Las Vegas Metro Holds Gang Crimes Informational Summit
Yesterday evening the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s Enterprise Area Command hosted the “Our Children and Gangs Information Summit” at the Desert Breeze Community Center. The purpose of this summit was to inform the general public about the reality of gang activity in the state and Nevada gang crime laws.
Specifically, the summit covered the following topics: reporting gang activity, how gang members recruit new members, why youth are attracted to gangs, and signs that someone is becoming involved in a gang. Metro’s Gang Unit also discussed community based anti-gang strategies and the consequences for breaking Nevada gang crime laws.
Nevada gang crime laws (codified in NRS 193.169) allow judges to increase the sentence of someone convicted of a felony committed in affiliation with a gang by one to twenty years. This enhancement may not be greater than the underlying sentence, but it will run consecutively with it. In determining the length of the enhancement, the judge may consider the defendant’s criminal history, the impact of the crime on the victim, circumstances surrounding the crime, and any mitigating factors.
