Inside the minds of gang members

[LongRider]

I found this article about banger thinking. Nothing really surprising to me but thought it is worth sharing

Inside the minds of gang members

Street Gang Mentality
from the September 2007 issue of the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin

I am a 1988 graduate of the FBI National Academy’s 11 week management training program for law enforcement officers. The FBI has a Law Enforcement magazine that they send to graduates on a monthly basis. The September issue includes the above article written by Anthony J. Pinizotto, PhD (senior scientist and clinical forensic psychologist in the Behavioral Science Unit of the FBI Academy); Edward F. Davis, M.S. (instructor in the Behavioral Science Unit of the FBI Academy); and Charles E. Miller III (head of the Officer Safety Research and Training Program of the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services Division). These three authors have conducted “more than 20 years of research on violence against law enforcement officers” and “have interviewed hundreds of offenders either housed in various prisons throughout the U.S. or following release from these institutions after serving their sentences”.

This article includes quotes from some of the gang members interviewed. I am going to share those quotes with you word for word as written in the article.

1. “When I turned 16, that’s when I basically started shooting people, putting in work and all. In my neighborhood, people feared me. They feared me because I didn’t have no problems with taking a life. I mean, you know, you disrespect me or do something wrong to me, you’ll die for it.”

2. “I’m a ghetto track star. I’ve been running all my life. [The officer] ain’t gonna catch me. If I wouldn’t have waited on him, he would have never caught me…. I ran around the corner, and I waited on him. He came around the corner; I shot.”

(Note to the readers of this blog: I graduated from the Police Academy with a guy who was killed in just this way.)

3. “The police officer don’t get as much work as I do. I mean, when it comes to shooting and stuff like that, I do every day, so a police officer cannot intimidate me…. And, here I am a thug on the street been shooting and killing people all my life and why am I gonna let a guy that just went through the police academy and I’ve been out here in the war zone all my life…. Why am I gonna have respect for him? I’m not gonna have respect for him because he’s trying to stop what I’m trying to do…. So, you know, he can go ahead and do his job, but just don’t go overboard. ‘Cause if you go overboard, then some bullets are gonna come flying at you.”

4. “People that I grew up around got shot. Then, I knew friends, you know, that I went to see, friends laying in a hospital bed, stomach all stitched up, and I knew that I was definitely not gonna be one of them ones that got shot. So, if I even felt as though a person was a threat or any type of flinch or any type of indication that somebody was gonna pull a gun on me or try to pull a knife or try to hurt me, he was gonna get shot first.”

5. “We used to enjoy watching the news to see the work that we put in it. But, it got to the point we were putting in so much work, shooting so many people, I mean, we ain’t even watched the news no more. The stuff didn’t even matter anymore. We were just out there.”

Prior to the quotes, the authors issue the following warning to law enforcement officers.

“All officers would do well to study these statements to gain insight into the minds of individuals who have exhibited cold-blooded and remorseless behavior toward those charged with enforcing this nation’s laws.”


KF NOTE: Frankovis is the police captain who was demoted by outgoing Milwaukee Police Chief Nan Hegerty because Frankovis used the word “thug” to refer to a “thug.” We need more Frankovis’ and fewer Hegerty’s.

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[retsupt99]

This is the exact thinking that may confront one in a parking lot, a rest area, or at a "stop 'N rob". In today's violent world, you may only have a second or two to react in a situation with an individual who would take your life in a heartbeat, and laugh about it.
Are you ready? Are you able to do what may have to be done to see your family again?

Stay armed...practice/pray/stay yellowish-orange...stay safe!

[TriggerFingr]

Allot of gang members like to hear themselves talk, especially if there is some PHDer and the like listening. Most of this is valuable information.

Other things to remember is that 50% of all encounters will include more than one opponent. This is especially true when dealing with gangs! Success or failure depends on immediate action. All combat begins in the mind-Cooper.

And the old time saying still applies-"Always win! Always cheat!"

[grady]

So, if I even felt as though a person was a threat or any type of flinch or any type of indication that somebody was gonna pull a gun on me or try to pull a knife or try to hurt me, he was gonna get shot first.

Interesting. If dealing with someone like this, if one feels the need to draw, one had better plan on shooting quickly and accurately in order to survive.

KF NOTE: Frankovis is the police captain who was demoted by outgoing Milwaukee Police Chief Nan Hegerty because Frankovis used the word “thug” to refer to a “thug.”

Guess I ain't PC. I call 'em thugs, too. What's wrong with that?

We need more Frankovis’ and fewer Hegerty’s.

[Hopyard]

Interesting. I

Guess I ain't PC. I call 'em thugs, too. What's wrong with that?

Nothing. They are what they are. Can't imagine why anyone would find the term offensive when it is used to describe gang members.

"Little darlings" doesn't cut it.

[AZ Husker]

Thank God most of them don't train properly. If you're in a situation, you'd better be able to clear and deliver in less than two seconds. Most thugs make their move with weapon already in hand, but down and slack. While they are certainly ready to take your life, very few ever face a trained and willing opponent. If you practice (and I mean out of the holster, not at paper on a square range), you will have a very good chance of survival.

[JudoJake]

One of the biggest mistakes people make is thinking that other people think the same way that they do. You can say, "He wouldn't shoot me, that would be stupid and he would get shot or caught." But guess what. That doesn't mean he will not do it. You don't want to go to jail, he might not care one way or the other.

[grady]

Nothing. They are what they are. Can't imagine why anyone would find the term offensive when it is used to describe gang members.

"Little darlings" doesn't cut it.

+ a jillion

[sgtD]

I think the term "Kill or be killed" fits well with this report. It's a shame, but it is what it is.

[AZ Husker]

I find it sadly funny that so many CCW carriers have absolutely no street smarts. Most have NO IDEA how things go down in the real world. Most have never even stopped at a convenience store in the bad areas of town. You can have a .50 Caliber mounted on your roof and still be a victim if you don't know who your assailants could be or how they will act. Reminds me of the yuppie Harley riders that put on 500 miles a year riding on Sundays to the local watering holes, yet consider themselves "bikers".

[gilraen]

So how do you suggest we learn street smarts?

[packinnova]

So how do you suggest we learn street smarts?

You don't. If you didn't grow up with em you don't get em. You can try and even come close, but unless you've been there done that, you just don't get it.

[Paco]

Speaking from the point of view of someone who grew up in a rough area and got involved with this kind of "little darlings", they will rarely do anything alone. Just because you see 1 doesn't mean they are alone. So if you are ever in a situation make sure that you keep the eyes in the back of your head alert and don't assume you have neutralized the threat.

[gilraen]

You don't. If you didn't grow up with em you don't get em. You can try and even come close, but unless you've been there done that, you just don't get it.

Well, that leaves me out. But I'm gonna carry anyway, and do the best I can.

[Paco]

So how do you suggest we learn street smarts?

You can't as packinnova stated. All you can do is don't assume anything. There is no real Murphy's Law of idiots.