NEW YORK -- Edgar Morales, a member of the St. James Boys gang, who was accused of killing 10-year old Malenny Mendez in August 2002, is the first person to be found guilty of a terrorist act in New York, reports El Diario-La Prensa. The charge is based on a state law against crimes intended to “intimidate or dominate the civil public.” Morales, 25, faces life in prison for first-degree manslaughter as a first degree terrorist crime, intent to kill as a terrorist crime, possession of a weapon as a second degree terrorist act and second degree charges for conspiracy. A juror later said that terrorism is not just something that happened on 9/11, but also signifies an attack on the public meant to dominate them. Prosecutors painted Morales' gang as having a fanatical, terrorizing grip over St. James park in the Bronx. There, the prosecutor said, a gunfight among gang members interrupted a church festival and killed Malenny.
This is going to be a real issue in the next few years because local law enforcement is already (well the LAPD is) using allternate means than traditional policing to limit the influence of gangs over communities.
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