For those that play down the existence of gangs....... (Pittsburgh: homes, neighborhood)

[Bossman412]

For those who dont think that gangs arent that bad in the burgh go to the hill district wearing blue and you probably wont be able to speak about it

[vwscottie]

Well, for those of you who as much as told me I don't know what I'm talking about, add police chief Nate Harper to the list..........
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Police: Fatal North Side Shooting Was Gang-Related

Pittsburgh Police say a North Side shooting that claimed the life of a 12-year-old girl was fueled by gang violence.

Jolesa Barber, a sixth-grader at A.J. Rooney Middle School, was killed after more than 40 rounds of ammunition was fired into her sister's Brightridge Street house in the city's Perry South neighborhood on Monday night. Her mother was critically injured.

Authorities arrested Anthony Wilson, 30, at his home. He's accused of firing an assault rifle at the house.

Police still looking for the second alleged shooter. 15-year-old Michael Gist, a student at McNaugher High School. He allegedly fired a 9mm glock.

Police searched for him this morning at the middle school but he was not there.

"This was a gang retaliatory shooting that involved the life of an innocent person," said Pittsburgh Police Chief Nate Harper. "The gang members that are out there, we will pursue them as well."

Harper says the cooperation of neighborhood witnesses helped them catch the alleged shooters.

"The community has basically said enough's enough. Witnesses have came forward and that's why, you know, we're making arrests rather quickly," he said.

Pittsburgh Police and the Allegheny County District Attorney are pledging to crackdown on gang violence.

[Pitts10yrs]

I can almost assure you the firearm used was not a AK-47, but a SKS rifle (civilian version of ak) and IT WAS NOT fully automatic. The conversion to fully automatic is not that easy. But, 30 round clips are plentiful and ammunition for these guns is also plentify and cheap. You would be surprised how quickly a semi-automatic can fire. (As fast as you can squeeze the trigger with your trigger finger.)

Durring the early 90's the SKS rifles were very expensive, as little as $80 with 30 round magazines selling for $30. You could with around $150 get a gun, high capacity magazine, and 100 rounds of ammuntion. They were being sold at the gun show when it was at the Monroeville Expomart. They were packaged in large wooden crates imported from China. Since then these guns are everywhere, and the chosen gun for drive-bys, because there are cheap and plentiful. (There were ak-47s sold but they were semi-automatics and were much more expensive.)

But, understand you can purchase similar firearms, in fact Ruger makes a very similiar firearm chambered in the same round that is semi-automatic, but it is much more expensive.

There are hinting rifles which fire much more powerful cartridges, but are typically single shot. Semi-auto, and certainly fully auto (outlawed), are not the best choice for hunters.

Certainly th power of these firearms is scary, but do you really think outlawing a gun is going to stop this.

[guylocke]

Certainly th power of these firearms is scary, but do you really think outlawing a gun is going to stop this.

Not anymore, too much is in the general circulation. There are counties where guns ARE hard to buy, for normal people, and criminals. I'm sure both normal people and criminals could find one if they really wanted to, but it truly does make a huge difference. There are certain countries where cops don't even CARRY guns, yet, they still carry only clubs, because their gun violence is SO much lower than in the USA where it is completely out of control.

[Pitts10yrs]

Originally Posted by guylocke

There are certain countries where cops don't even CARRY guns, yet, they still carry only clubs, because their gun violence is SO much lower than in the USA where it is completely out of control.

That's where I grew up, and every family owned several guns. Most likely there were more guns per square mile than people.

[Huckleberry3911948]

are firearms evil?
police and soldiers carry and use them no?
killling women and children is evil no?
i think such people that do this should be punished
not just locked up.

[Herodotus]

There are plenty of gangs in Pittsburgh, but these gangs are basically cliques, as opposed to the structured gangs of places like Chicago. It's quite different from 15 years ago, when you basically had entire neighborhoods opposing each other (Homewood vs Wilkinsburg vs East Hills etc.). Today, it's groups of guys who hang together, opposing other groups of guys, frequently from the same area. Unlike 15 years ago, colors are not that big of a deal. Basically, the violence stems from 2 main things. The first is that all of the young toughs are armed. Young toughs have the same conflicts that they did 50 years ago (girls, machismo, etc.). The problem now, is that instead of a fistfight, you're liable to get a shooting. Guys are paranoid (I better pull my gun, before he pulls his). Then of course, the revenge factor kicks in. "He killed my friend, we're going to kill him". The second factor is drug related. The money for street level dealers is nowhere near what it was at the height of the crack epidemic. This, combined with many guys getting out of jail and trying to return to the street life, creates conflict. Those who are "not eating" (street parlance for not making any money) will frequently turn to robbing those who are making money. Of course, being involved in an illegal enterprise means that the victims can't go to the police for redress, they have to handle it themselves. Those who don't have the stomach for violence (and I've known many), either get out of the game, or become victims on a regular basis. Those who are tougher, send a message by extracting revenge on the perpetrators. Of course, this too gets the cycle of revenge going. Usually, those in the streets know the who, what, where, and why, but will keep quiet, unless the transgression is considered so grave, (like killing a child) that even most thugs are disgusted. The cops usually know who the perps are, but without willing witnesses, they can't do much. Sometimes, if an area gets too hot, it will get hit with a sweep, and the cops will try to lock up most of the shooters on other charges (previous drug buys and such). This will frequently cool down an area for a while.

[Huckleberry3911948]

mr. herodotus

"Today, it's groups of guys who hang together," opposing other groups. armed?
this is a gang no?

[Herodotus]

Originally Posted by Bunky39

mr. herodotus

"Today, it's groups of guys who hang together," opposing other groups. armed?
this is a gang no?

Structured gangs are organized, with a leadership structure. Pittsburgh gangs lack this. Pittsburgh gangs are loosely structured. Many don't even have names. They are basically cliques of guys who hang together and sell drugs together. Can they be considered gangs? Sure, but are they anywhere near what the LA based Crips or Chicago's Black Gangster Disciples are? The answer is no. When 40 year olds are running the gangs here, then it will be a different story.

[nikki88888]

What I would like everyone to understand is that there are not gangs in western pa its just a lot of childish low level drug dealers that want to be like what they see on tv they think its hard and that it makes them cool I know I spent 10 years of my life with one. Then I grew up!! But, half of the fools out here carrying guns are to scared to use them and you can purchase any kind of gun on the street. I live in washington and people here would never believe what some people have in thier homes and how they all stand on "The Hill" (thats our drug selling area) and act like they are part of a gang thats all a front to thier friends its all about showing off to your friends I dont care if your 15 or 55 thats how they do it here.