Part 2 of 2

Gangs are not just for big cities anymore and rural areas like Batesville and Panola County are seeing an increase in crime associated with the organized groups. Local law enforcement, with the help of new laws and an active judiciary, has fought to curtail these criminal enterprises and has begun to see success in limiting their reach into society.

Speaking to the Batesville Rotary Club last month, assistant District Attorney Bob Morris outlined the history of gangs in the country and how the most dangerous of those groups have formed sub cells and alliances with local gang members.

Morris told Rotarians that until a new approach was taken about five years ago to fight gang activity and remove the gang leaders from the streets, police were fighting a losing battle. As gangs became more sophisticated and began using the best of electronics to communicate, police had to become tech savvy.

“The Legislature has given us some tools that we are now using to make a real difference in the policing and prosecution of these gangs,” Morris said. “We are now able to use these different tools to climb the ladder and get to the three and four star generals that are the shot callers.”

Without that ability the District Attorney’s office spins its wheels bringing charges and prosecuting juveniles or first-offense low level gang members while the most dangerous criminals aren’t affected.

“When a person makes a phone calls and tells three juveniles to go shoot up a house, those guys are often back on the street very quickly especially if it’s a first offense,” Morris said. “Now if we can find out who made that phone call and any person we can tie into that can be indicted and prosecuted just as if they committed the crime themselves.”

It’s this ability to use cell phone records and gang member mapping in databases that puts prosecutors on an even playing field, Morris said.  Enhanced punishments and broader avenues for prosecution has begun to make a difference. Over the past couple of years in North Mississippi four indictments that included 32 or more people have been successfully brought to trial and convicted, he said.

Crippling the gang from the top down is the key to limiting the scope of the crimes, Morris said. Some cities have even taken steps to sue convicted gang members for money spent on their prosecution and courts have started allowing injunctive relief, including civil penalties and sometimes razing properties known to be used for drug and weapons dealing.

Courts have interpreted laws and reached an agreement with police that make it legal for officers to stop and frisk individuals gathered in groups of two or more at locations previously identified as high-crime areas.

“It’s a very laborious process to gather all the cell phone data and use these other high tech methods to get federal warrants and then take what we have to a judge,” Morris said. “It takes an active judiciary working with the prosecution to get these results and we are fortunate to have that here in our district.”

Morris said Panola County, and Batesville in particular, also has a proactive group of deputies and police officer who enforce the law from a community policing standpoint.

“If you live in Batesville you should shake (police chief) Jimmy McCloud’s hand,” he said. “Because of his commitment to things like Coffee and Conversation and all the other events you have one of the most effective police departments anywhere between here and Chicago.”

“The officers here are at every event and they aren’t there to arrest people. They’re there to shake hands. Batesville does a better job of that than almost any agency in this district.”

Morris said he also believes the Job Corps programs can be used to effectively deter youngsters from gang life. He said statistics show that nationally there is a 44 percent decrease in gang activity and recidivism after first offenses if children are placed in Job Corps. “We’re hoping as things progress in this district we can use them and other pre-trial programs,” he said.

Morris said the DA’s office will continue to use technological advantages and creative measures to gather evidence of gang crimes and present those findings to grand juries and judges for convictions and sentences for the higher echelon of gang memberships.

“As long as the judge understands the warrants we take them, because they are complicated, and as long as the jury can understand the technology we can prosecute these things,” he said. “But we have to overcome those barriers in these kinds of prosecutions.”