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Gov. Schwarzenegger Joins Attorney General in Announcing Arrest Warrants of Over 40 Gang Members as a Result of Coordinated State, Federal and Local Investigation
April 22, 2010 - Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today joined Attorney General Jerry Brown and other federal, state and local law enforcement officials in Salinas to announce the arrests of several gang members from arrest warrants issued for more than 40 gang members as part of a state, federal and local coordinated investigation into gang activity in the area.
“Today’s action sends a loud and clear message to anyone participating in gang activities – we will track you down and lock you up,” said Governor Schwarzenegger. “What you see here today is the result of months of coordination, surveillance and very smart police work. But, the job is not over. We know Salinas still has a serious gang problem, and we aren’t going anywhere. We remain committed to fighting the violence and saving lives.”
Governor Schwarzenegger is committed to combating gang violence in California and, in 2007, introduced the Governor’s California Gang Reduction, Intervention and Prevention (CalGRIP) initiative to confront the dramatic increase in gangs across the state and their proliferation in suburban and rural areas. CalGRIP combines funding from different programs and directs them towards local anti-gang efforts, including job training, education and intervention programs. The Governor also appointed Paul Seave director of the Governor’s Office of Gang and Youth Violence Policy, to coordinate all state programs and funding for anti-gang activities with local and federal agencies.
Last month, the Governor announced over $9.2 million in competitive grants awarded to 24 cities throughout California under his CalGRIP initiative to help combat and prevent gang violence in these communities. In this round of funding, the city of Salinas received $382,639, and Monterey County received a total of $765,278. The Governor also joined with law enforcement officials in Salinas last year to highlight CalGRIP funding and to announce the first-ever “Gifts for Guns” program in the area, modeled after the program created by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
Gangs are responsible for many crimes in California including more than 15,000 homicides since 1981 and other crimes like extortion, narcotic sales and identity theft. In spite of an overall decrease in crime in most California cities since the 1990s, rates of gang-related violent crime have remained steady or increased in many California communities.