Gang task force wants schools to get involved
Can students help each other?
By Darleen Principe darleen@theacorn.com

The Simi Valley Community Gang Task Force is seeking new ways to involve the public and local schools in the prevention of gang activity and violence in the city.

During a meeting Wednesday, task force member Danny Mastro, a retired LAPD sergeant, proposed a plan that would challenge students in local high schools and middle schools to facilitate their own anti-gang programs.

"I think kids would rise to the occasion because they're very smart, and we're always telling them what to do," Mastro said. "These children see a lot more than what we can see from the outside."

The Community Gang Task Force- formed in 1995- meets four times a year to discuss recent gang activity, as well as come up with proactive approaches to maintaining safety through the ever-changing demographic of the city.

Officer Heather Tallent, of the Special Problems Section in the Simi Valley Police Department, told the 21-member task force this week that there has not been a lot of local gang activity in recent months.

"A lot of (the gangsters) are in custody now," Tallent said. "And the younger ones are not as sophisticated as the older members who are in jail. We've had some vandalism, but it's very minimal compared to last year."

Still, members of the task force, like Glen Becerra, City Council member and co-chair of the committee, said they want to stay abreast of the situation. While Simi Valley is still a very safe community today, it doesn't mean things won't change in the future, Becerra said.

"This is about continuously improving our situation," he said. "It's not about anything negative but making sure we stay proactive to protect the quality of life we have here. We can always do better."

Part of Mastro's proposal for a school-based anti-gang program is to utilize the school district's Connect-ED system- a phone-based system capable of sending personalized, prerecorded voice messages to thousands of homes simultaneously. Connect-ED is currently used by school administrators to make announcements and to track attendance.

It can also be used in partnership with the police department or mayor's office to make announcements about gang activity or school-related crimes, Mastro said.

While he acknowledged that his idea wouldn't provide a complete solution to Simi's potential gang problem, Mastro said that it could still provide a step in the right direction.

"For a lot of these generational gang members, whose parents are gangsters too, there may be no way of breaking the cycle," he said. "There's no real answer, but I believe that, coupled with different avenues, these little programs via the kids may change one's mindset."

Brian Dennert, task force member and a teacher at Royal High School, suggested working with the police department to get regular updates on the attire of recently arrested gangsters to help determine what the difference is between "a general kid and a gang member."

The police department's student resource officers, who work specifically with Simi youth, could also create accounts on MySpace- a popular Internet networking site- and befriend young kids early, before a gang threat becomes more serious.

Mayor Paul Miller, co-chair of the task force, said the police and city manager's office would meet with the school district's superintendent to discuss these ideas before the next meeting.

For more information on the Community Gang Task Force, call the Special Operations Unit at (805) 583-6252 or visit the website www.simivalley.org/html/ gang_task_force.html.