HOUSTON COUNTY, Ga. — Investigators say gang violence in Houston County is evolving and growing, and now, the Houston County Sheriff's Office says they're dealing with it.
Two Houston County deputies just got back from the Georgia Gangs Investigation Conference.
During that conference, they met with other gang investigators to talk about what it takes to be able to prosecute a gang charge and the trends they're seeing throughout Georgia and Houston County.
"They don't believe anything is going to happen to them, because their buddies are not going to prison. They are committing robberies and they are back out on bond. Then, the next week, they are back out to victimize the community," Spivey said.
Houston County Lieutenant Bo Spivey works in the Warrant Division.
Lately, he says he's noticed an increase in gang activity.
"Our previous DA took office and the lack of prosecution of violent offenders associated with gang, his reluctance not to prosecute gangs, has sent us kind of in a spiral," Spivey said.
Spivey is talking about George Hartwig, who left office a year ago.
"Putting people on probation for 10 years, things of that nature; and we are constantly out here working, arresting the same offenders over and over again; and him giving them plea deals is the result of what's going on now," Spivey said.
He says gangs have been coming in and out of Houston County from all over, including Peach County and Macon-Bibb County.
"Really, no rhyme or reason. It can happen on the north side of town and the south side of town. That's the tricky part about it. It does not matter," Spivey said.
According to the sheriff's office, Houston County has seven active gangs and 1,200 validated gang members.
"We've had a lot of shootings, lot of houses getting shot up, shots fired calls. A lot of that stuff, these folks have gang affiliation, but we can't necessarily say it's driven by them claiming one set versus the other set. They're working together. It's just usually a conflict amongst criminals and then they fall out with one another and then they start shooting at each other," Spivey said.
"Growing and living here now, I realize there is just a need for somebody to help. What's the desperation of wanting to be in a gang in the first place? Are you depressed? Are you anxious? Do you just need somebody to just give you a hug? Are you really missing out on the things we call love? Then how do we provide that for them? How do we find avenues that make them feel warranted?" Michael Jones said.
Jones is the co-founder of Community Resource Network, a newly-founded nonprofit in Warner Robins.
"We want to be that centralized liaison. There's a lot of need for resources. We realize there are resources here, but a lot of the organizations aren't working together. We want to be that connecting point. We would like to get to resource centers, where we provide resume building, interview techniques and also maybe have daycares for people to get their skills; and maybe food banks. My partner also came up with the idea to put together resources for financial literacy. We focus a lot on gang violence, but I don't think we focus on why they got in the gang in the first place," Jones said.
Jones also says he plans to offer substance abuse and anger management resources for the public.
"We are just trying to make every individual more self sufficient, so they can live a more better, productive life. It's to understand their way of life and to possibly help change the culture, to give them the actual chance to see themselves as bigger than what they are painted as. Then, maybe we might be able to change somebody form going down that path or that direction, at least that the hope. That's what CRN is here to do," Jones said.
In the past six-months, the sheriff's office says they've solved four cases involving suspected gang members.
That's two home invasions and two aggravated assaults or homicide.
"This is Sheriff Talton's county. We are going to go wherever we need to go and eradicate gangs where we need to find them at. Everyone is welcome in Houston County, but under no circumstances that we would tolerate an crime, or our transits or our citizens being victimized by gang members or random acts of violence; and if you do, we will see that you go to jail; and that you'd be put away," Spivey said.
Spivey says, nowadays, it's not uncommon to find relatives living together while being involved in separate gangs.
"It's no longer this side against this side. Gangs are merging together to commit acts of violence," Spivey said.
He says some of the gang members are as young as 14 years old.
Spivey also says he has more faith in Houston County's current District Attorney Will Kendall.
The Houston County Sheriff's Office is one of the only sheriff's offices in the state that has an active warrant division.
That means whenever someone commits a crime in Warner Robins, Perry, or Centerville, the warrants are sent back to them.
Then, Spivey says, they "diligently" go after the accused person, even if they leave the county.
We reached out to former District Attorney George Hartwig, who's apparently moved to Florida.
So far, he's not responded.