Injunction would bar gang members from Skid Row

By THOMAS WATKINS Associated Press Writer

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Authorities unveiled a legal tactic Wednesday aimed at keeping gang members - and the drugs they sell - off the streets of Skid Row.

Under a civil lawsuit proposed by the city attorney's office, 80 defendants, most of them gang members, would be barred from the 50-block area on the east side of downtown.

The move is aimed at reducing rampant drug sales in the impoverished district populated by 4,000 homeless or transient people, many of whom are trying to recover from addictions.

The gang members are "predatory as they come from various parts of Los Angeles to victimize and profit from the already poor, weak and often addicted people who struggle to live there," the lawsuit states.

The injunction has not yet been granted by a judge.

Bruce Riordan, chief of the city attorney's gang division, said rival gang members often cooperate with each other in Skid Row to maximize drug profits.

The use of gang injunctions is common across Southern California, but the orders typically target gathering or other activities by a single gang in an area.

Riordan said it's the first time an injunction was being aimed at multiple gangs. The lawsuit names members from 31 gangs.

If caught on Skid Row, a person named in the injunction could face up to six months in jail.