Turlock's gang situation is bad, but our Mayor get's it. Good job Lazar.

"Mayor's task force focusing on education, teen activities

By MICHAEL R. SHEA
mshea@modbee.com

last updated: May 03, 2008 04:49:50 AM

TURLOCK -- Last weekend a suspected Sureño gang member walking down South Soderquist Road was shot in the belly with a .45-caliber handgun.

Ten days earlier on South Rose Street, a home known to police for gang activity was riddled with bullets. Eleven shell casings were found in the road. One bullet missed a toddler's leg by less than two feet.

Three days before that, on an unusually warm Saturday, two brothers from Newman with suspected Sureño gang ties were shot in the arm, hand and neck at the Regal Turlock Stadium 14 cinema on West Main Street.

When it comes to gang violence, the same violence that has gripped Modesto in recent days, Turlock is at a tipping point.

"We're on the cusp of being very bad or controlling it," said Mayor John Lazar. "My goal is to get a grip on the problem and move these people out of the community."

Last summer, Turlock saw an unprecedented number of shootings. June, July and August averaged about 20 shootings each month, said Police Chief Gary Hampton. From that gunplay, only three people were injured. This year, tallying three gunshot injuries in April alone, police and politicians are bracing for summer with some trepidation.

Jokes about Turlock gangsters having terrible aim no longer seem appropriate.

"They're not targeting cars parked on the street anymore," Hampton said. "They're targeting people, they're targeting each other."

If last year's frequency matches last month's intensity, the city is in for a long, violent summer. But police, the school district, Modesto Junior College, business leaders, psychologists, nonprofits, and state probation and parole departments are battling the trend. They're working together on the daunting task of neutralizing gang activity.

The Mayor's Gang Task Force, which has been meeting regularly since May, will present a package of programs to the City Council in June aimed at educating parents and providing youngsters with alternatives to gang life.

"We can turn up the heat on gang members," Hampton said, "but alone it isn't a very sophisticated approach."

For two weeks, the task force has been meeting with parents on Turlock's Westside."

http://www.modbee.com/local/story/287728.html