Stanislaus County gangs’ grip on community difficult to break

Gang involvement greatly affects the severity and number of crimes in Stanislaus County, according to law enforcement officials. Detective Ra Pouv with the Modesto Police Department's Gang Investigations Unit offered these statistics:

• As of March, law enforcement has identified 5,000 gang members and 58 gangs in Stanislaus County. "There could be a lot more," he said.

• In the first quarter of this year, there were 11 gang-related drive-by shootings. That's up55 percent from the same period last year.

• There were four gang-related homicides in the first quarter this year, compared to two last year.

• Gang-related crimes are more violent than ordinary crimes, Pouv said. They include: assault with a firearm, homicide, robbery, some drug sales, home-invasion robberies and drive-by shootings.

"Gang life impacts our community tremendously," Pouv said. "When a gang member commits a crime, it's hard to solve the case because of the grip the gang has on our community. People are afraid to talk to law enforcement, even if they are from rival gangs, because of that fear. Gang fear overwhelms our community."

Stanislaus County Sheriff Adam Christianson agreed with the impact of gangs. "Certainly they have a negative effect on our crime rate, our quality of life," he said. "They certainly a huge impact on families and children. And there are innocent people killed."

For example, he said, Lacy Ferguson was killed by a bullet meant for someone else in 2003. Her daughter had turned 3 the day before she died. Ferguson's mom, Boni Driskill, "is still desperate to solve the murder," Christianson said. "It's a classic example of the impact gang violence has on our community. This family is still suffering and grieving."

Pouv said he knows of gang members who have left the life and now hold good jobs and have started families. But they're rare, he said.

"Most gang members tend to end up in prison or dead," he said. "It's not easy to leave. It mostly happens when gang members reach a certain age and realize the lifestyle is not something they want to pursue. But it takes a special person to put it all behind them and reach for better things."

Christianson said programs such as the Police Activity League and school resource officers can help turn around children and teens before they sink deeply into the gang life.

"The No. 1 example that comes to mind with high-risk kids who are on that verge deciding which way to go is the Stanislaus Military Academy," he said. "It's huge, huge, with many of their graduates going into the military or on to college. I am the biggest fan of what (Stanislaus County Schools Superintendent) Tom Changnon and his team have done down at Allard in Turlock. It's a tremendous success."