A decade after Arizona law enforcement agencies led an all-out push to rein in escalating gang activity, street gangs are resurgent across the Phoenix area, and officials say they are more violent and more organized than ever.
The new generation of gangs looks, in many ways, more like the Mafia than the traditional band of thugs hanging out on street corners in colored clothing, posturing for respect and fighting to protect their "hoods."
Across the area, street gangs have branched out of their neighborhoods to commit home invasions, armed robberies, auto thefts and burglaries. They are smuggling humans, laundering money and prostituting women. In some cases, rival gangs are putting aside their differences and working together if it means a quick buck.
And while police say victims are largely associated with criminal activity, even some who are innocent are falling prey.
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"It is, in my opinion, out of control and growing," said state Department of Public Safety Lt. Bruce Campbell. "Law enforcement has not been able to get their hands around it. We are trying."
Police say gang members who were thrown in prison in the '90s with enhanced sentences for operating criminal syndicates now are being released, and there is a simultaneous influx of gang members from California, where a third felony conviction mandates life in prison.
But many law enforcement agencies cut back or eliminated their gang units after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, diverting those detectives to homeland security and leaving gangs virtually unchecked in many cities.
At the same time, the state cut funding for DPS' Gang Intelligence and Team Enforcement Mission (GITEM), essentially disbanding the multi-agency effort as the number of assigned officers dropped from 110 to 25.
"That word gets around real quick in the gang community," said Mesa police Detective Adam Biermann.
As a result, Tempe police Sgt. Chuck Schoville said, gang activity has gotten "noticeably worse" in the past couple years, and that trend is likely to continue.
"What happened? We stopped paying attention to it," Schoville said. "The forest got real thick."
Campbell, of the DPS, said gang members are taking advantage. "If you don't enforce traffic laws, people are going to stop obeying them. It's the same with gangs. They are going to proliferate."
In Phoenix last year, gang crimes increased about 24 percent from 2004. Glendale, which saw a drastic drop in gang crimes in 2003, also is seeing its numbers creep back up, jumping 32 percent last year.
But police say numbers alone don't adequately tell the story. Phoenix detectives estimate about 80 percent of violent crimes are related to human- or drug-smuggling or gang activity.
"It's business. It's going out there to make money," said Phoenix police Sgt. P.J. Ferrero. "Before, gangs were about neighborhoods and reputation and respect. There's no money in that."
