International update: Brazil

Not exactly the Bloods and the Crypts... Police in Brazil arrested six women from the notorious "gang of blondes." Three more arrests are expected soon...

Police in São Paolo arrested three members of the so-call "gang of blondes" over the weekend, with three more arrests expected soon.

The women, described as bilingual and well educated, have been linked with 54 kidnappings in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro since 2008. Police say the women kidnap female shoppers and max out their credit cards, according to a report from Agence France-Press.

From what I'm told, they started out by kidnapping male shoppers. However, the male shoppers were actually thrilled and tried to return to them after being released.

Police bust Brazil's 'gang of blondes' - CBC News

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Loaded gun found at Riverside HS-Again

Authorities found a student in possession of a loaded handgun at Riverside High School on Friday. It was last February when another gun was found at the school.
(Bring Your Gun to School Day at Riverside February 1,2011)

Remember, Riverside was one of the three lower performing schools forced to inexplicably change principals last year, in order to remain eligible for a state grant.
(Williams relents on principals' removal - City of Buffalo - The Buffalo News)

From today's Buffalo News, here's an update on how that great plan is working out...

At Riverside, teachers who requested anonymity said they think discipline in the school has gotten lax in the past year or so.

“All the administrators at our school are not tenured. They are afraid to do anything,” one teacher said. “We have no detention anymore. Really, there are students roaming the halls everywhere. Students are allowed to come late to class. There might be 40 students in the hallway. In my opinion, if you let the little things get out of control, then the big things happen.”

As I said a year ago, Riverside's problems were not caused by the principal or the teachers. Mike Mogavero was a very good principal, in my opinion. People can only do so much with what they have to work with. Did the suits in Albany think a new principal would result in gang affiliated students from broken homes all of a sudden getting accepted into Harvard?

At the end of the day, it starts with responsible families. As a sub, I see it every day from Kindergarten through high school. The students in many of the schools are not taught the value of an education at home and come to school unprepared. Unfortunately, the first time they are faced with any real consequences for their choices is when they are sentenced to prison. It's not the schools causing the problems. It's the parents of many (not all) of these students and the students themselves. You can't force people to value education.

Two students caught with guns in city, rural schools
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Camp Street Gang

Buffalo Police announced the arrest of several members of the East side's Camp Street Gang this morning. They are known for extreme violence and are even feared by other gangs. I applied for membership two years ago, but failed everything except date of birth.

The Camp Street Gang is not to be confused with Hamburg's Camp Rd. Gang, known to create havoc once a year at Denny's and the Erie County Fair...

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Panic at funeral

I drove right by this funeral today on my way to school #32 on Clinton St. It seemed like a peaceful gathering. I had no idea the funeral was for a 17 year old murder victim. In this clip, there are reports of shots fired about a block away. There were several fights both inside and outside of the church. The reverend had to restore order a few times and then ended the service prematurely amid more reports of shots fired...

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International update: Columbia

This happened one time at Reddington's. A 17 year old murder victim in Columbia was dragged from his own wake and carried into a stadium by 200-300 of his friends. How fortunate that his wake coincided with a home game...

Christopher Jacome, a 17-year-old Colombian soccer fan, was gunned down while playing the game. He was a fan of the Cucuta Deportivo Colombian soccer team. After his wake, friends from "Barra del Indio" took the cadaver from the funeral home and paraded it around and then into the stadium in an attempt to pay homage to the slain soccer fan.

Officials say a crowd of 200 to 300 fans stormed into the stadium with the body creating an uncontrollable situation. The boy was a member of 'Barra del Indio,' a particularly aggressive Colombian soccer fan club.

No word yet on whether they charged him the regular admission price. Strange...

Fans Bring Dead Friend's Coffin And Body To Colombian Soccer Match (VIDEO)

www.huffingtonpost.com
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10th Streeters

Several members of the 10th Street gang were arrested today along with members of the 7th Street gang. The two gangs are arch rivals.(When we were kids, we played football and street hockey against other streets but shootings rarely took place after games.)

I feel sad for the young woman in this clip who just wants to live without bullets flying by her child. I never knew La Nova Pizzeria was right in the middle of gang territory. I knew it was a bad neighborhood but not this bad. They probably carry Uzis in the back of the restaurant.

I think the Buffalo Police should pull a "Superintendent Williams" and just rename the streets (Williams is famous for renaming poorly performing schools so they don't lose their funding). Maybe the gang members would all become law abiding citizens and go off to college, if they just changed the name of 10th Street to The 10th Street of Excellence and Higher Achievement...

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Jackson claims charges are retaliation

Some great sound-bytes from community activist Darnell Jackson in this clip. He feels the Buffalo Police are out to get him. He says,"There is a gang here in Buffalo. They wear blue suits. It's not the Crips, it's the cops." It sounds like he rolls with some rough customers. I guess if you're trying to reform gang members, you're not going to be hanging out with choir boys. Some question whether Jackson is still a gang banger himself. I don't know as I never met him. I have a feeling this is not the end of this story...

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Gang thugs

Even the gang members around here are residency violators. Three gang members shouted "Central Park for life" as they beat up one of their rivals. What are they talking about? One lives in Amherst and another lives in Cheektowaga. If it's Central Park for life, then why did you move? And more importantly, why would you want to come back?

Three teen gang members were arrested Wednesday afternoon after a Lasalle Avenue woman and her two teenage nephews were attacked at the University Metro Rail station, transit police said.
Charged with gang assault and disorderly conduct were Daion Jordan, 17, of Flores Court, Cheektowaga; Andre Benefield, 16, of Pheasant Run, Amherst; and Dajore X. Houston, 17, of Minnesota Avenue.
The attackers shouted, “Central Park for life.” Police believe this is a reference to the Central Park Posse gang.

Los Angeles Gang Tours

In what some are labeling "ghettotainment", former gang members are charging people $65 a head to tour some of Los Angeles' worst gang infested neighborhoods. The tourists suffering from "white guilt" have to sign a waiver acknowledging that they could become crime victims themselves by taking part in the tour. All the profits go to some made up non profit agency.

For $70 a person, maybe they'll let you become the victim of a carjacking. Whatever happened to just going to a movie? I wonder if this tour would work on parts of Seneca St? I'm just asking.
For $65, tourists get peek at Los Angeles gangland : 24 Hour Breaking News : The Buffalo News