Detective Elizabeth Blair area of expertise in the "Circle of Violence" discussion was street gangs. She said there are about 20 affiliations in Peoria, including the Chicago-based Gangster Disciples and Vice Lords."If someone is wanting to get out of the gang lifestyle, in my opinion, you're going to need to move," said Blair, a UIS graduate like Haynes and Guyton."If you're involved in an area in the city, how can you (stick around)? It's kind of like putting an alcoholic in a bar. Are they really going to cure their alcoholism?"Street gangs use graffiti to mark their turf.What goes up must come down, according to Haynes."It takes the community to be involved," she said. "When you see the graffiti showing up in your neighborhood stores, in the alleys - wherever it may be - the most important thing is to get rid of it."Haynes, who lives in Pekin, said he saw the writing on a garage wall last week when he left home to use an ATM near the bike trail."Very much surprised," said Haynes, not only by the initial Gangster Disciples graffiti, but even more by the Bloods name spray-painted over it. In some neighborhoods, that would be evidence of a gangland turf war.
"I could see where the Gangster Disciples would just be some wannabes," Haynes said. "But the specifics of the Bloods graffiti is what really stood out because it was obviously someone with a little bit more in-depth knowledge of the gang."
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