Police Use Web To Track Down Gang Members
Posted on 13. Aug, 2009 by Mike Reicher in News Features
By Mike Reicher
Soon after Nicholas Donaldi-Subero, the 18-year-old son of a Metropolitan Opera singer, was fatally stabbed in Queens, New York in January, some self-declared members of the Latin Kings gang took to the internet to boast about their prowess.
“We shut plenty of clicks down in the past and Corona Queens is not even an exception,” someone named ‘Farrocking’ from Far Rockaway wrote on the site thehoodup.com.
More and more social networking users like Farrockking are boasting about gang exploits, making threats about future activities and posting photos of themselves in gang colors. And increasingly those sites have become helpful tools for law enforcement officials who have used this material to prosecute alleged gangbangers. States like Ohio and California have introduced online evidence to link suspects with street crimes. Meanwhile, Florida has made it a felony offense to post gang-related material online. But this increased presence of both gang activity and law enforcement surveillance online raises questions about how to determine the line between youthful braggadocio and true bad behavior. (more…)
Storyship – Truly Underground Music
Posted on 12. Aug, 2009 by Robert Voris in Arts & Culture
By Robert Voris
The band was playing on the L train platform in the station at 6th Avenue and 14th Street. They weren’t using any sort of amplification. They huddled together near one of the white-tiled staircases, allowing people to pass easily around them. A guitar case displaying homemade CDs sat open in front of the singer. People bought the CDs for a suggested donation of five dollars, or dropped in singles or loose change as they saw fit. The band did not directly solicit money. (more…)
