Hundreds of law enforcement officers in Salinas for annual gang symposium

More than 300 law enforcement officers from the state, local and federal levels were in Salinas Wednesday for the start of a two-day conference on how to better tackle gangs. The 11th Annual Gang Symposium invites cops from are from all over California and even parts of Nevada to take part in crime fighting classroom style lectures, according to the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office.

For Monterey County Sheriff’s Deputy Christian Zarate trainings like the one at Sherwood Hall in Salinas can be very helpful.

“We have multiple resources at our disposal, we have FBI, state agencies and federal agencies that we can work with,” said Zarate.

Zarate works in corrections and said the jails are a hotbed for gangs, but with the help of last year’s training he learned how to better pin-point gang members.

“Knowing what to look for, knowing who the key players are in the jail,” said Zarate.

Some of the other topics covered at the gang symposium include crime trends, officer safety, drug cartels and how to get a fugitive if they leave the country.

“If they have a fugitive that flees the country and goes to another country they (the officers) now have someone they can call to get the person back,” said Commander John Thornburg with the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office.

Thornburg also said the information officers are getting is advanced and valuable, but the networking opportunities are just as important.

“Law enforcement has to be able to collaborate, we have to work together,” said Thornburg. “Most of these gangs aren’t just limited to one street, one neighborhood or one county.”

The City of Salinas has struggled dealing with a gang problem. In 2015 there were 40 homicides and according to police most of them were gang related, but about-to-retire Salinas Police Chief Kelly McMillin said this conference will help officers learn the answers to question that are vital to putting an end to violent gangs

“How are gangsters accessing firearms, how are they marketing drugs,” said McMillin. “There are a whole variety that will be discussed here today.”

A portion of the conference is paid for by tax payers but according to the Monterey County Sheriff’s office 99 percent of the cost for the training came from private donations.