West Sacramento Gang Injunction Opponents Take Crusade to the Streets

West Sacramento Gang Injunction Opponents Take Crusade to the Streets
Written for the web by Mark Hedlund, Reporter - News10.net

You can watch the video here.

Community activists are soliciting sworn declarations from West Sacramento residents as a new tactic in their fight against a proposed gang injunction targeting the so-called Broderick Boys.

On Saturday, about ten people armed with clipboards and questionnaires fanned out through West Sacramento neighborhoods, asking people if they felt threatened by alleged gang activity.

"We plan to use these declarations that we get to show the court that this area of West Sacramento is not an urban war zone, as people have been told it is," said Julian Perez of the group Citizens Empowering Citizens.

West Sacramento police, city leaders and Yolo County prosecutors are, for the second time, asking the court to grant the gang injunction against 23 people they identify as validated gang members of the so-called Broderick Boys.
That injunction would put stiff curfews and restrictions on those people, not allowing them to congregate with each other.

After the first injunction was imposed in Februray 2005, there were complaints that police were using it to harass innocent families, particularly Latinos. Last April, an appeals court tossed out the injunction, ruling there was inadequate notice to those alleged gang members.

Now a refined injunction is going through court hearings again.

When the first injunction was in effect, "there were many incidents of harrassment and abuse. And it was basically against people of the latin culture, claims Perez. "If you wore a red hat or drove a red car, you were systematically pulled over. You were asked to get out of your car. You were asked point blank if you were a gang member."

"To me it's not a Broderick Boys thing, not at all. And I'm safe here," said Sylvia Vasquez, a West Sacramento resident for 16 years who was approached about signing a questionnaire. "I used to live over there off of Greenwood. I would leave my car unlocked, my purse in there, nothing ever happened to it. I feel safe."

Activists say they'll be canvassing neighborhoods for the next several days. The next hearing on the proposed injunction is scheduled for late March.