Law enforcers around the country are looking at the way Syracuse prosecuted the Boot Camp gang, and how it may be an effective way to battle a growing national problem; threats by gang members, if you snitch. Cops are working hard to fight the fear factor.
It's not easy to get a suspected gang member to fess up. They don't talk, and they threaten others who do. Police say the reality is, witnesses are rarely harmed.
But, it's not just a dilemma Syracuse police face.
It's happening around the country, as many of us saw in a stop snitching DVD. It got a lot of attention because of the appearance of NBA Star Carmello Anthony. It’s an example, police say of a growing national problem of witness intimidation by gangs.
But federal prosecutors and police in Syracuse say they got around it, by going after the entire boot camp gang. It’s something that continues to have an impact on the streets today.
“A lot of these younger gangs, when we stop them , they're now willing to cooperate with saying who is who, and what's what, they're afraid we're going to come and see them next.”
It's helped, but hasn't completely solved the problem of getting witnesses to cooperate. An obstacle they faced this past New Year’s Day. A man was shot on a dance floor in a crowded bar.
“When we got there, no one around is there to tell us who did it.”
So detectives are left with the challenge of convincing people, if they don't help, the violence they fear will continue.
“if someone doesn't have the nerve to tell us, our hands are tied.”
But prosecutors were able to gather enough evidence in the case against Karo Brown. He was sentenced to 40 years to life in federal prison.
