Gang Enhancement Legislation

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses the gang problem where the dynamics create a cycle of feeling alone, finding a "family" in the gang membership, committing acts of violence for the gang and becoming incarcerated. The paper discusses how the legislative action that is aimed at enhancing punishment packages will provide leverage for those who prosecute gang members, as well as incentives, for those who have not yet been caught, to change their lives. The paper reveals that statistics show that since the introduction of such packages, the gang problem has begun to taper off or stabilize.

Outline:
Introduction
Gangs
Enhancing Punishments
STEP
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"The gang issue in America is not a new one. Gangs have been around for many years but in the past couple of years the violence and gang related crime has escalated significantly. Police departments across the nation have developed gang units in which the specific purpose is to target and curtail the area's gang criminal activity. There are many different gangs, with many different names however, they all have certain commonalities in that they are driven by criminal activity, they have involvement with the drug industry and they recruit members to keep their numbers strong."

Sample of Sources Used:

• California 186.20, California Street Terrorism Enforcement and Prevention Act, STEP Act California 186.20 (Accessed 11-04-06) http://www.streetgangs.com/laws/stepact.html
• California 213. Punishment for Robbery (accessed 11-04-06)http://www.iir.com/nygc/gang-legis/california.htm
• PENAL CODE SECTION 186.20-186.33(accessed 11-04-06)http://home.comcast.net/~jasonanderson102/stepact.htm
• Vitiello, Michael (1997) Three strikes: can we return to rationality? (includes appendix of laws enacted in California and other states) Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology
• What is a youth gang? (accessed 11-04-06)http://www.iir.com/nygc/faq.htm#q3

More papers on Gang Enhancement Legislation:

• Term Paper # 92817 : "Gang Punishments"
• Essay # 68069 : "Gang Violence in Prison"
• Research Paper # 56838 : "Gang Involvement"

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