This week, the Charlottesville City Council is expected to approve an extended grant to the Gang Identification and Prevention Training Program, Mayor David Brown said.
Theprogram, run by the Charlottesville/Albemarle Commission on Children and Families, is an attempt to educate the larger Charlottesville community about the recent increase in local gang activity and the potential for further expansion, said CCF Juvenile Justice Coordinator Rory Carpenter.
"The idea was to provide training that would identify and prevent gang activity," Carpenter said. "Also we want to provide training for citizens, such as parents, so they could identify activity in their communities."
According to City officials, the program will emphasize prevention and try to discourage any growth in the activity of nationally-recognized gangs in the Charlottesville area.
"I think law enforcement would say there is gang activity, but it's more local," Carpenter said. "However, potential for national gangs in our community is just around the corner."
Brown said he agrees with the idea that prevention has to be the most important aspect of any gang-related program in Charlottesville.
"The City is really pleased to be able to get a grant for gang identification and prevention because it is going to involve a lot of our agencies to make sure that gangs don't become a problem in the area," Brown said. "I think gangs are not the big-city problem here that they are other places, but we want to keep them from becoming a problem."
Albemarle County Police Lt. Shawn Schwertfeger said although area gangs have not been involved in many high-profile crimes, incidences of narcotics rings, vandalism and turf conflicts have been linked to local gang affiliation. Schwertfeger also said Charlottesville's proximity to the D.C. metro area creates the potential for national gang influence.
"We have local groups as well as national affiliations coming through the area," Schwertfeger said. "But local gangs can be just as dangerous."
The Gang Identification and Prevention Training Program was first implemented in August through an education session aimed at teachers and other professionals who could potentially witness gang activity in their work. This November the CCF will hold an additional session for citizens. Local law enforcement, school districts and the court system will lend their support to the program, Carpenter said.
Representatives of the CCF said the program's ultimate goal is to better the lives of area children.
"We are providing people with the ability to identity gang activity or gang paraphernalia," Carpenter said. "And then after raising their awareness, provide [information regarding] what can be done to prevent children from getting involved in gang activity."
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