More Than A Thousand Gang Members Live in Lake County: Sheriff's Office

More than 1,100 “documented gang members” reside in Lake County, and the Sheriff’s Office there is organizing to combat the growing problem.

A Lake County Gang Task Force has been formed as a collaboration between more than 30 law enforcement agencies - according to a Lake County News-Sun report.

Undersheriff Ray Rose says meetings have already taken place to discuss the establishment of a countywide computer database of known gang members.

“Law enforcement countywide recognizes that there’s a problem with these gangs,” said Rose.

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What’s being classified as an “increased migration of gang members” into Lake County is blamed mostly on the problem that’s always existed in the city of Chicago. A sheriff’s office statement on Wednesday indicated 86 percent of gang members in Lake County haif from Chicago-based gangs.

Others apparently come from Milwaukee, according to Rose.

“We’re right between Chicago and Milwaukee and right off the interstate, so we get a lot of (gang) migration coming up this way from Chicago,” he said.

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The multi-jurisdictional task force plans to offer gang-recognition training and the use of a shared records-management system.

more via the Lake County News-Sun