Gov. Unveils New Plan To Protect Kids From MS-13 'Pipeline'

As deadly MS-13 gang-related crimes continue to instill fear and dread in local communities, New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo has a new plan to reach youth before they get caught up in the MS-13 "pipeline" and a lifetime of brutal crime and despair.

Cuomo's proposal is part of his 2018 State of the State agenda, and involves a comprehensive strategy to engage at-risk youth in social and educational programs to keep them out of the tentacles of MS-13.

Earlier this year, Cuomo launched an aggressive campaign to crack down on the violent gang MS-13 on Long Island through targeted community engagement and with the help of an additional infusion of law enforcement officials.

MS-13, which was formed in Los Angeles in the 1980s by immigrants fleeing El Salvador's civil war, is known for its brutal violence, including machete attacks and home invasions.

In April, days after the gruesome discovery of four bodies in Central Islip on Long Island — the four young men are believed to have been victims of the deadly MS-13 street gang — the spotlight has intensified on Suffolk County as lawmakers, educators and a horrified public try to shine a light on MS-13 and seek answers on how to stem the tide of escalating violence.

The vicious murders have shocked a nation, with President Donald Trump vowing to crack down on the violence and blaming former President Barack Obama in a tweet for failed policies that have allowed gang members to cross the border at alarming rates.

Outrage over the senseless killings continues to escalate: Most recently this week, according to Newsday, a $110 million lawsuit has been filed by Evelyn Rodriguez, mother of victim Kayla Cuevas, against the Brentwood School District, alleging district officials ignored warnings that MS-13 members were threatening 16-year-old Kayla, who, along with 15-year-old Nisa Mickens, was brutally killed in 2016.

"MS-13 and the senseless violence it trades in have made New York communities fearful and recruited too many youth to a dead end path of violence and crime and we refuse to let this continue," Cuomo said. "The key to our comprehensive plan to change that is to target gang activity by attacking the root cause — youth recruitment — through programs and outreach to protect vulnerable students from being preyed on, and stop the scourge of MS-13 once and for all."

Cuomo's proposed multi-pronged approach in New York State will mean the implement a comprehensive strategy to provide at-risk youth in Suffolk County with greater access to social programs and alternatives to gang activity, a release from the governor's office said.

According to the National Institute of Justice, the vast majority of gang members join between the ages of 11 and 15, the release explained.

A study in Fairfax, Virginia showed when the state implemented a strategy focusing on after-school prevention, dangerous gang activity saw a decline of 39%.

Also, a study of after-school programs in 12 high-risk California communities found that, among participating youth, vandalism and stealing dropped by two-thirds, violent acts and carrying a concealed weapon fell by more than half, and arrests were cut in half.

School discipline, detention, suspensions and expulsions also dropped by a third, according to Cuomo's release.

Points of the new program include:

• Expanding afterschool programs in at-risk areas. Cuomo has suggested investing $2 million to extend the Empire State After School Program to schools and nonprofit organizations located in at-risk areas on Long Island identified by the State Office of Children and Family Services, Division of Criminal Justice Services, Division of State Police, County Executive, and local law enforcement. The goal is to keep kids engaged, whether through sports, music and other programs after school, to give them an options to gangs that prey on kids who have no outlet.
• Expanding job and vocational training opportunities for at-risk young people. Cuomo has pitched a special $5 million program within the state's New York Youth Jobs voucher program in order to provide individualized job training to young people at risk and ripe for gang recruitment. The employment and training program will also provide tax incentives to companies that provide job opportunities for at-risk youth, Cuomo said.
• Providing gang prevention education programming to at-risk students. Cuomo has additionally proposed a $1.5 million investment across 3 years in locally run programs targeted at middle and high school students focused on early intervention and violence prevention.
• Expanding comprehensive support services for at-risk young people, especially immigrant children. MS-13 is "infamous" for its efforts targeting vulnerable young people, especially immigrant youth without strong family ties and social support, Cuomo said. To that end, and to provide immigrant youth with the resources they need to succeed, Cuomo has suggested investing $3 million over 3 years to support comprehensive case management for at risk young people, with a focus on unaccompanied children entering the United States. Components of the program will include medical and mental health support, addiction treatment, trauma and family counseling, language training, and other community support services.
• Deploying a new Community Assistance Team. The Governor will deploy a Community Assistance team composed of six State Troopers, 3 investigators, 1 senior investigator and 1 supervisor. The team will partner with local law enforcement and use intelligence derived from the computer aided dispatching program, the New York State Intelligence Center, and regional crime analysis centers to identify gang activity hot-spots or respond to requests for increased service and help.

Civil rights advocates respond

After Cuomo's announcement, immigrants and civil rights advocates spoke out.

Walter Barrientos, Long Island Organizing Director of Make the Road New York, issued a statement on behalf of the organization’s more than 22,000 immigrant members.

“We applaud the Governor for proposing to invest in services and after-school and job training programs for youth in these communities," he said. "This is a step in the right direction for the Governor that shows he is listening to our communities, who have been saying throughout this year that the current situation reflects the dire under-investment in our schools and in opportunities for youth. We hope that this funding is approved as expeditiously as possible.

He added that the hope was that resources should be focused on Brentwood, Central Islip, and "other directly affected, low-income communities of color. And, while this investment would be helpful, we know that more funding is needed for programs like these in our communities. We strongly urge that a priority for funding be to engage with, and support, organizations based in these communities who have expertise working with immigrant youth and families. Providing resources to these organizations will be critical for developing culturally appropriate strategies to make these initiatives more successful and connect these families with other services and resources that can help them thrive," he said.

And, Barrientos added, the investment must come as "part of a broader effort to address the gross inequities facing our school system. School districts like Brentwood and Central Islip need a firm commitment from the Governor to fully fund public schools by finally meeting the state’s full financial responsibility as set out by the Campaign for Fiscal Equity decision."

Barrientos also said Cuomo should remove troopers from schools altogether and ensure that the personal information of the youth involved in the program will remain protected.

Donna Lieberman, executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, added, “We are pleased that the state is taking a more holistic approach towards addressing gang violence and supporting Long Island communities by focusing on expanding social services and after-school activities for youth, instead of relying solely on punitive law enforcement responses to gang activity. Providing youth with improved educational and social opportunities, rather than targeting students for suspension and deportation, is the best way to ensure public safety."

And, she said, it's critical that the state assure it won't engage in racial profiling or in sharing information with immigration authorities.

"We have seen how collaboration between the Suffolk County Police Department, school resource officers, and federal immigration authorities has created a school-to-deportation pipeline with devastating effects for families. Several Long Island teenagers have been spuriously labeled as gang members based on highly questionable criteria, such as the clothes they wear or who they play soccer with, leading to suspensions from school and, in some cases, detention by ICE," she said.

Enhancing efforts to stem the tide of brutal violence

In April, the Cuomo directed New York State Police to deploy resources on Long Island to help combat MS-13, including 25 troopers to conduct high visibility patrols in Brentwood and Central Islip, as well as undercover operations specifically targeting and saturating neighborhoods known to have high levels of gang activity.

In addition, NYS Police also provided 6 new investigators to the FBI-led Long Island Gang Task Force.

Cuomo also announced the deployment of a new gang violence prevention unit, comprised of 10 state troopers, formed to detect early warning signs of gang activity and coordinate with the Suffolk County Police Department on an "Educate the Educators" program.

Efforts from across the board have heated up after the spike in gang activity on Long Island.

In July, President Donald Trump spoke in Brentwood about the insidious MS-13 gang that's been terrorizing local communities across Long Island in the county.

And in his speech, he promised to rid the gang-ravaged communities of Long Island of the "animals" on their streets.

The event began with remarks from Tom Homan, Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who vowed to MS-13, "We will target all of you."

"Together we're going to restore safety to our streets and peace to our communities. We're going to destroy the vile criminal cartel MS-13," Trump said.

MS-13, Trump said, are brutally violent. "They don't like shooting people because it's too quick, it's too fast," he said. Instead, they "knife them, cut them, let them die slowly because it's more painful. These guys are animals."

Trump thanked Homan, a "tough cookie." When someone told him Homan looked "mean", Trump said, "That's exactly what I was looking for."

RELATED:

• Trump Endorses Police Brutality During MS-13 Talk On Long Island
• Trump On Long Island Brings Out Supporters, Protesters Alike [Photos, Video]
• Watch Trump's Full Speech/Read The Transcript

Of border stats, Trump said numbers are down 78 percent.

"We've nipped it in the bud. Ms-13 has shed gruesome bloodshed throughout the United States. We've gotten some out of here and there rest will be out of here quickly."

Lax border control, "weak political leadership" and police who were unable to do their jobs because of a "pathetic mayor" have sent drugs and violence pouring over the border, Trump said.

"From now on, we're going to enforce our laws, protect our borders and support our police like our police have never been supported before," Trump said.

Long Island has been hit hard, with 17 "beautiful young lives" murdered since Jan. 16 on Long Island alone, he said.

"They butchered those little girls. They kidnap. They extort. They rape and they rob. They prey on children. They shouldn't be here," Trump said.

MS-13 beats with victims with clubs, slashes them with knives and machetes, he said.

"They're animals"

"They have transformed peaceful parks and beautiful, quiet neighborhoods into blood-stained killing fields. They're animals. . . We will restore law and order on Long Island," Trump said. "We will bring justice back to the United States."

Trump said he had a message for every gang member and criminal alien: "We will find you. We will arrest you. We will jail you. And we will deport you."

He lauded ICE officers, who recently conducted the largest crackdown of criminal gangs in U.S. history, with 1,400 suspects apprehended, more than 200 illegal firearms seized, and nearly 600 lbs. of narcotics uncovered.

The president's visit came after a large contingent of elected officials have vowed to fight back against the insidious street gang.

"MS-13 is going to be gone from our streets very soon, believe me," Trump said in May.

MS-13 coverage on Patch:

• MS-13: An Inside Look At The Brutal Gang And Its Insidious Spread On Long Island
• Crackdown Nets 39 MS-13 Arrests In 30 Days
• AG Jeff Sessions Warns Deadly MS-13: 'We Are Targeting You'
• 3 MS-13 Gang Members Reportedly Charged In Brutal Quadruple Homicide In Central Islip
• Feds ID Alleged MS-13 Gang Members Charged In Dozen Long Island Murders
• Guardian Angels Founder Curtis Sliwa Offers Plan To Rein In MS-13
• War Against MS-13 Rages On, Police Chief Discusses Concerns
• Watch Live: Suffolk Police Commissioner Tim Sini Testifying Before Congress On Deadly MS-13 Gang
• 'We Are At War:' Dozens Of MS-13 Gang Members Arrested, Indicted

Patch courtesy photo.