Grant County hires gang prosecutor

EPHRATA - The Grant County Prosecutor's Office recently created a new position to deal with gangs.

The office recently received a $100,000 Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant from the U.S. Department of Justice. The county was one of six receiving the grant, Prosecutor Angus Lee stated.

"It's going to an across-the-board and multi-faceted position," he said. "(The person is) going to be working on gang prevention as well as prosecution."

One of Lee's goals for the position is to create agreements between private businesses and the sheriff's office, allowing trespass orders to be issued against identified gang members, he said. Potentially, the change forces gang members to leave the area.

"If (a criminal) can't go get gas, they can't effectively function within the county," Lee said. "(It) makes it uncomfortable and unpleasant for them to be here."

Lee said the gang deputy prosecutor is working with jail staff to create a list of gang members and documenting what makes them qualify.

State law defines a gang member as a part of any "ongoing organization, association, or group of three or more persons, whether formal or informal, having a common name or common identifying sign or symbol, having as one of its primary activities the commission of criminal acts."

The gang deputy prosecutor will assist other deputies by providing gang-specific legal expertise, Lee said, pointing to laws dealing with gang motivated crimes.

The money will provide one year's salary for the position along with money for training, a computer and other office items, Lee said.

"If there is an opportunity to renew the grant, we'll certainly apply," he said.

Lee plans to maintain the position even if the grant isn't renewed, saying the office was roughly $250,000 under budget in 2009 and is expected to be about $160,000 under budget this year including the $40,000 cut back in July.

"Our budget has been reduced three times in the last two years. We've managed to grow on a reduced budget just through effective administration," Lee said.

The deputy prosecutor started working in September and did not want to be named, Lee stated.