Female Gangs in SoCal Growing at Alarming Rate

DOWNEY, Calif. -- Santa Ana Police Detective Ramona Ruiz wasn't always on the right path.

A former gang member and high school dropout, Ruiz at one time was a single mother on welfare struggling to flee an abusive relationship.

Miraculously, she turned her life around and joined law enforcement.

Today, 28 years later, Ruiz is the head detective on Santa Ana Police Department's Graffiti Task Force. As a former gang member, she specializes in female gang culture.

Ruiz shared her story with more than 150 attendees on Friday at the third annual Symposium on Street Gangs and School Safety at the Los Angeles County Office of Education headquarters in Downey.

The symposium, a one-day conference for school administrators, teachers and law enforcement, gives updates on gang issues and gang-related crimes facing schools across Southern California.

As the main speaker this year, Ruiz gave an overview of female gangs, which she said are growing at an alarming rate.

Ruiz said girls, sometimes as young as 9 years old, will join a gang for many reasons. They may be looking for safety, camaraderie and acceptance.

"Girls today are realizing they don't need to depend on men to get what they want," Ruiz said. "They can find protection and a sense of belonging in a gang with other girls."

In Santa Ana, an estimated 5 percent of all known gang members are female, she said. Police have identified at least four all-female gangs, including a gang called the Hello Kitty Mafia because its members all wear Hello Kitty paraphernalia.

Ruiz said today's gang members often dress like normal school children, but their violent behavior gives them away.

"The kids are smart enough to know that if they dress like a gang member police are going to know them," she said. "They look like normal kids, until they start fighting."

Gangs and gang recruitment continue to be a significant problem in many area schools. Los Angeles County alone is home to more than 1,100 street gangs with more than 100,000 members and associates, according to law enforcement statistics. Surveys show 9 percent of students in public middle and high schools self-identity as gang members and 2 percent have admitted to carrying a gun to school, according to the L.A. County Office of Education.

Not only are gangs beginning to recruit very young members, they're doing it in different ways, law enforcement officials said.

In one trend, gangs are starting to recruit new members on social media websites such as

MySpace, Facebook and Twitter. They're also using those platforms to bully and intimidate people, said Los Angeles County sheriff's Lt. Kimberly Unland.

"It's definitely a disturbing trend we're seeing," Unland said.

"That's why we continue to work with schools and community groups to raise awareness. Education is key."

Ruiz said teachers in the classroom can be a major component in the fight against gangs.

"Next to the parent, the teacher is the one who sees these kids the most. They can look for signs and problems and talk with the student," she said. "It's all about training and education. We need to work together as a team."