Albany Gang Unit trained on Georgia law

ALBANY — Officers of the Albany Police Department’s special gang unit have been in class all week, learning how to better identify gangs and gang members, and also to fully understand Georgia’s gang law.

Walter J. Marchant Jr., 61, retired law enforcement trainer and Army crime investigator, now owner of Marchant Consulting, Inc. in McDonough, began the class of around 20 officers at the Albany Civic Center Monday and will continue through late today.

According to Marchant, the 40 hours of intense instruction in advanced gang investigation and prosecution techniques will provide the officers with an in-depth understanding of the Georgia Street Gang Terrorist and Prevention Act.

“Just making arrests gets you nowhere if the cases are overturned in court,” Marchant said Thursday. “Officers need to understand the law so they’ll know how to gather evidence without violating the constitution.”

Marchant said the idea behind the act, which was signed into law in 1992 amidst the violence of organized criminals smuggling crack cocaine from south Florida, is to enhance the legal penalties of those convicted of crimes committed in gang settings.

“It’s not against the law to be a member of a gang,” Marchant said. “But gangs are about power and violence through criminal activity. Mothers tell us gangs sometimes threaten their sons with violence when they refuse to join their gangs. Georgia law addresses those types of threats.”

The gang unit officers are being instructed by Marchant, education coordinator for the Georgia Gang Investigators Association, and Jose Diaz, president of the GGIA.

Marchant said the class began with instruction on how to better recognize “indicators” for gang presence in an area, including signs, symbols, clothing or graffiti.

“Some people think of that as profiling,” Marchant said, “and I agree that’s what it is. All law enforcement officers employ profiling. If you’re sick and go to a doctor, he’ll profile you by asking what your symptoms are.”

But after learning to recognize the signs of gang presence or membership, officers are taught how to approach the suspects according to the law and how to be sure that the legal requirement of probable cause is clear.

According to Marchant, with more than 1.4 million gang members in 133,000 gangs around the county, almost every community of any size is touched by crime violence, including random shots fired at houses and home invasions.

“Albany is home to several gangs,” Marchant said, “with one of them, the CME Rattlers, unique to the city. We’re seeing members whose great grandfathers were Rattlers more than 30 years ago.”