Deadline Tomorrow: Police Ask for Public Support to Add Anti-Gang Staff

Gilroy police are asking for the public’s help to secure a federal grant that would bolster efforts to fight gang crime in the South Valley.

“That position would be a coordinator for the anti-gang efforts throughout Gilroy, Morgan Hill and the South County,” Gilroy police Chief Denise Turner wrote in an e-mail.

The three-year position would expand on initiatives that include the Gilroy Gang Task Force and a no-tolerance approach to gang activity in Gilroy.

“If you’re gonna play, you’re gonna pay,” Turner said at a task force meeting last month, “even if you’re on the victim’s team.”

To help secure the funding, the department and its volunteers are asking the public to e-mail their letters of support by noon March 3 (details are below).

The Anti-Gang Strategies and Program Grant, provided through the Department of Justice, can provide up to $750,000 to help fund anti-gang efforts targeted toward prevention and outreach.

Gang activity is considered a major source of crime in the South County, but Gilroy police have had  and have cited the lack of homicides last year as a benchmark of their progress.

Despite gains, work continues: Councilman Dion Bracco, who sits on the gang task force, asked for the Gilroy City Council to consider ways to expand the program at its annual retreat last month.

“It’s something that Washington and the state love to throw money at, but you need to be organized to get that money,” he said.

You may send your letter of support of the Gilroy Police Department's anti-gang efforts by March 3. An example letter is included in the gallery of this article. Send your letter to:

Sandra Sammut

City of Gilroy Community Services/Gilroy Gang Task Force Secretary

sandra.sammut@ci.gilroy.ca.us