Gangs in the South-Central United States

In a 1994 study of 9 States located in the south-central United States, 131 municipal police departments were surveyed; 79 cities completed the mail survey (Quinn, Tobolowsky, and Downs, 1994). Respondents in 44 percent of small cities (populations between 15,000 and 50,000) and 41 percent of large cities (populations greater than 50,000) stated that their largest gang was affiliated with groups in other cities. It is unknown whether the perceived affiliation was based on structural links or on name association. Nearly three-fourths of the 792 gang cities that responded to the 1992 USC mail survey reported that at least some indigenous gangs adopted gang names generally associated with Los Angeles and Chicago (e.g., Bloods, Crips, Vicelords, Gangster Disciples, or Latin Kings). Approximately 60 of these cities had no gang migration.

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Gang Members on the Move Juvenile Justice Bulletin   ·  October 1998