Articles
Violence Growing in White Gangs
Experts: Groups Are Overlooked, But Dangerous
Publication: Chicago Sun-Times
Date: December 16, 1995
Author: LEE BEY
Section: NEWS
Edition: LATE SPORTS FINAL
Page: 12
Word Count: 363
White street gangs are becoming more violent because of an increased drug trade in their neighborhoods, a gang prosecutor said.
"There has been a bit of an increase recently with the white gangs," said Jack Hynes, who heads gang prosecutions for the Cook County state's attorney's office. "They've been starting to step up into violence." The city's white street gangs historically have been viewed as less violent than black or Hispanic gangs, police said. Indeed, they are largely ignored when discussions of urban crime arise.
"Your presumption is wrong if you say white gangs are not violent," said Chicago State University Professor George Knox, an expert on street gangs. Knox said a primer that he has prepared for Chicago schools on street gangs "has a strong component on recognizing various white gangs."
And there are many. White gangs include the Ambrose, the Ashland Vikings, the C-Notes, the Freaks, the Gaylords, the Kenmore Boys, the Insane Popes, the Uptown Rebels and the largest white gang, the Simon City Royals.
The gangs are concentrated on the Northwest and the white Southwest sides of the city, specializing in drug dealing, auto thefts and burglaries, Hynes said.
The Popes break into homes belonging to law enforcement officers and take guns. Members from the gang hit a policewoman's house Thursday and stole two guns. They test-fired the weapons in the suspect's basement.
There are dozens of off-shoots and smaller white gangs, including the Ridgeway Lords - allegedly the intended victims of Thursday's shooting on the Southwest Side - and the Almighty Popes, the alleged gunmen. The Almighty Popes are a faction of the Insane Popes, the city's third-largest white gang.
There are no accurate membership numbers for the white gangs - or the others, either. A gang like the Ridgeway Lords could number 50 or less, Hynes said. The Almighty Popes could number 200, he said