Gang Task Force receives grant; hopes to implement program to
change path of wayward teens
Gilroy – The Gang Task Force is bringing a nationally recognized juvenile intervention program for high risk teens to Gilroy over the summer months. Members called an emergency meeting last week after learning that a federal grant for $98,723 was set aside for the coalition to use for youth services.
And with gang violence on the rise in recent months, Gang Task Force members are hoping to implement Fresh Lifelines for Youth (FLY) soon.
“It certainly shows there’s a need here. We’re doing our part by making arrests, but it would be better if we didn’t have to in the first place,” said Gilroy Police Chief Gregg Giusiana. “As a result we’re hoping we can curb some of the activity that’s been going on.”
In the past two weeks there have been three gang-related shootings and numerous assaults. A drive-by shooting Monday night on East Seventh Street led to the arrest of a 17-year-old Gilroy teen in connection with the incident.
The FLY program seeks to change the life path of at-risk youth by providing positive role models, teaching life skills on how to resist drugs and alcohol, and educating teens about the criminal justice system. Members of the probation department recommend teens, typically first offenders, they believe will be best served by FLY mentors, Giusiana said.
FLY graduates show an increase in school performance, a reduction in drug and alcohol use, and less than 10 percent reoffend. FLY statistics show that 89 percent of kids report they have the basic life skills to say no to crime in the future.
“Hopefully if it works here,” Giusiana said, who serves on the board of directors for the Task Force, “maybe then they can get it in Morgan Hill and make it available throughout South County.”
The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention invited the Gang Task Force to submit an application for the grant in early April – for funding to be used for up to three years starting June 2006.
“It was for us or no one,” Giusiana explained. “The Gang Task Force is not really a service provider, we’re more of a collaborative, so we haven’t really been in the grant writing business. But in this case it was unusual to get a call to get $100,000 into town.”
During the emergency meeting, task force members had to choose between three programs to put the money towards including the Victory Outreach’s Bridge Program and Mexican American Community Services Agency’s Ollin Project. While some members were split, the program was ultimately selected because of its success rate and national acclaim.
“The success rate is the 90th percentile,” President Erick Westphal said. “It’s a pretty powerful program. It’s something new.”
The FLY program is volunteer-based and taught by area law students. There is an element of realism thrown in as students participate in mock arrests and courtroom scenarios. And after the grant runs out, the program will remain in Gilroy.
“This is just a start up for them. They wanted to come down at some point, this is just an opportunity for them to come down sooner,” Westphal explained.
FLY volunteers will reach out to at-risk youth as early as middle school.
And for task force member and South Valley Middle School Principal John Perales, this is good news.
Middle school officials notice warning signs as early as fourth grade that students are at-risk for falling into the gang lifestyle. Truancy, poor grades, drug and alcohol use, as well as problems at home play a part in determining risk factors.
“We have a lot of street lawyers,” Perales said. “The kids think they know, and a lot of the time what they’re thinking is not true.”
He believes the law portion of the program will help teens understand what they’re actually facing when entering a life of crime.
“It’s (a program) to teach and educate them that the police are on their side. They’re here to make sure everyone’s safe,” he said.
Why you should care
The nationally recognized Fresh Lifelines for Youth program will provide mentors and alternatives for at-risk youth in Gilroy, hopefully reducing their involvement in gangs, and drugs and alcohol in the future. Gang Task Force hopes to implement the program over the summer months.
