Gang Violence: Coming to Terms

Los Angeles may be the gang capital of the nation, but few large or mid-size cities anywhere are immune to the drive-by shootings, homicides, drug trafficking, assaults, torture, carjacking, rapes and intimidation that ruin lives and neighborhoods.

With the gang problem worsening and sophisticated local street gangs exporting their violent business, U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) wants the federal government to get more involved in this type of law enforcement. Her proposed federal gang-violence act would toughen penalties for gangbangers who commit federal crimes, cross state lines to commit crimes, engage in international crime like drug-trafficking, and who recruit minors or use them in criminal acts. The bill would also update some old federal laws so prosecutors can apply them to current violations.

Eradicating gang violence is a goal also shared by Mayor Riordan, who Thursday called for a court injunction as part of a major crackdown on the notorious 18th Street gang. The City Council is also aggressively addressing gang violence, but several members recently rebuffed Feinstein’s request for support because they believe prevention and intervention proposals, which are not mentioned in her bill, are a major component of any anti-crime program. They are right, and Feinstein said she’d like to hear their recommendations before the council reconsiders support for her bill next month.

The senator is willing to support prevention efforts, but she is also mindful of what a Republican Congress will and will not approve. The GOP majority, for example, has been unwilling to appropriate money for some prevention efforts touted earlier this week by President Clinton in a speech on youth violence, even though the programs were authorized in the 1994 crime bill passed by Congress.

While Feinstein’s bill progresses through Congress, she should engage the L.A. City Council in a constructive debate on how best to reduce the intolerable gang menace, and the proper balance between tougher law-enforcement and expanded intervention or prevention efforts. The senator should take those ideas back to Washington for consideration, particularly considering the GOP’s focus on law enforcement as the main weapon in combating crime. Gang crime requires bipartisan attention, and Feinstein should make that case.