Montgomery County shares borders with the District of Columbia and Prince George’s, Frederick, and Howard counties in Maryland. According to the 2000 census, the population is approximately 873,000. While the County is one of the wealthiest in the State, it also had more than 47,000 residents living below the federal (same issue as state) poverty line in 2000. It is the most populous and ethnically diverse jurisdiction in the State of Maryland. The pockets of poverty and close proximity to other highly populated areas have created the conditions for a major gang problem—a problem it shares with neighboring Prince George’s County.

In February 2004, Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan and Prince George’s County Executive Jack B. Johnson established the Joint Gang Prevention Task Force. The Task Force issued its report and recommendations in September 2004. A copy of the report is available at copy of report . Both counties are working to develop programs to prevent at-risk youth from joining gangs and intervention strategies for youth already in gangs. Police departments in both jurisdictions are actively developing strategies to combat gang development and activities.

Montgomery County has identified approximately 45 major gangs. These gangs are identified as most responsible for (1) recent criminal activity, (2) expanding membership, and (3) posing an increasing threat to their community in Montgomery County. The total gang membership is estimated at 1000. This is an estimate since data about gangs is always hard to capture and it is difficult to identify all active members. Major gangs are present in most areas of the county but are concentrated in Silver Spring, Wheaton, Gaithersburg, and Germantown. The 2006 Montgomery County Department of Police annual report listed these gangs in its report. A copy of the report is available click here

In general, the Latino gangs are responsible for vandalism—tagging or graffiti; theft from autos; to a more limited extent, auto theft; and, most significantly, weapons violations and assaults. Assaults are often a product of gang rivalry or punishment within a gang. The majority are simple assaults designed to hurt, but not kill, the victim. Aggravated assaults are designed to seriously harm or kill the victim, and while these are less common, they are of obvious concern. Latino gangs are only occasionally involved in drug trafficking though drugs are purchased and used recreationally.

MS-13 has the most aggressive recruiting techniques. They are known to use tactics such as school skip parties to actively recruit new members. It is also a gang that members find the most difficult to leave. Typically, one can leave MS-13 only after having a baby and starting a family. MS-13 is the only gang active in Montgomery County with extensive membership throughout the U.S. and with well-defined identifiers of tattoos, graffiti, colors, and hand signs. For more information, see the description of MS-13. While there is evidence of MS-13 members from Los Angeles and northern Virginia encouraging recruitment, MS-13 activity and crime is dominantly local. MS-13 has various localized cliques and, while there are meetings between the cliques, there is little evidence of organized criminal activity. MS-13 has a clear leadership, but loose organizational control in regard to crime. Members must pay dues, which are used to fund weapons, skip parties, and recreational drugs—especially powdered cocaine.

Rival Latino gangs to MS-13 include Street Thug Criminals (STC), which use red and black as their colors and use STC on tattoos and graffiti. The other rival Vatos Locos (VL) uses the colors black and grey and use VL on tattoos and graffiti.

African American gangs are more likely to be involved in localized street level drug trafficking and opportunistic street robberies. These gangs are likely to have clear geographic boundaries, such as an apartment complex or housing area. Since these are local gangs, there is little information about unique identifiers. Membership and leadership in these gangs tends to be fluid. The gangs range in size from 5 to 50 members.

Montgomery County has set up a referral line -- 240-777-1245 -- to help parents and children looking for ways to keep young people away from gangs. The Information and Referral line, staffed by information specialists Mondays through Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., offers assistance in multiple languages, including Spanish.