of spent shell casings on the grounds.
What's interesting is that Salinas officers from the county's JOINT GANG TASK FORCE, according to the news story, "were working in the area at the time." Coincidence? We think not. I think what that really means is that the TASK FORCE coppers had the whole area under surveillance at the time the fight broke out. Which might also mean video tapes of the event exist somewhere. And that might mean more arrests may come down once the TASK FORCE has the chance to view the tapes and make positive IDs. Just speculation, of course, but highly probable. Monterey Sheriff's just got a multi million dollar Federal grant for the task force and it seems likely surveillance gear would be high on the shopping list.
I haven't been able to verify any of this yet. So if anybody out there knows what's what, I'm sure we'd all like to hear about it. But please keep the comments on an appropriately elevated level. We're not here to throw fat on the fire.
I can't verify how much of this is true but the Monterey Herald ran a story on May 31 about a SUR vs NORTE brawl at a LAKE SAN ANTONIO campground in MONTEREY COUNTY. From the sketchy reporting, apparently a group of NORTENOS were camping when they were invaded by a large group of southsiders. A fight broke out involving some 50 people. A 17-year-old who claimed Southside was arrested for ADW and 4 others were arrested on outstanding warrants. Unknown affiliation on those four.
Nortes were wearing red and tatted up with XIV and NSC (NORTH SIDE CASTROVILLE). SURs flew blue. At least that's what the paper said.
Although no one was shot, LE found a bunch of spent shell casings on the grounds.
What's interesting is that Salinas officers from the county's JOINT GANG TASK FORCE, according to the news story, "were working in the area at the time." Coincidence? We think not. I think what that really means is that the TASK FORCE coppers had the whole area under surveillance at the time the fight broke out. Which might also mean video tapes of the event exist somewhere. And that might mean more arrests may come down once the TASK FORCE has the chance to view the tapes and make positive IDs. Just speculation, of course, but highly probable. Monterey Sheriff's just got a multi million dollar Federal grant for the task force and it seems likely surveillance gear would be high on the shopping list.
I haven't been able to verify any of this yet. So if anybody out there knows what's what, I'm sure we'd all like to hear about it. But please keep the comments on an appropriately elevated level. We're not here to throw fat on the fire.
Wednesday, June 01, 2005
BIKE GANG GOING HOLLYWOOD
Thanks to a couple of readers on this one. In 1998, an ATF agent named WILLIAM QUEEN went undercover with the Mongols and operated behind the lines for 28 months. He went by the name of BILLY ST. JOHN. The operation ended with a bunch of indictments and prison sentences. Queen wrote a book about it, UNDER AND ALONE. You can find it on Amazon.
The book is a fast but ultimately not satifying read. He didn't go into enough detail to satisfy the truly curious mind. He didn't explore a lot of areas that I know are out there waiting for exploration. Maybe he was holding back not to screw up future or ongoing investigations. Nonetheless it's a decent enough book and worth the price.
A few readers sent word that the book got some interest from the film business. Apparently it's now official. Mel Gibson is attached to the project, as they say in the biz, and he'll play the Queen/St. John part. Queen scored a $1 million payday for the film rights. He'll also be tech consultant.
While we're always hoping for the best, the movie business has a lousy track record when they turn a "true life" story into a screen product. Especially when it involves crime. In the process of transforming a good story into a movie, the real life aspects are clipped and pruned along the way until most of them are left in the script writer's drawer. What you often see on the screen is nothing like what happened on the streets.
The most extreme example of this happened in 1992 when Edward Olmos made AMERICAN ME. As originally written, the script was an accurate history of the early days of the Eme. The story goes that even Cocoliso blessed the project because it told the truth. But when Olmos decided to make a "few changes" the reality went out the window. The scriptwriter walked away from the project. Unofficial and unpaid "advisors" (Eme dropouts) told the producer that the "changes" would piss off the carnals. Apparently artistic vision took a back seat to the truth. And people paid with their lives.
By the time the dust settled, bodies fell, Olmos was targeted for termination and the movie public was short changed. Even people who knew the real life story walked out of the movie wondering what the hell they just saw on the screen. It was a mess. As it turns out, a deadly one for the official tech advisors.
Hopefully, Gibson won't go the same way Olmos did. But in that business, anything is possible. By the time it's over, it could turn out to be "Biker Gangs from Venus Want Earth Women."
On a related topic, I heard from a pal in the movie business that Tony Scott, brother to Ridley Scott (Gladiator, Blade Runner etc.) is doing a remake of THE WANDERERS. If you young guys out there haven't seen it, rent it. It was an over the top "street gang" movie set in Manhattan. By modern standards, the gangs in that movie were as hard core as Vanilla Ice.
Scott plans on shooting it in LA and we'd love to be there for the open casting calls. Advice: don't cover up those tattoos yet. They'll need hundreds of dressed down homies. Hollywood is comin' to the 'hood so practice up on your mad dog look.
Thanks to a couple of readers on this one. In 1998, an ATF agent named WILLIAM QUEEN went undercover with the Mongols and operated behind the lines for 28 months. He went by the name of BILLY ST. JOHN. The operation ended with a bunch of indictments and prison sentences. Queen wrote a book about it, UNDER AND ALONE. You can find it on Amazon.
The book is a fast but ultimately not satifying read. He didn't go into enough detail to satisfy the truly curious mind. He didn't explore a lot of areas that I know are out there waiting for exploration. Maybe he was holding back not to screw up future or ongoing investigations. Nonetheless it's a decent enough book and worth the price.
A few readers sent word that the book got some interest from the film business. Apparently it's now official. Mel Gibson is attached to the project, as they say in the biz, and he'll play the Queen/St. John part. Queen scored a $1 million payday for the film rights. He'll also be tech consultant.
While we're always hoping for the best, the movie business has a lousy track record when they turn a "true life" story into a screen product. Especially when it involves crime. In the process of transforming a good story into a movie, the real life aspects are clipped and pruned along the way until most of them are left in the script writer's drawer. What you often see on the screen is nothing like what happened on the streets.
The most extreme example of this happened in 1992 when Edward Olmos made AMERICAN ME. As originally written, the script was an accurate history of the early days of the Eme. The story goes that even Cocoliso blessed the project because it told the truth. But when Olmos decided to make a "few changes" the reality went out the window. The scriptwriter walked away from the project. Unofficial and unpaid "advisors" (Eme dropouts) told the producer that the "changes" would piss off the carnals. Apparently artistic vision took a back seat to the truth. And people paid with their lives.
By the time the dust settled, bodies fell, Olmos was targeted for termination and the movie public was short changed. Even people who knew the real life story walked out of the movie wondering what the hell they just saw on the screen. It was a mess. As it turns out, a deadly one for the official tech advisors.
Hopefully, Gibson won't go the same way Olmos did. But in that business, anything is possible. By the time it's over, it could turn out to be "Biker Gangs from Venus Want Earth Women."
On a related topic, I heard from a pal in the movie business that Tony Scott, brother to Ridley Scott (Gladiator, Blade Runner etc.) is doing a remake of THE WANDERERS. If you young guys out there haven't seen it, rent it. It was an over the top "street gang" movie set in Manhattan. By modern standards, the gangs in that movie were as hard core as Vanilla Ice.
Scott plans on shooting it in LA and we'd love to be there for the open casting calls. Advice: don't cover up those tattoos yet. They'll need hundreds of dressed down homies. Hollywood is comin' to the 'hood so practice up on your mad dog look.
Tuesday, May 31, 2005
PLEASE SHOW THIS SITE SOME RESPECT
The free exchange of opinions and observations is one of the reasons I started this site. I'm especially gratified to see that a number of the comments to the posts come from people who have come up in the neighborhoods and been through the system. For the most part, the comments are informative and provide the sort of insight that can only come from those who have been there and back. I'm grateful to people who can contribute without resorting to profanity and don't throw fat on the fire of north/south, black/brown animosity. Or for that matter, advocating any form or violence or prejudice.
I've noticed a battle going on in the comments that has no place on this site. I'm not a prude and I'll tolerate a certain amount of profanity. Especially if it's clever and used like a scalpel instead of a sledgehammer. What won't happen here is hate.
If you claim a neighborhood and want to put that in your comment, go ahead. But I won't allow challenges and cyberspace mad dogging. Keep the fights off this site. There are plenty of places on the internet where you can do that. Frankly, they're boring and do nothing to further the outside world's understanding of what's what.
Please don't ruin this place for everybody else. If you've got something to say, do it the right way. Speak your mind but don't add to problem. Don't put me in the position of being a censor. There's already enough of that.
The free exchange of opinions and observations is one of the reasons I started this site. I'm especially gratified to see that a number of the comments to the posts come from people who have come up in the neighborhoods and been through the system. For the most part, the comments are informative and provide the sort of insight that can only come from those who have been there and back. I'm grateful to people who can contribute without resorting to profanity and don't throw fat on the fire of north/south, black/brown animosity. Or for that matter, advocating any form or violence or prejudice.
I've noticed a battle going on in the comments that has no place on this site. I'm not a prude and I'll tolerate a certain amount of profanity. Especially if it's clever and used like a scalpel instead of a sledgehammer. What won't happen here is hate.
If you claim a neighborhood and want to put that in your comment, go ahead. But I won't allow challenges and cyberspace mad dogging. Keep the fights off this site. There are plenty of places on the internet where you can do that. Frankly, they're boring and do nothing to further the outside world's understanding of what's what.
Please don't ruin this place for everybody else. If you've got something to say, do it the right way. Speak your mind but don't add to problem. Don't put me in the position of being a censor. There's already enough of that.
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, WE HAVE ANSWERS.
The email below asks an important question that resonates deeply into every neighborhood in LA. I'll answer in a very general way. I could go into specifics but I don't want to become the free information library for some LA media types that don't know how or won't do the research. Here's the question.
"Has there been a greenlight issued against so-cal blacks in the los angeles area because of a payment that has not been made to the EME after there was a purchase of narcotics? Some one was telling me that greenlights were issued at any black individual that appears to be bangin no matter their affiliation, if they look the part they are a target. I just wanted to know if this was true."
I'll take the second part of the question first. Nobody (that includes blacks, whites, asians) banging in an established neighborhood needs a greenlight to be regulated or corrected. The reader seems a little confused on terminology. Banging has nothing to do with business or politics. It's street level warfare and it could be brown vs. brown, brown vs. black, black vs. black etc. Banging is keeping your neighborhood free of incursions from rivals with no distinction made on the basis of color. It's a matter of, "This is ours, you can't be here. Period. Trespassers will be dealt with."
Neighborhoods don't issue greenlights because strictly speaking, greenlights come from shot callers. At the neighborhood level, there's always a de facto greenlight on trespassers because that's what neighborhoods do. It's understood from before you get jumped in that it's every homies' responsibility to keep out enemies.
As to the specific brown on black warfare, that depends on a number of factors and those factors vary from neighborhood to neighborhood. Some neighborhoods have shot callers that are more interested in business than warfare. They'll tolerate black dope dealers as long as they pay their taxes and don't start up sets to challenge the established authority of that neighborhood. The question implies that somebody got burned on a dope deal. I'm not aware of any specific big burn but you don't have to be black to get killed over a deal gone sideways. And you don't have to be black to have your whole neighborhood greenlighted.
Other neighborhoods don't tolerate blacks of any kind. They don't care if you're a banger, a dealer or an ordinary civilian that isn't even clicked up. These neighborhoods will not allow a black dealer to set up shop even if he's willing to pay taxes. They won't even tolerate black civilians living next door or down the block. In these neighborhoods, being black is all you need to be to get harassed, driven out or even terminated. I've come across a lot of cases like that and they ain't pretty.
What often determines the racial tolerance of the neighborhood is the personal bias of the shot caller. The shot caller establishes neighborhood policy. If he doesn't like mayates, then they don't live in that neighborhood. If he's the type that puts business above race, then some allowances are made.
As a general rule, the brothers don't do business with blacks. Also as a general rule, brothers don't like blacks moving into the neighborhood because it reflects badly on them. If the neighborhood isn't pure, or nearly pure raza, it's perceived by other neighborhoods as not being in total control. It's seen as slipping. And if you're slipping in that area, you may be seen as weak in others. And weakness is a sign that your forces are standing down and maybe the fortress has some crumbling walls.
Brothers are not big proponents of diversity or multi-culturalism. They're down for the brown and we've heard that some of the brothers won't raise their hand for somebody who isn't 100% raza no matter how much work he put in.
Before signing off, here's a story that goes back to the riots. In the famous chopper footage from Florence and Normandie, DAMIAN "FOOTBALL" WILLIAMS was seen dragging a male hispanic from a car, beating him and then spray painting him. When the brothers saw that, WILLIAMS was greenlighted. Personal hard candy. I've heard he's in PC, but I wouldn't swear to it. If anybody knows for sure, I'd like to hear about it.
Some time down the road, I'll get into the brown on black high school beefs that the big media doesn't seem to know how to report.
The email below asks an important question that resonates deeply into every neighborhood in LA. I'll answer in a very general way. I could go into specifics but I don't want to become the free information library for some LA media types that don't know how or won't do the research. Here's the question.
"Has there been a greenlight issued against so-cal blacks in the los angeles area because of a payment that has not been made to the EME after there was a purchase of narcotics? Some one was telling me that greenlights were issued at any black individual that appears to be bangin no matter their affiliation, if they look the part they are a target. I just wanted to know if this was true."
I'll take the second part of the question first. Nobody (that includes blacks, whites, asians) banging in an established neighborhood needs a greenlight to be regulated or corrected. The reader seems a little confused on terminology. Banging has nothing to do with business or politics. It's street level warfare and it could be brown vs. brown, brown vs. black, black vs. black etc. Banging is keeping your neighborhood free of incursions from rivals with no distinction made on the basis of color. It's a matter of, "This is ours, you can't be here. Period. Trespassers will be dealt with."
Neighborhoods don't issue greenlights because strictly speaking, greenlights come from shot callers. At the neighborhood level, there's always a de facto greenlight on trespassers because that's what neighborhoods do. It's understood from before you get jumped in that it's every homies' responsibility to keep out enemies.
As to the specific brown on black warfare, that depends on a number of factors and those factors vary from neighborhood to neighborhood. Some neighborhoods have shot callers that are more interested in business than warfare. They'll tolerate black dope dealers as long as they pay their taxes and don't start up sets to challenge the established authority of that neighborhood. The question implies that somebody got burned on a dope deal. I'm not aware of any specific big burn but you don't have to be black to get killed over a deal gone sideways. And you don't have to be black to have your whole neighborhood greenlighted.
Other neighborhoods don't tolerate blacks of any kind. They don't care if you're a banger, a dealer or an ordinary civilian that isn't even clicked up. These neighborhoods will not allow a black dealer to set up shop even if he's willing to pay taxes. They won't even tolerate black civilians living next door or down the block. In these neighborhoods, being black is all you need to be to get harassed, driven out or even terminated. I've come across a lot of cases like that and they ain't pretty.
What often determines the racial tolerance of the neighborhood is the personal bias of the shot caller. The shot caller establishes neighborhood policy. If he doesn't like mayates, then they don't live in that neighborhood. If he's the type that puts business above race, then some allowances are made.
As a general rule, the brothers don't do business with blacks. Also as a general rule, brothers don't like blacks moving into the neighborhood because it reflects badly on them. If the neighborhood isn't pure, or nearly pure raza, it's perceived by other neighborhoods as not being in total control. It's seen as slipping. And if you're slipping in that area, you may be seen as weak in others. And weakness is a sign that your forces are standing down and maybe the fortress has some crumbling walls.
Brothers are not big proponents of diversity or multi-culturalism. They're down for the brown and we've heard that some of the brothers won't raise their hand for somebody who isn't 100% raza no matter how much work he put in.
Before signing off, here's a story that goes back to the riots. In the famous chopper footage from Florence and Normandie, DAMIAN "FOOTBALL" WILLIAMS was seen dragging a male hispanic from a car, beating him and then spray painting him. When the brothers saw that, WILLIAMS was greenlighted. Personal hard candy. I've heard he's in PC, but I wouldn't swear to it. If anybody knows for sure, I'd like to hear about it.
Some time down the road, I'll get into the brown on black high school beefs that the big media doesn't seem to know how to report.
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