The Chattanooga Police Department will not immediately enforce a temporary court order that prohibits 31 men accused of being gang members from associating with each other in East Lake Courts.
Although Criminal Court Judge Barry Steelman approved a temporary “gang injunction” last month, authorities still need to train specific officers and develop policies and procedures before moving forward with the legal tool, police spokeswoman Elisa Myzal said Tuesday.
Judge Barry Steelman“There are still a number of things to be done before enforcement can begin,” Myzal wrote in an email. “A requirement of the injunction presented by the District Attorney’s Office is to serve notice to all individuals named in the injunction. That is still a work in progress between [police], the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office and the DA’s office.”
When he unveiled the petition in September, Hamilton County District Attorney Neal Pinkston said the injunction would give police officers another legal tool to discourage violence among routine troublemakers who belong to two street gangs: The Grape Street Crips and the Gangster Disciples. An injunction is a court order that requires an entity to stop doing something, similar to a restraining order or a cease-and-desist letter. In this case, Pinkston named 31 men authorities have been looking into since April 2016. Each can be fined $50 and spend up to 30 days in jail for violating a number of listed activities – including owning graffiti equipment, drinking alcohol, possessing guns and drugs, signaling the arrival of police, or hanging out with other accused gang members – once police start enforcing the injunction.
All Chattanooga officers – about 450 total – will receive training on the gang injunction policies and procedures once they are finalized, Myzal said. In the meantime, the department will begin with officers assigned to the Street Crimes Reponse Team and the Baker South patrol. Another 26 officers who work either full time or part time for the Chattanooga Housing Authority will be involved, too, said Chief Felix Vess. There’s no timeline yet on how long that will take, Myzal said.