This bulletin addresses questions about the interrelatedness of youth gangs, drugs, and violent crime, discussing whether drug trafficking is a main cause of violence in youth gangs or only a correlate, and noting whether there are other important sources of gang violence. Section 1 presents a historical overview of gang drug use and trafficking,…

This summary provides results from the 1998 National Youth Gang Survey, administered to a representative sample of city and county police and sheriff's departments nationwide. Results indicate that the percentage of jurisdictions reporting active youth gangs decreased from 51 percent in 1997 to 48 percent in 1998. About 780,200 gang members were…

Based on news stories from U.S. newspapers, this report examines the prevalence of gun violence in American schools. During the past 4 years, beginning with September 1986, at least 71 people (65 students and 6 employees) have been killed with guns at school. Another 201 were severely wounded, and 242 individuals were held hostage at gunpoint.…

Examined the relationship between various methods of operationalizing gang membership and delinquency. Surveys of inner city adolescents indicated that teens reporting membership in organized gangs were far more likely to believe their gangs possessed characteristics typically associated with traditional street gangs. Teens who considered…

Law enforcement officials, experts in public health, criminologists, educators, and youth offered testimony intended to help Congress understand the scope of the threat of guns and firearm violence to young people and the strains of the firearm problem on public and community services. A fact sheet points out that: (1) increasing numbers of youth…

The purpose of this study was to determine whether at-risk behaviors (e.g., substance abuse, gun ownership, sexual activity, and gang membership) are associated with violence attribution errors, as measured by Daley and Onwuegbuzie's (1995) Violence Attribution Survey, among 82 incarcerated male juvenile delinquents. Analysis revealed that the…

This research summarizes the results of a study involving 835 inmates in six major correctional facilities within several states and 758 inner-city students from 10 high schools near the facilities, concerning the number and types of firearms juveniles possess as well as where, how, and why juveniles acquire and carry firearms. Research focused on…

Volume 6 of" The Prevention Researcher" contains three 12-page issues and one supplement. Issue Number 1 focuses on gambling, and contains the following articles: (1) "Gambling in the Family: The Hidden Addiction" (D. A. Abbott); (2) "Adolescent Gambling and Substance Use: The View from Texas" (L. Wallisch); (3)…

This bulletin examines manifestations of street violence (bullying, gangs, weapons possession and use, substance abuse, and community violence) threatening schools and describes steps that concerned citizens are taking to restore security and calm. Schoolyard bullying can be mitigated by widely publicized rules, buddy systems, parent education…

These transcripts feature statements and testimony from a Senate hearing on gun-related violence among school children. Opening statements by judiciary committee members Joseph R. Biden, Paul Simon, Herbert Kohl, Strom Thurmond, and John H. Chaffee offer statistics and anecdotes about the increasing presence of guns on school campuses, the…

This report presents the collective results of studies funded under the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention congressional directive. The studies confirm that young African-American males are disproportionately involved as offenders and victims of violence, that firearms play a large role in juvenile violence, and that gang…