Gangs Claim Turf on MySpace.com
Gangs mark Web sites like MySpace
By: Johnell Johnson
Images of gang activity like this one can be found all over MySpace.com
CHARLOTTE -- Your child can see any number of things on the Internet, and now they might be able to see the signs of gang activity as well.
The creator of a Web site called CrimeInCharlotte.com called News 14 Carolina’s attention to some startling Web pages.
Gangs can be found in neighborhoods and outside high school football games, and now some say the world of gangs has collided with the Internet.
Pictures like the ones seen here were taken off the popular Web site MySpace.com. Young men hold up possible gang signs along with guns. Others also have tattoos reading, “Full blooded.”
Pictures like those have parents fully concerned about their children's safety while surfing the Internet.
Gangs on MySpaceYour child can see any number of things on the Internet, and now they might be able to see the signs of gang activity as well.
"With computers at home and in school and everywhere else, it's very disturbing," said parent Phil Hargett.
Under some pictures, the captions read, "I'm just reppin’ where I stay at." Gang-related or not, the images of a violent life have popped up online, glorifying a life of violence and crime. Several use mug shots as their profile pictures, and one even took responsibility online for committing a crime – burning a car.
Another put a gun to his head and said he should have pulled the trigger.
One page featured Holly Mitchell, a 17-year-old Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools student arrested this month for brining an AR-15 assault rifle to a football game at West Mecklenburg High School. Mitchell has another picture on the Internet – his mug shot. He was arrested on Friday for additional gun charges.
Hargett says he hopes to keep pages like these away from his 13-year-old daughter.
"We try to limit access to computers. We have parental controls on our computer and we just monitor very closely their activity, their computer, their friends and what they do when they're online," he said.
While it has some outraged, others say kids can see this stuff on television or by simply walking down the street.
"You can take a picture of anything,” said MySpace user Tony Trimble. “As long as they're not putting a bullet through someone's head, it's really isn't all that alarming."
Others hope images like what can be found on MySpace will trigger adults to take more responsibility.
“These things are so readily available to people here, so I think it's a larger issue within our culture and within our country," said Joyce Libeth, a concerned parent.
As for Mitchell, he remains in jail. He is scheduled for a bond hearing on Monday.
Police say pictures like those on MySpace are perfect examples to parents of why it is important to watch what children do online. They suggest keeping the computer in a neutral place like the living room and talking to kids about the dangers they can find on the Internet.
By: Johnell Johnson
Images of gang activity like this one can be found all over MySpace.com
CHARLOTTE -- Your child can see any number of things on the Internet, and now they might be able to see the signs of gang activity as well.
The creator of a Web site called CrimeInCharlotte.com called News 14 Carolina’s attention to some startling Web pages.
Gangs can be found in neighborhoods and outside high school football games, and now some say the world of gangs has collided with the Internet.
Pictures like the ones seen here were taken off the popular Web site MySpace.com. Young men hold up possible gang signs along with guns. Others also have tattoos reading, “Full blooded.”Pictures like those have parents fully concerned about their children's safety while surfing the Internet.
Gangs on MySpaceYour child can see any number of things on the Internet, and now they might be able to see the signs of gang activity as well.
"With computers at home and in school and everywhere else, it's very disturbing," said parent Phil Hargett.
Under some pictures, the captions read, "I'm just reppin’ where I stay at." Gang-related or not, the images of a violent life have popped up online, glorifying a life of violence and crime. Several use mug shots as their profile pictures, and one even took responsibility online for committing a crime – burning a car.
Another put a gun to his head and said he should have pulled the trigger.
One page featured Holly Mitchell, a 17-year-old Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools student arrested this month for brining an AR-15 assault rifle to a football game at West Mecklenburg High School. Mitchell has another picture on the Internet – his mug shot. He was arrested on Friday for additional gun charges.
Hargett says he hopes to keep pages like these away from his 13-year-old daughter.
"We try to limit access to computers. We have parental controls on our computer and we just monitor very closely their activity, their computer, their friends and what they do when they're online," he said.
While it has some outraged, others say kids can see this stuff on television or by simply walking down the street.
"You can take a picture of anything,” said MySpace user Tony Trimble. “As long as they're not putting a bullet through someone's head, it's really isn't all that alarming."
Others hope images like what can be found on MySpace will trigger adults to take more responsibility.
“These things are so readily available to people here, so I think it's a larger issue within our culture and within our country," said Joyce Libeth, a concerned parent.
As for Mitchell, he remains in jail. He is scheduled for a bond hearing on Monday.
Police say pictures like those on MySpace are perfect examples to parents of why it is important to watch what children do online. They suggest keeping the computer in a neutral place like the living room and talking to kids about the dangers they can find on the Internet.
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