Council OKs funds to battle gang violence

YAKIMA -- Responding to a rash of gang shootings, the Yakima City Council beefed up the city's thin blue line Friday -- temporarily.

Long-term strategies will have to wait.

The City Council approved an emergency infusion of $80,000 to pay for 30 days of overtime for 10 police officers. The suppression effort is designed to quell a wave of open gang warfare that has wounded at least 18 people since May, including several innocent victims who have been struck by stray gunfire.

Extra patrols are expected to begin immediately, complementing an effort launched earlier this week when six detectives were temporarily reassigned to patrol duty.

During a standing-room-only special meeting at City Hall, police Chief Sam Granato said long-term strategies were imperative. But he cautioned that statistically, violent crime is actually down in Yakima.

Crime data shows that gang violence peaked long ago in Yakima. In the first six months of 1994 there were 211 aggravated assaults, he said. Over the same period this year there were 88.

In fact, there were 92 aggravated assaults over the same period in 2008 and 109 in 2007, according to Granato's data.

Last year, at least five other big cities in Washington -- Tacoma, Spokane, Kent, Seattle and Everett -- had a higher rate of violent crime than Yakima.

Tacoma's worst-in-the-state violent crime rate of 9.9 incidents per capita was almost double Yakima's rate of 5.1 incidents.

"I don't think things are out of control," Granato said, adding, "It's spiked. We are prepared to deal with it."

Added Mayor Dave Edler, "We need to recognize there is significant progress being made."

Friday's meeting was prompted by council member Sonia Rodriguez's request earlier in the week for the council to free up emergency funds for more police patrols.

Those in attendance included all three members of Yakima's legislative team, state Sen. Curtis King and Reps. Charles Ross and Norm Johnson. Roughly 50 people overflowed City Hall's cramped council chambers.

Ross, R-Naches, told the council that he was prepared to win back aspects of his 2008 gang bill that were gutted by west-side legislators, including a provision allowing cities to obtain civil injunctions against gang members. Such court orders -- which, for example, bar known gang members from specific neighborhoods under threat of arrest -- are a common anti-gang tactic in California.

"If you're ready, I'm ready," Ross said, although he warned the council that for legislation to pass in next year's session it would almost certainly have to include a provision guaranteeing gang members the right to legal counsel at public expense.

Granato told the council he firmly supported civil injunctions.

"Where they've been utilized, they've been very effective," he said.

On a related note, Johnson, R-Yakima, said he would ask legislative counsel in Olympia to research whether homes involving gang activity could be shut down in a civil process similar what can be done under drug-house ordinances.

Yakima County Prosecutor Jim Hagarty, meanwhile, announced the formation of a new unit headed by deputy prosecutor Troy Clements that will focus solely on gang crimes.

Granato told the council the $80,000 emergency appropriation would pay for overtime to assign off-duty officers and detectives to target select neighborhoods.

However, there was wide agreement at the meeting that the city must find ways to prevent youngsters from joining gangs or to get them out of the destructive lifestyle.

Ramping up law enforcement "is the short-term stuff, the most obvious, easiest thing we can do," said Granato, noting there are no youth baseball teams on the eastside of town and imploring the council to find ways to steer youngsters toward "joining a team other than a gang."

Council members spoke of the need for social programs, including perhaps a second Police Athletic League in north Yakima.

Members of the audience also had plenty to say. Real estate agent Nestor Hernandez said gangs intimidate entire neighborhoods.

"They say, 'The cops might get me, but my buddies will get you,' " Hernandez related, adding, "We need some prevention and more police officers."

Nick Hughes, a retired hops buyer, complained that illegal immigration is a "significant contributor" to the rise of gangs. Others complained of Yakima being a "sanctuary city" and that parental negligence is the root cause.

Still others questioned how bad the problem really is.

Echoing Granato's assertion that gang crime is nowhere near as bad as it was in the early 1990s, former radio reporter Mike Bastinelli complained that gang crime is a fact of life in every large American city and that Yakima is little different than many cities.

"Yes, we have a problem," said Bastinelli, who recently opened a restaurant downtown. "It's not unprecedented. We're not alone in this. Yakima is a relatively safe community."

After the meeting adjourned, Granato said in an interview his comments that gang crime has spiked this summer was a partial nod to sensitivities in the wake of stray gunfire that has wounded several innocent bystanders.

"It's a spike in media coverage as much as anything," he said.

* Chris Bristol can be reached at 509-577-7748 or cbristol@yakimaherald.com.