Reference no: EM131686719

Question: Should Specific Members of the Gang Be Banned from Attending the Cinco de Mayo Celebration?

FACTS: On June 30, 2009, Saint Paul, Minnesota, initiated two CGI lawsuits against the East Side Boys and the Selby Siders, two local gangs with a long history of violent criminal conduct, including a recent murder and numerous recent confrontations involving gunfire. "As we have clearly stated, criminal gangs are not welcome in our community. The public has a right to be free from criminal gang violence and intimidation, and as the home of some of the most prominent community festivals in the country like Rondo Days, we are doing everything we can to protect our community from gang activity. Saint Paul is a safe city, and these injunctions are an innovative tool to send a clear message to gangs that we will not tolerate any violence in our community," Mayor Chris Coleman said. "These civil injunctions have proven to be worthwhile tools, as they specifically focus on those gangs who have repeatedly demonstrated purpose and action that tears at the safety and fabric of the community events like Rondo," Saint Paul Police Chief John Harrington said. "In addition to the benefits of enforceability, these injunctions speak to Saint Paul's historical standards of community safety." The civil legal actions are intended to help prevent criminal gang activity from occurring during the Rondo Days festival on July 18. [The Rondo Days Festival is an annual celebration to remember the African-American neighborhood of Rondo, which was split by the construction of Interstate 94 in the mid-1960s.]

City Attorney John Choi said the two civil actions are a part of an important law enforcement strategy to proactively disrupt criminal gang activity in Saint Paul's neighborhoods. "We had great public safety results because of the civil gang injunction against the Sureño 13 earlier this year, and we have every expectation that this proactive effort will work again with the Selby Siders and East Side Boys," Choi said. The Civil Gang Injunction Statute (Minn. Stat. §§ 617.91-617.97) authorizes a city attorney, county attorney or the attorney general to commence a civil action against criminal gangs to enjoin criminal gang activity. The civil lawsuit filed by Choi seeks injunctive relief pursuant to the Civil Gang Injunction Statute that was developed by the Community Prosecution Unit of the Saint Paul City Attorney's Office and passed by the Minnesota Legislature in 2007. In May, the Ramsey County District Court issued Minnesota's first civil gang injunction against a criminal gang in City of Saint Paul v. Sureño 13 (Ramsey County District Court Case Number 62-CV-09-3113). The use of civil gang injunctions has been upheld by the California Supreme Court and Appellate Courts in Texas. Among other things, the City of Saint Paul is seeking a court order prohibiting the known leaders of the East Side Boys and Selby Siders from associating with known gang members anywhere near the Rondo Days Festival. "From our city attorney's office to our police department to our Second Shift initiative, much of what we do in Saint Paul is about public safety and improving the lives of our residents," Mayor Coleman said. "The civil lawsuits filed demonstrate the proactive approach Saint Paul is taking to prevent gangs from taking root in Saint Paul.

Questions: 1. Assume you're an aide to the city. Would you recommend that the city go forward with the injunction?

2. Relying on the information in your text, what specifically would you want the mayor, police chief, city attorney, and the public to know about CGIs?