Police gang investigations jump 83 percent since '01

Darrent Williams case shines light on 'domestic terrorism'

Daniel J. Chacon and Bianca Prieto, Rocky Mountain News

Published January 18, 2007 at midnight

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The number of cases investigated by the Denver police gang unit has increased 83 percent since 2001.

From silencing witnesses to wounding innocent bystanders in broad daylight, crimes committed by gangs have left an indelible mark on Denver and its residents.

"I wish that all this violence could just stop because it almost killed me and my little sister," said Kenia Venzor, a 14-year-old who was shot along with her sister while sleeping in their west Denver home in 2005.

The girls' three attackers, all suspected gang members, have been sentenced to various prison terms, ranging from 10 years to 180 years.

Police say they are no longer dealing with stereotypical gang members standing on street corners flying colors and protecting their turf.

Now it's about money and drugs.

The police department's gang unit investigated 507 offenses last year, up from 277 in 2001.

While the figures don't include homicides, Chief Gerry Whitman said about one-third of the city's 58 homicides last year were tied to gangs.

In Denver, attention to gangs has been heightened in the wake of the drive-by shooting death of Broncos player Darrent Williams and the suspected gang connection.

Undeniable problem

Police, who released the statistics Wednesday under the Colorado Open Records Act, emphasized that not all of the cases investigated by the gang unit were gang-related.

For example, all gun cases in Denver are investigated by the gang unit, and drug cases that the unit initiates are not always tied to gangs. The department could not separate the two in its data.

Still, Whitman acknowledged that Denver has a "considerable" gang problem.

"There's undeniably an organized crime gang problem in all major cities," the chief said. "If you read the literature, you see it going into small and mid-sized cities, too."

Whitman declined to talk about the Williams investigation, which remains unsolved, except to say that police are making progress. An SUV tied to the case is registered to a known gang leader.

While a $100,000 reward offered by the Broncos has resulted in additional tips, "I think there are more people who have more information that need to bring it forward," Whitman said.

"They have an obligation to bring that information forward so we can solve this case for the victim's family's sake," he added.

41 officers assigned to gangs

Whitman said he has joined other police chiefs to draw the federal government's attention to the gang problem as "a form of domestic terrorism, we're so concerned with it."

The chief declined to say how many gangs or gang members there are in Denver, saying it's "criminal intelligence" protected by law.

However, a federal law enforcement source said there are "dozens of types" of gangs operating in metro Denver, from the more commonly known Crips and Bloods to lesser known groups like the Haitian Boys and Sureños.

According to Denver police statistics from 2003, the latest available, there were 220 gangs in Denver with 14,000 members - twice as many as estimated a decade earlier for the entire metro area.

In 1993, Denver was gripped by escalating gang violence during the so-called Summer of Violence, a period marked by a series of gang-related shootings, many claiming the lives of innocent victims.

Recent killings in Denver at the hands of gangs have evoked memories of that bloody summer.

Mayor John Hickenlooper said the city takes all forms of crime "very seriously."

"Gang activity is no exception," Hickenlooper said in a statement.

"That said, serious crime fell 8.8 percent in 2006, and I credit that drop in part to our first-rate police department gang unit," the mayor said.

"They are aggressive in their efforts to investigate and control this activity, and Denver devotes considerable resources to eliminating this problem."

Other city officials say the presence of gangs appears to be up.

"I don't know how gang activity is officially measured, but if it is organized anti-social behavior by groups of people, then it feels to me that it is on the upswing," Denver City Councilwoman Rosemary Rodriguez said.

"Several recent homicides and shootings seem to be gang-related," Rodriguez added.

With 41 sworn officers assigned to the gang unit, a staffing level that has remained relatively consistent in recent years, Whitman said the police department has "considerable resources" fighting gangs.

Still, challenges remain.

"The federal emphasis has shifted away from - considerably away from - local problems to international terrorism issues, and I think rightfully so, but we lose more lives in this country to violent crime and gang crime than we have to date on domestic or international terrorism," Whitman said.

"They're all important issues, but the one we deal with from day-to-day is violent crime generated from typically our own population and our citizens," he said.

"And a lot of it is gang crime."

chacond@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5099

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