Two gang prevention events scheduled Saturday in Chattanooga

photo Chattanooga minister Frank Jones

AT A GLANCEIntervention Summit: State Rep. Tommie Brown, D-Chattanooga, will host the 28th Legislative District Extraordinary Session and Gang Intervention Summit at noon Saturday at the Howard School of Academics and Technology. A press conference is scheduled at 11:30 a.m.Boys to Men: Second Missionary Baptist Church will host its second Boys to Men Retreat from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at the church, 2305 E. Third St.

Being in gangs and giving the perception of being a threat can get you killed, say a group of men at Second Missionary Baptist Church.

The men will host their second Boys to Men Retreat Saturday at the church to deliver those messages.

Thirteen-year old Kadarius Scott said he will attend to learn about stopping violence.

"Human beings killing each other is not right," said Kadarius. "I want to learn how to stop the madness in Chattanooga and in other areas. I care because it may be me next time getting shot."

At the church, men will talk with younger males about the fatal shooting of Florida teen Trayvon Martin and discuss the incidents leading to his death. They will also talk about the gang violence in Chattanooga that led to the shooting of 13-year-old Keoshia Ford, who is in Erlanger hospital in a coma after suffering gunshot wounds to her head.

"We want to make the young men aware of some of the issues that get them in trouble and how people perceive them," said Frank Jones, retired principal of Brainerd High School and coordinator for the church's retreat. "We want to make them become conscious of it."

The retreat is one of two gang-prevention events scheduled Saturday in Chattanooga.

At Howard School of Academics and Technology, state Rep. Tommie Brown, D-Chattanooga, will host the 28th Legislative District Extraordinary Session and Gang Intervention Summit. Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Director Mark Gwyn will speak about gang violence during an 11:30 a.m. news conference at the school .

Brown said she would also answer questions and encouraged everyone, especially parents and pastors, to attend and ask questions.

She said the meeting is called an "extraordinary session" because it will include issues such as gang violence that are expected to continue after the current Tennessee Legislature session has ended. She's hosting the session because she wants to make sure citizens understand the impact of gang laws, Brown said.

"How do you define gangs?" asked Brown. "I don't think we're allocating all of this money for only the Crips and Bloods."

A bill currently being discussed in the Legislature would place criminal gang offenses within the state's existing Racketeer-Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO, where convictions would be class B felonies with sentences ranging from at least 12 to 20 years.

A second bill would enhance penalties for anyone actively participating in any gang who knows members engage in a pattern of criminal gang activity and willfully promote any felonious criminal conduct.

"When we say we need laws to deal with gangs, we had better be very clear about how we define gangs," Brown said. "You can't ask me to vote for it and then pick up the phone and tell me to stop it."

Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield and his staff are lobbying hard for these laws, she said.

Boyd Patterson, coordinator of the city's anti-gang effort, said he is among those pushing for tougher gang laws.

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