Gangs In California
Posted on January 17, 2008
Filed Under Gangs |
California has long sought solutions to its gang problems, and has tried a number of different strategies. The most infamous of these is to serve injunctions against specific gangs, as Sacramento did against the ?Broderick Boys?, making it illegal for gang members to gather. As these strategies have met with varying success (for example, the Sacramento injunction has met with a lot of public dismay and limited effect due to its not covering as many people as desired). However, more effective methods are always being investigated.
California’s prisons are also facing a severe over-crowding issue, with 173,100 prisoners, but only having beds for 156,500 of them (as of 2006). Part of the issue is that gang members see jail time as not only a rite of passage but also adding to their reputation. By dealing with the gang issue, California would also deal with the over-crowding issue.
If a child is committing crimes then that child’s parents may lack the parenting skills needed to raise a law-abiding child. Because of this, AB 1291 was passed, forcing parents of first-time offenders convected for gang-related crimes to attend anti-gang violence classes. The idea is that parents should be responsible for the actions of their children, but that too many gangs are raising their children. AB 1291 hopes to change that by giving them ways to deal with the problem.
Although parents are already liable for the actions of their children under civil law, this law adds tp that, as parents will be forced to attend and pay for classes if their children get into gang trouble. It’s an interesting law, especially as most attempts to deal with the gang issue tend to skirt constitutional law (injunctions, for example, need to be very precisely worded to avoid charges of limiting the freedom of assembly). By taking the issue to their parents, this law makes it imperative that parents become better parents and not allow their children to join gangs.
However, this does make the lives of single parents more interesting, as they may simply not have the ability to watch their children all of the time, and attending the classes may actually create problems. Although it may force them to rely more on family and friends, it may also prevent the parent from being able to take on more hours and make the family a hardship case. More to the point, families where the parents both work multiple jobs may also be affected, as the parents are forced to keep a closer eye on their children.
Overall, this law is a good one in that it puts the blame on the parents for their children’s bad behavior. It will be interesting to watch the effects of this law, and to see if there are any hidden costs. It will especially be interesting to see what affect it has on the gangs themselves as parents drag their children away in order to avoid the classes!
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One Response to “Gangs In California”
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Gangs have always been an issue.
We all hope this law will help change things.
In my opinion, this law will help parents make more of an effort to keep their kids out of trouble.