‘Gang Book’ spotlights suburban threats

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The Chicago Crime Commission "Gang Book."

Updated: March 17, 2012 9:56AM

For more than 40 years, street gangs and illegal drug sales they control have been major drivers of property crime in the suburbs.

For most people, though, gangs remain a shadowy phenomenon, visible only in the occasional newspaper or TV clip and usually in Chicago, not the suburbs.

The 2011 edition of the Chicago Crime Commission’s “Gang Book” www.chicagocrimecommission.org sheds new light on street gangs and provides a clearer picture of the dangers they present to Chicago’s neighboring communities, including Glenview on the North Shore.

“This is a very complicated problem,” said Jody Weis, president of the Chicago Crime Commission. “Gangs have been around a very long time, and they’re not going away.”

The former Chicago police superintendent made the comments during a media talk “Gangs: What We Know, What’s Being Done and What’s Left to Learn.” More than 70 law enforcement officials participated in the three-hour panel.

Police say the harmful impact of street gangs is multi-faceted. Gangs sell heroin to drug addicts who trek here from as far away as Rockford. Those addicts commit crimes like retail theft, copper theft and burglary to pay for their habits.

In Glenview, the commission’s book estimated 30 gang members resided, among them the Gangster Disciples, Latin Kings and Surenos 13s.

Although the book stated no change in village gang activity since 2008, Glenview Dep. Police Chief Phil Perlini said since 2011 when many foreclosures hit the Sunset Village mobile home community on Waukegan Road, he believed gang numbers have decreased.

Founded in 1947 and annexed by Glenview in 1990, the Sunset Village park has approximately 260 homes on 30 acres.

“I can’t give you an exact number ... . Some of our identified gang members resided there, but are now gone,” he said, addng, “I think we have far less than the 30 noted in the incorporated area of Glenview. Any number of gang members is significant.”

Perlini said Glenview police did not have gang unit or a special officer for gang matters.

“On the police department, it’s every officer’s job to remain vigilant with respect to enforcement concerning any law violator, whether they are a gang member or not. All of our officers have received training in recognition of gang members and their operations,” he said.

“Based on history and affiliations, any gang member has the potential to be a public safety threat. As far as gang members criminally operating in the corporate limits of Glenview, I would say they may at times, but when they are caught they are prosecuted to whatever extent the law allows.

“Gangs are organized and carry many affiliations. I am sure their far reaching criminal enterprises operate outside of Glenview,” Perlini explained.

Meanwhile, gangs such as the Four Corner Hustlers and Vice Lords are also responsible for many crimes in the suburbs, such as armed robberies, burglaries, theft and even violence.

Weis said the city has “more than 100,000 gang members, more than any other city, and there are more than 15,000 gang members in the suburbs.”

Besides drugs, suburban gangs engaged in numerous other criminal activities, Graffiti ranked first, followed by drug sales, burglary, theft, aggravated assault, robbery, murder and gun trafficking.

Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart said gangs are steadily spreading throughout the suburbs.

“Chicago has long been the home of hundreds of street gangs, but more recently my officers and I have witnessed the spread of Chicago-based gangs and their expanding grip on suburban communities,” Dart said.

Educating about gangs

For years law enforcement authorities held to a policy of not publicizing specific gangs, out of concern that doing so glamorized their activities.

That appears to be changing.

Weis said 170 out of 249 suburban police departments throughout the Chicago six-county region responded to the Crime Commission’s 2011 Survey of Gang and Drug Activity. That data is incorporated in “The Gang Book.”

Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez called the report a concise and “valuable asset in the fight against gang-related crime as well as an excellent resource for law enforcement, community groups, schools and parents.”

Federal authorities agreed.

“By shedding light on these criminal organizations,” said John J. Riley, Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago DEA office, “the Chicago Crime Commission’s ‘Gang Book’ serves as a valuable tool.”

Weis urged the average citizen, and parents in particular, to work to understand everything about street gangs.

“Learn as much as you can about gangs,” Weis urged. “They’re a very disruptive influence on young people.”

“The threat posed by gang members is very real,” said Weis. “It will take a comprehensive and integrated approach to return the streets to our residents, and this is where the Chicago Crime Commission can help.”

He said law enforcement was only part of the solution.

“Most experts agree that solving the gang problem requires a far broader solution than police,” Weis said. “It is critical for all components of the community- schools, parents, faith based organizations, businesses, and government agencies- to work together to address the threat posed by these extraordinary numbers of gang members.”

Future initiatives

Multi-jurisdiction cooperation is key to future enforcement, police officials said.

“You have unprecedented cooperation in the Chicago area,” said Weis, who has served with both the FBI and local urban law enforcement agencies.

Legislatively, Weis is looking for less restrictions on recording phone conversations, calling for legalizing “one person consent” for taped phone calls.

“We should not have to get a court order in the middle of the night to get somebody to engage in a telephone conversation where we’re trying to develop information that can put a shooter, a killer, in jail,” he said.

Officials also called for a state RICO law (racketeering influence criminal organization) that would allow police to go after gang organizations more comprehensively.

“We’re working with our legislative partners to try and develop a state RICO statute that makes sense and that will be laser-focused on gangs,” Weis said. “To take out the organization and not just the individuals.”

—Todd Shields contributed to this article.