A man fired a barrage of bullets at a crowded Westminster street corner four years ago, and Carroll County soon learned gangs had arrived.
Brian Hill eluded authorities for about five months after firing multiple shots from his handgun just before midnight in September 2004. He targeted several people believed to be associated with gangs who were standing outside and had gotten into an argument with Hill?s friend. Hill?s gunshots did not hit anyone, but the 21-year-old is still serving time in jail.
“That was the first incident that really put gangs on the radar screen,” said Jennifer Darby, senior assistant state?s attorney in Carroll.
Since that assault, gangs have grown more prominent in Carroll, mostly an influx of members of the Bloods and Crips, although last year fewer than 5 percent of crimes in Carroll were gang-related.
The county will hold its first gang symposium today to educate law enforcement officials and residents about gang members who could be living in their community.
“I think there?s more gang actions than people realize, and there?s more criminal actions associated with gang ?wannabes,? if you will, than people realize,” Sheriff Kenneth Tregoning said.
“We suspect that as the economy worsens, criminal activity will increase, and some of that activity will have to do with gangs.”
Carroll?s crime rate has consistently ranked among the lowest in the state, but most inmates in the detention center are there for drug-related offenses, and Darby said that much of the gang activity deals with drugs.
The county usually has one or two homicides each year, but the vandalism, trespassing and thefts that gang members commit to support drug habits can devastate residents? quality of life, Darby said, and some try to intimidate potential witnesses.
Darby said investigators from the municipal police offices, sheriff?s office, state police and state?s attorney?s office meet each month to share trends and information on suspected gang members ? a result of the Hill case.
