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Gang legislation picks up broad support
Jun 11, 2012 (The Wilson Daily Times - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) --
The Legislature sent the governor a bill this past week that would make it easier for police departments to sue property owners and gangs as a means of preventing crime.
The N.C. Street Gang Nuisance Abatement Act, House Bill 673, has overwhelming support in the House, which passed the legislation in a 111-1 vote Wednesday, and earlier in the Senate by a 49-0 vote. The bill, which has been in the General Assembly for two years, is expected to pass and be signed into law by Gov. Bev Perdue, said Jacksonville Police Chief Mike Yaniero, chairman of the N.C. Metro Coalition of Chiefs of Police, the organization backing the bill.
"This legislation is designed to disrupt criminal gang activity in a community," Yaniero said. "It's just another tool that can combat gangs in our communities."
Wilson Police Chief Thomas Hopkins, a member of the N.C. Metro Coalition of Chiefs of Police, sees the legislation as offering police a greater ability to crack down on gang crime and, as a result, provide better protection to city residents.
"I support the legislation and support any law that allows officers to take proactive measures to keep our citizens safe," Hopkins said. "You will be able to sue the actual gang member and you will be able to hold businesses responsible."
The law is designed to remove locations where gangs gather and provides officers with the ability to stop repetitive gang activity at specific locations, Yaniero said. Criminal gang activity will have to occur at least five times in one year before action can be taken.
"It has to be multiple illegal acts," Yaniero said. "For the most part, the owner has to do nothing about it. There has to be five or more incidences of gang activity to even start."
The N.C. Metro Coalition of Chiefs of Police asked the legislators to pass the bill in an effort to stem gang-related crimes. The N.C. Metropolitan Mayors Coalition also supports the bill. The law is modeled after anti-gang legislation in 16 other states, Yaniero said.
Civil rights experts question whether the legislation will violate a person's constitutional rights.
"The Supreme Court has essentially said that being a member of a gang is not, in an of itself, a crime," said Sarah Preston, policy director for the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina, to The Fayetteville Observer. "So, we want to make sure people aren't being punished for activity that is not criminal in nature but simply because law enforcement is fearful that crime might occur."
Hopkins said officers are trained to respect individual rights when enforcing the law.
rochelle@wilsontimes.com -- 265-7818
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