ACLU: Gang Crackdown Violating Their Civil Rights

ACLU: Gang Crackdown Violating Their Civil Rights

The ACLU has entered the fray to fight the city’s unprecedented legal action to ban a notorious San Francisco gang from hanging out on its turf.

San Francisco is desperate to stop gang violence. We’ve told you about their effort to target one gang on its turf in Bayview-Hunters Point, but the ACLU doesn’t like it.

For the first time in San Francisco, the city is asking a judge to issue an injunction against a suspected gang called the Oakdale mob. The ACLU is not challenging the merits of that gang injunction, what it’s saying is the city hasn’t given the Oakdale mob enough notice and that violates their constitutional rights.

Is it really surprising that the ACLU would fight a measure aimed at reducing violence in the community? What are they trying to say here? Criminals have a “constitutional right” to get due notice of efforts to stop them from commiting crimes? Common sense is something the ACLU have far too little of. I don’t think the ACLU will have much success in this case. The gang was notified beyond the judge’s requirement and the Supreme Court has already stated that civil rights of criminals do not outweigh the same rights of law abiding citizens. The ACLU says that case was ruled on a narrow basis, but the statement is clear and broad.

The lawsuit asks the court to prohibit gang members from hanging out on the streets of their turf — a four block area in the Bayview.

The ACLU is now stepping in asking the judge to stop the proposed gang injunction.

Michael Risher, ACLU lawyer: “In many cities they’re used to circumvent the protections that our constitution and statutes in California provide to people who are accused of crimes.”

The ACLU says this injunction would be illegal because the city attorney notified only three of the 22 identified gang members that he was suing the Oakdale mob.

Michael Risher, ACLU lawyer: “They haven’t done reasonable things they could do like taking steps like sending people a letter, posting signs about the injunction.”

The city attorney’s office says the judge’s order only required that two gang members be notified.

Machaela Hoctor, Deputy City Attorney: “We took that order and actually expanded upon it and served three gang members with the notice. We’ve more than fulfilled that requirement.”

As for the ACLU’s constitutional concerns, the lawsuit cites the California Supreme Court’s previous ruling upholding gang injunctions.

Machaela Hoctor, Deputy City Attorney: “The Supreme Court said the civil rights — the First Amendment Association rights — of known criminal street gang members do not outweigh those same rights of law abiding citizens in this community.”