Toledo police looking to double gang task force: The Toledo Police Department is placing bids for eight new gang task force officers that would double the size of the unit, said Sgt. Joe Heffernan. Heffernan, the TPD public information officer, says the Starr Avenue-East Broadway corridor and the Charles F. Weiler Homes, a Lucas County Metropolitan Housing residential project on Fassett Street in East Toledo, have become hot spots for gang activity.

 12 arrested in Peoria federal gang indictment : Federal prosecutors in Peoria have charged a dozen alleged street gang members known as the "Bomb Squad." Prosecutors said in a Friday news release that a grand jury returned the indictment this week. The charges are the result of the FBI's Safe Streets Task Force and the city's "Don't Shoot" anti-violence program. The defendants face charges including drug trafficking and firearms possession.

 Gangs, police evolve since Surrey Six Massacre: SURREY (NEWS1130) - It's now been five years since six people -- including innocent victims Chris Mohan, 22, and Ed Schellenberg, 55 -- were gunned down in a high-rise apartment in Surrey. "Some of those individuals and gang members who were rival enemies back in 2006 and 2007, and even up to 2009, they're now working together," notes Lindsey Houghton with the Combined Special Forces Enforcement Unit, adding it's not like it was when the Red Scorpions, United Nations and other gangs were warring.

 Chicago's Gang Violence Fueled Through Social Media: Social media has helped launch revolutions and bring down government regimes, but these incredibly powerful tools are also helping to keep the streets of Chicago bloody. ABC News recently hosted a summit, "Hidden America: Don't Shoot I Want To Grow Up." It was moderated by World News anchor Diane Sawyer and ABC News correspondent Alex Perez and brought some of the city's gang members, former gang members, victims and community organizers together to talk about the spread of gang violence, why it happens and how to stop it.

 Community Key to Reducing Youth Gang Violence, Expert Says: Community Involvement, Relational Networks Key to Reducing Youth-Related Gang Violence in Los Angeles, says City’s Head of Gang Reduction and Youth Development Office. “Youth in a very diverse environment continue to solve conflicts through violence,” said Guillermo Céspedes, director of the Mayor’s Office of Gang Reduction and Youth Development for the City of Los Angeles. “We kept doing the same thing and expecting a different result.”

 Harris County suing alleged gang members: HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Harris County officials on Friday morning will announce a new effort to stop gang activity in southwest Houston. At a news conference Friday morning, the county attorney discussed the southwest side neighborhood around west Belfort and Albury, saying it was a hotspot for criminal activity. He has listed 11 known gang members in a civil lawsuit, in addition to two businesses and their owners. The county attorney says those business owners are just not doing their jobs in keeping the area safe enough.

 TAPD: Gangs behind increase in violent crime in city: TEXARKANA, AR (KSLA) - Police in Texarkana, Arkansas say gang violence is getting out of control, and they are cracking down hard. "We would definitely agree we do have a gang issue going on at this time," says Sgt. Chris Rankin of the Texarkana, Arkansas Police Department.

 Ogden Police Say They Have New Weapon In Stopping Gang Crime: (KUTV) Ogden police say their new weapon is stopping gang crime – but the ACLU says its unconstitutional. Lt. Scott Conley of the Ogden Police told a legislative committee that Ogden has found a weapon against gangs that work. A court has issued an injunction against the ‘Trece’ gang that says they can not be seen together.

 MS-13, Notorious Central American Street Gang, Targeted By U.S. Government As An 'International Criminal Organization' : WASHINGTON — The Obama administration declared the ultra-violent street gang MS-13 to be an international criminal group on Thursday, an unprecedented crackdown targeting the finances of the sprawling U.S. and Central American gang infamous for hacking and stabbing victims with machetes.The Treasury Department formally designated MS-13, or Mara Salvatrucha, a transnational criminal organization. The aim is to freeze it out of the U.S. financial system and seize what are estimated to be millions of dollars in criminal profits from drug and human smuggling and other crimes committed in this country.

 Law Enforcement Logs On: How authorities use online activity to fight gang-related crime: (CBS) NEW YORK - Last month, New York City announced the indictments of 49 members of two neighborhood gangs called "Very Crispy Gangsters" and "Rockstarz" on charges including murder, attempted murder and conspiracy. How did the department build the cases? They got online. "By capitalizing on the irresistible urge of these suspects to brag about their murderous exploits on Facebook, detectives used social media to draw a virtual map of their criminal activity over the last three years," New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly told attendees at the annual conference for the International Association of Chiefs of Police last week.

 Topeka Police Investigate Unsolved Murders: TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) -- Detectives want to close the case files on the city's latest three murders, but they say a subculture of gang violence makes it harder to find leads. "The challenge is that if you have witnesses and victims in a subculture, then they're not willing to talk to us," Sgt. Rich Volle says shootings often have drug crime connections, or could be connected to other shootings.

 Experts to study region's gangs, sex trafficking : A trio of local professors have received a $399,000 federal grant to research the scope and nexis of gang activity and sex trafficking in the region. The three-year study, entitled “Measuring the Extent and Nature of Gang Involvement in Sex Trafficking in the San Diego/Tijuana Border Region,” will bring together Point Loma Nazarene University’s professor of cultural anthropology Jamie Gates, University of San Diego’s assistant professor Ami Carpenter and San Diego State University’s professor of criminal justice Dana Nurge.

 Crime programs reduce violence by focusing on what works: Residents of Avondale, a poor neighborhood in Cincinnati, have long accepted nightly gunfire and the distinction of having one of the highest homicide rates in the city. This year, however, they are keeping their fingers crossed because something remarkable appears to be happening. Not a single murder has been reported in 2012. If the turnabout holds, give credit to a groundbreaking police-community program that uses research-based strategies to combat violent behavior. The St. Louis Police Department has experimented with research-based anti-violence strategies, too. It recently devoted more manpower to various hot spot locations during a 30-day period, a move that reduced violent crime in those areas. But the Cincinnati project, called Moral Voice, is part of much broader evidence-based initiatives involving lots of police and communities across the nation.

 Hospital project redirects gang/at risk kids: Shantel was handcuffed to a hospital bed and struggling against the gnawing fear that the assault charge she faced would lead to a long jail stay when gang-outreach worker Michelle McDaniel stepped into her life. McDaniel, 33, works with the Denver Health Medical Center's At Risk Intervention and Mentoring project (AIM), a program that uses a team of six gang-outreach workers to guide victims of violence — many of whom are gang members — toward a less risky path in life.McDaniel, 33, works with the Denver Health Medical Center's At Risk Intervention and Mentoring project (AIM), a program that uses a team of six gang-outreach workers to guide victims of violence — many of whom are gang members — toward a less risky path in life. McDaniel, 33, works with the Denver Health Medical Center's At Risk Intervention and Mentoring project (AIM), a program that uses a team of six gang-outreach workers to guide victims of violence — many of whom are gang members — toward a less risky path in life.

 Anti-gang summit in Saginaw encourages community to educate youth on dangers of joining gangs, kicks off anti-violence campaign: SAGINAW, MI — The Police Chiefs Association of Saginaw and Saginaw County Judge M.T. Thompson Jr. held an anti-gang and anti-violence summit on Saturday to familiarize the community with gang violence in Saginaw

 Memphis tries new approach to tackling gangs with intervention squad : Convicted felons and former gang members seeking contract work for the city of Memphis recently found that their backgrounds actually helped them bubble to the top of a deep pile of applicants. That's because Memphis is trying something new to tackle its pervasive gang problem: The city is assembling a team of unarmed mediators to work in crime-riddled areas of Frayser and South Memphis to quell gang tensions and other disputes, said Russell, who is spearheading the program.

 FBI increasing focus on gang tattoos; local agencies track them informally : With its eye on the release of a new database in 2014, the FBI is asking local law enforcement agencies for information on how they track tattoos worn by gang members, terrorists and other criminals. A letter sent this summer to academics, industry professionals and law enforcement agencies requested details on how they file information about tattoos, whether they consult gang experts for certain meanings, and what they do to address potential privacy concerns. The FBI's request for information on tattoo databases comes in advance of its plans to launch an updated database as part of its Next Generation Identification Program. The initiative would collect biometric information using improved fingerprint identification and facial recognition technology, among other methods.

 Trenton council calls for overhaul of anti-gang program: TRENTON — As the city council discussed another headache in the YouthStat anti-gang program — why a coordinator went unpaid for six months — city business administrator Sam Hutchinson said he wants the program overhauled. The grant-funded program, designed to keep kids out of gangs and trouble, has spawned one lawsuit, numerous complaints about the program’s effectiveness and a revolving door of coordinators.

 G.R.E.A.T. program strengthening Tyler families: TYLER (KYTX) - The G.R.E.A.T. program is offered to families at Douglas Elementary School in Tyler. It stands for Gang-Related Education And Training. "We're here trying to get families together and to help them to work in bettering their relationships with their kids, and the kids bettering their relationships with their parents."