Gangs

Overview
Gangs continue to be of concern in the Prince William Area and are being addressed through a well- coordinated and comprehensive regional strategy of
  • Enforcement
  • Education
  • Prevention and intervention
The Gang Response Intervention Team (G.R.I.T.) is a dedicated group of concerned public and private citizens who want to bring a coordinated response to this challenging issue. The G.R.I.T. coordinator is available to answer questions concerning gangs or to help guide you to the resources you might need to help address a gang issue.

The mission of the Prince William Gang Response Intervention Team is to bring together key public officials and community leaders from Prince William County and the Cities of Manassas and Manassas Park (the Prince William Area) who can advise on and promote the coordination of, and encourage a collaborative community-based response to, the region’s gang prevention efforts.

Goal
Prevent children, youth and young adults from gang involvement and assist gang-involved youth and young adults at-risk of gang involvement to leave the gang lifestyle.

Objectives
  • Promote and support information sharing among all agencies and groups that have a stake in serving gang-involved young people and those who are at risk of gang involvement, and their families.
  • Educate and involve the community in a collective response to gang prevention and intervention, by raising awareness of gang issues and the availability of resources and possibilities for addressing those issues.
  • Develop shared strategies for a collaborated and coordinated response to gang involvement. Assess gang involvement and its relationship to existing resources and prevention/intervention efforts, and develop strategies to prioritize and redirect resources.
  • Identify additional funding opportunities to provide resources for G.R.I.T.
  • Coordinate local gang prevention/intervention efforts with those of the Northern Virginia region.
Strategies
  • Cooperate in a comprehensive regional assessment of gang activity and prevention/intervention/suppression efforts in the Northern Virginia region and the Prince William Area. Develop a gang prevention/intervention strategic plan for the Prince William area based upon the regional assessment.
  • Identify gaps in service and promote development of needed resources, or recommend the realignment of existing resources, to address those gaps.
  • Monitor gang activity in the Prince William Area in general, as well as the impact of that activity on the community.
  • Participate in gang prevention activities at the local, regional and state levels and ensure that the Prince William Area’s efforts are coordinated with those efforts.
  • Provide information and outreach to parents and adults working with children and youth concerning gang issues and gang prevention.

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