ATLANTA, GA – Attorney General Chris Carr today announced the creation of the Georgia Anti-Gang Network. The platform will bring together local, state and federal partners to increase communication and information sharing, creating a more strategic response to gang activity in the state.

“The Office of the Attorney General remains committed to working with and further supporting our law enforcement officials – federal, state and local – on multi-jurisdictional issues, such as gang activity,” said Attorney General Chris Carr. “At the end of the day, the law-abiding people of our state deserve freedom from fear, and to do so, we must re-dedicate ourselves to disrupting all gang networks that are infiltrating our communities with violent crime and will stop at nothing to turn a profit.”

In America, nearly half of all violent crimes are gang-related. Unfortunately, Georgia communities are not immune to this type of organized crime, and member recruitment is on the rise – with 71,000 validated gang affiliates and over 1,500 suspected gang networks. In fact, in a survey that the Georgia Gang Investigators Association conducted recently, 157 counties reported a rise in gang activity and 155 school districts reported suspected gang activity. Even more concerning, criminals are now turning social media into a recruitment platform to specifically target younger audiences.

This July, Attorney General Carr invited the leadership from several local, state and federal partner organizations to discuss their current efforts, including all three U.S. Attorneys, the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia, the Georgia Sheriffs’ Association, the Georgia Gang Investigators Association, the Georgia Department of Corrections, the Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice, the Georgia Department of Community Supervision and more. As a result of the first meeting, the group has decided to continue their work as the Georgia Anti-Gang Network.

Looking forward, the Office of the Attorney General will continue working with stakeholders to expand its capabilities to better support training efforts and gang prosecutions that span multiple jurisdictions.