The GANG DVD & CRIME PROBLEMS

January 24th, 2006: Tommy Rivers, a decorated Police Officer, shared insights into the GANG DVD we recently heard about on the news. Rivers grew up in Charleston, worked on Team One, the Fugitive Taskforce Operation, and has been Policeman of the Year.

When the gang DVD was recovered in a traffic stop, its content was a shock to police around the area. The organization that recovered it at a routine traffic stop realized its importance and called a meeting of the areas key police representatives and showed the DVD. Being familiar with gangs in the area Rivers knew 19 of the individuals in the DVD.

Tommy Rivers gave us an opportunity to view portions of the gang DVD that showed a side of the Holy City that most of us are unfamiliar with. Rivers pointed out the automatic weapons, the drug materials being used, and even the individuals who have been killed or have been charged with serious crime including murder since the DVD was made. The individuals who made the video said the guns and drugs were fake and only props used to make a rap video audition tape. However, others verified the video to be factual.

As a result of finding this video, the need to respond, and Rivers’ knowledge of gang members, he was placed in charge of the investigation. He has since identified a total of 25 of the people on the video and aggressively pursued search warrants and active investigations to get as many as possible off the street. While they’ve been aggressively pursuing gang members to subdue violence, according to Rivers, those in the video were not afraid to use guns on rival gang members, drug dealers, or even civilians. He has excellent rapport with the community because he really exhibits a real desire to find the way to save the kids from this environment.

As to the real cause of our gang problem, he indicated the environment is caused by little or no parental leadership. The pre-teen children, who are out on the street, must make difficult choices. He said these kids are “good at heart,” but they live in a tough environment and often make bad choices.

Rivers indicated the difficulty of making charges stick; even when you know the drugs belong to the individual. It is a problem also getting bail denied; even for those charged with violent crimes and significant drugs possession.

When a member asked what we can do, he said “The community needs to support the police by helping them have a bigger budgets to do what they do and provide the support the police need to take the actions that are necessary.” He indicated that problems will only continue to get more difficult unless we, as a community, can take positive action.

By Wayne Outlaw, Keyway Committee