GANG TERMS AND SYMBOLSPRE-GANG BEHAVIOR

Children with ties or interest in gangs often display "pre-gang" behavior as early as elementary school. Here is a list that Visalia police school resource officers distribute listing some of those behaviors that parents can look for:

Graffiti, gang-style or old English-style writing on notebooks, papers, books, shoes, etc.
Bald head or very close shaved hair.
Wears exaggerated, baggy clothes.
Wears silver-colored initial belt buckles.
Uses gang language or phrases; gang signs.
Change of friends to gang members or taggers, boyfriend or girlfriend in a gang.
Negative attitude at home or school.
Disruptive behavior or lost of interest in school.
Truancy or ditches school; skips last classes.
Drop in grades.
Wears large, dark jackets on warm days.
Threatens or fights with other children.
Wears long shorts sagging beneath the knee and socks reaching the knee.
Receives threats from gang youths.
Stays out late at night.
Lacks hobbies, interests or something positive to do with free time.
Has negative contact with the police.
Wears excessive and dark colored makeup.
Girls wear large hoop earrings, revealing blouses.
Girls having thin or shaved eyebrows.
Has an interest in tattoos or writes on body.
Carries permanent markers or spray cans.
Sources: Gang Resistance Is Paramount, Visalia Police Department.
Confused by what your children write on their books, notebooks and binders? Here are some of the words, symbols and their meanings that may indicate involvement or interest in gangs and drug activities..
13, XIII, X3, S, Sur, Sureño, Trece, EME, M, Mexican Mafia —Words, numbers and letters signifying southern street gangs.
14, X4, XIV, Norteño, N, Norte, Catorce —Words, numbers and letters signifying northern street gangs.
15, XV, X5, O —Words, numbers and letters signifying Asian or "Oriental" gangs.
123 — 100 percent white.
187 — Penal Code for murder.
24/7 — Being a gangster all day and all week long.
311 — KKK (Ku Klux Klan).
88 — Heil Hitler.
A8 —Adolf Hitler.
BG — Baby gangster, 12 years of age or younger.
Buster — Derogatory term referring to a Norteño gang member.
Chiva, carga, la negra —Heroin.
Crank, go fast — Methamphetamine.
Cuete — A firearm.
Cuz, cuzz — "Partner" or "brother," used by Asian gang members.
Dove — Rock cocaine.
Featherwood/Peckerwood — A featherwood is a white, female gang member; a peckerwood is a white male gang member. Both are symbolized by woodpeckers.
Full bird/half bird — One pound or kilo or half a pound or kilo of cocaine.
Powder, candy— Cocaine.
Rag — Bandanna used as a gang symbol.
Rat Pack — When a group or gang beat up a person; more than one person jumping another.
Scrap, scrapa, scrap wood, sewer rat — Derogatory terms referring to Sureño gang members.
Tag — To write on walls, etc.; graffiti.

Sources: "Street Gangs in Tulare County," published by the Tulare County Office of Education; Tulare County Sheriff's Department