| Mexican Mafia Targeting Blacks in L.A. Freeway Shootings | |||
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| Netlore Archive: Email rumor claims the Mexican Mafia is responsible for a recent spate of Los Angeles freeway shootings and is specifically targeting black men in white t-shirts in retaliation for the theft of cocaine | |||
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Email example contributed by L. LeDay, 3 May 2005:
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Subject: Recent Freeway Shootings Hello everyone, FYI: This was sent to me by someone in law enforcement: Unfortunately, the word on the street (which has been confirmed by a probation officer) is that the 60's stole 160 kilo's of cocaine from the Mexican Mafia. In retaliation, the Mexican Mafia and other Mexican gangs have decided to target and kill 400-1000 black men of all ages who are wearing white t-shirts. This is not limited to the freeways..... I understand that this is very real and very serious. Please pass this on to EVERYONE that you know. I suggest you do not wear any white shirts at all if possible. Also, if you have on a dress shirt, consider wearing your jacket over it.... PLEASE BE CAREFUL. WARN YOUR HUSBANDS & SONS.... |
Comments: False. As of this writing (May 6, 2005), police say they not only lack any evidence linking the much-publicized string of freeway shootings in and around Los Angeles since mid-March to gang activity, they have so far found nothing to indicate that the crimes are related to one another at all.
Nor has there emerged any discernible racial pattern to the shootings. To date, the victims have included white, black and Hispanic males.
As to the allegation that "the 60s" (presumably meaning "the Rolling 60s," a black street gang associated with the Crips) stole a shipment of cocaine belonging to the Mexican Mafia (aka "la Eme," a prison-based Hispanic gang heavily involved in Southern California drug trafficking), I have not been able to find any information confirming or disproving it. A similar claim accompanied rumors predicting that Los Angeles schools would erupt in gang violence on Cinco de Mayo, but no such outbreak occurred. In any case, the notion that the aggrieved gangsters would seek retribution by randomly targeting as many as 1,000 black men for murder seems wildly excessive and inconsistent with gang behavior as we know it.
Fears based on public misperception, police say
It appears, then, that the rumor before us is not only false but malicious in intent, aiming to drive a wedge between races and escalate fears which, according to police, are already based on public misperception. There is no common thread linking all the recent freeway shootings together. Despite the impression created by 'round-the-clock media coverage, there have been fewer such shootings so far this year than during the same period in 2004.
"To be quite truthful and frank with everyone, this is not that highly unusual," said California Highway Patrol Assistant Chief Art Acevedo in a statement to the Los Angeles Times. "Generally speaking, you are in a greater chance of being injured from a drunk driver on the freeways instead of being shot on the freeway."
Not the most reassuring way to phrase it, perhaps, but statistically true.
Sources and further reading:
Tens of Thousands Stay Home from LA Schools Amid Violence Rumors
Associated Press, 6 May 2005Cops: Calif. Freeways Not That Dangerous
Fox News, 4 May 2005Police Seek to Reassure Motorists
Los Angeles Times (free reg. required), 4 May 2005String of Freeway Shootings Investigated
10News.com, 4 May 2005Two Freeway Shootings in Los Angeles
LAPD news release, 2 May 2005
Last updated: 05/06/05
