Gov. Perry's Plan to Combat Gangs

    Governor Rick Perry asked lawmakers Tuesday for $24 million dollars on top of an already $110 million dollars to curb gang infiltration in Texas. Perry is pushing for a stronger border-security plan to ward against gangs coming into Texas from Mexico.  And Lubbock Police say that will definitely help the gang crimes here.  Perry says the problem lies with gangs like Texas Syndicate, Mexican Mafia, and M-S 13.  They're gangs that Lieutenant Neal Barron with LPD says are definitely here in Lubbock as well.

    Perry's proposal for the 2009 legislation includes $110 million dollars that was already appoved for border-security in 2007, plus another $24 million dollars to combat transnational gang activity in Texas.  He says Texas has already made great strides to improve security along the southern border, but he argues that increasing law enforcement as well as working on communication throughout the state will take down the gang problem in Texas.

    "We'll bring massive pressure on the leadership structure of these gangs, and we're grind them down. One tip at a time, one piece of information at a time, one conspiracy conviction at a time one gang at a time," said Gov. Rick Perry.

    "Anything we can do along the border to increase the security as far as the gang members coming in to the state, I think will definitely help us out a lot," said Lubbock Police Lt. Neal Barron.

    The money would come from Homeland Security funding.