Gang activity declines amid extra patrols in Federal Way

Published 2:57 pm Thursday, July 16, 2009

Federal Way police continue to focus their efforts on decreasing gang and youth violence.

The gang unit’s ongoing efforts, extra patrols in parks and a strong graffiti abatement program have all been successful. Police created a gang unit in September, following an up-cropping of gang graffiti and gang-related shootings in 2008.

Police credit the unit with the decrease seen this year, compared to last, in Federal Way’s youth violence and homicides.

“Some of it is clearly some luck, but the steps we’ve taken have reversed the trend,” interim police chief Andy Hwang said.

Last year, a shooting occurred at Lakota Middle school, where a gang member retaliated against a member of another gang. Months later, a shooting took place at Alderdale Park, where members of the same gang got into a dispute over a drug deal. Youths were killed in both incidents. No gang-related deaths have occurred in Federal Way this year, Hwang said.

Dedicated officers with Federal Way’s gang unit regularly communicate with neighboring municipalities and share information with other King County law enforcement agencies. Data obtained this way helped Federal Way officers identify suspects in both of last year’s gang-related shootings, Hwang said.

Sixteen known gangs are active in the region, Hwang said. Law enforcement is aware of an estimated 9,900 gang members in King County, he said. Of those, roughly 4,300 reside in Seattle, police spokeswoman Cathy Schrock said.

“There’s clearly an increase in gang violence in this region and the nation,” Hwang said.

Though Seattle makes headlines often for its gang activity, the issue is one that crosses city and county boundaries. Gangs are mobile, Hwang said. Members of any one affiliation reside in multiple cities, he said.

“Today, there is no community that is immune to gangs,” Hwang said. “It’s not just a big city thing.”

There are no known gangs that call Federal Way home, Hwang said, but there are gang members living in the city limits.

“We’re doing everything possible to identify a problem and go after it,” he said.

The police department’s gang unit visits areas known for gang activity. The officers watch for indicators that someone may be affiliated with a gang, Lt. Casey Jones said when talking about the unit last fall. The Federal Way Transit Center, South 288th Street, Military Road and all along Pacific Highway South are locations of interest, he said at that time.

Locations such as Steel Lake Park, 2410 S. 312th St., were appealing for gang members in the past. The expansive park was patrolled by police periodically. Police increased their presence in the park this year. Gang activity and youth violence have dropped there, Hwang said. No concerning incidents have taken place in 2009, he said.

Criminals know police cruise the area often, and conducting illegal activity in the park poses a higher risk, he said. Families are also aware of the increased police presence and feel safer there, Hwang said.

The police department’s school resource officers (SROs) also play a role in wiping out youth violence. Many of the department’s units, including the SROs, communicate and share information about possible gang activity.

The city’s ongoing graffiti abatement efforts, which picked up speed in 2007, are also credited with decreasing youth and gang violence in Federal Way, Hwang said. The program has come a long way.

“That’s a huge success in our community,” he said.

In its beginning, paint was used to cover graffiti. At times, the paint color did not match that of the original surface, and painting over the tagging looked nearly as bad as the graffiti itself, he said. A machine similar to a pressure-washer now removes graffiti, leaving a clean, relatively undamaged surface.