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Acknowledgments Y PERSONAL AN D PROFESSIONA L understandin g o f gangs ha s been influence d b y man y people . M y brillian t an d belove d so n Mitch, a Lo s Angele s Count y probatio n officer , supporte d m e throughou t the travail s o f researchin g an d writin g thi s book , an d pointe d m e i n man y useful direction s fo r th e acquisitio n o f data. I am deepl y gratefu l t o m y dea r friends Norma n Herman , Be n Krentzman , an d Vinc e Jeffries , wh o listene d with a feigne d attentivenes s tha t ofte n bordere d o n sincerit y t o al l o f th e good an d ba d concept s o n gang s tha t I bounce d of f o f the m ove r th e pas t several years , an d o n man y occasion s the y contribute d t o m y knowledg e o n the subject . The L.A . Count y Probatio n Departmen t wa s a vital sourc e o f data fo r m y book. Barr y Nidorf , Chie f Probatio n Officer , pave d th e wa y for man y o f m y interviews, and als o provided m e wit h a n insightfu l analysi s o f the probatio n department's methodolog y fo r preventing , treating , an d controllin g gangs . Two probatio n officers , Ji m Gallipeau , a thirty-year-veteran o f the gan g war s in Sout h Centra l L.A . an d Bra d Carson , whos e knowledg e i s base d o n hi s gang prevention effort s i n Venice, helped m e considerabl y i n developin g m y overall perspectiv e o n gangs . I a m als o gratefu l t o Ke n Bel l o f th e Lo s Angeles Count y distric t attorney's offic e an d Pete r Shuta n o f the Lo s Angele s vii Q| viii / Acknowledgments city attorney' s offic e fo r providin g m e wit h thei r valuable insight s int o th e L.A. gang problem. My dea r friend s an d colleague s i n th e Amit y Therapeuti c Communit y provided m e wit h a considerabl e amoun t o f dat a o n gang s i n a variety of ways. The suppor t o f Amity's directors , Betty Fleishman , Nay a Arbiter, an d Rod Mullen , facilitate d m y entry int o tw o of Amity's landmar k priso n pro grams — the Californi a Departmen t o f Correction's Amity Right Turn Proj ect in the R . J. Donavan Sa n Dieg o Prison an d th e short-lived, bu t innova tive , therapeuti c communit y projec t i n th e Beaumon t Texa s Prison . Man y Amity people helped m e with m y book personally and professionally . Nota ble i n thi s positiv e gan g o f peopl e wa s Elain e Abraham , Sheil a Giddings , Fred Tent, Erni e Logan , Rache l Curtis , and Raymon d Adame. Two special contributors to this project were two former L.A. Crips, my good friends Alex Pipkin and Demitrius McGee. My dear friend an d colleague Zev Putterman, one o f th e mos t brillian t an d intelligen t ex-junkie s o n th e planet , als o contributed enormousl y t o m y viewpoin t o n severa l aspect s o f th e gan g problem. Over the past forty-five years, several hundred active and former gangsters, in an d ou t o f prison , provide d valuabl e dat a fo r th e book . Th e platitude , "without their help, this book would no t have been written " is literally true. I am mos t grateful fo r their cooperation i n individual an d group interviews , and thei r response s t o questionnaires. Len a Lindse y an d Jak e Smotherma n assisted me in the administration o f the questionnaires. My colleague s a t Texas A & M Universit...

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