Assemblyman Phil Ramos (D-Central Islip) announced he’s continuing his commitment to the fight against crime and to help rid our street of gang activity.

He noted the recent rash of gang violence in Suffolk County, including the murder of 15-year-old Christopher Hamilton,

“I committed to making our community a safer place to raise a family,” Assemblyman Ramos said. “That’s why I’m working with local, state and federal officials to ensure that all the resources available are being utilized to crack down on crime”

Ramos has been working diligently with Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Congressman Steve Israel to get the FBI more involved locally to crack down on gang activity. Their hard work has paid off with the recent indictment of five MS-13 gang members for murder.

“Justice was finally brought to the families of these victims and a clear message was sent to gangs like the MS-13: Gangs have no place in our community and these criminals will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Assemblyman Ramos said. “I won’t stand by and allow some thugs to take over our neighborhoods and force our families to live in fear.”

Ramos advancing legislation

Assemblyman Ramos will once again advance two pieces of legislation to combat the rise in gang activity. The first would establish a specialized court for handling gang-related offenses and enable Suffolk County to employ resources from federal, state and local funds, services and facilities to create a more integrate approach to address gang activity. The other would create a gang assessment, intervention, prevention and suppression program to help Suffolk County combat gang violence (A.3834-A). The program would allow state police to work with federal law enforcement to suppress gang violence and create a centralized database for information relating to the operations of gangs throughout the state. It would also authorize the Division of Criminal Justice Services commissioner to award grants to district attorneys to help stop gang activity.

This legislation builds on Ramos record of helping crack down on crime. For the last two years he’s sponsored an anti-graffiti campaign to eliminate the eyesores and gang tags that threaten the safety of the community and lower property values. Last year alone, 18 commercial corridors were rid of graffiti, with over 700 commercial properties becoming graffiti-free and over 200 residential properties cleaned through this initiative.

“I’ve dedicated the majority of my adult life to helping make our community a safer place, I’ve patrolled our street as a police officer and now as an elected official I am working to make sure law enforcement, our judicial system and our communities have the resources they need to keeping our streets safe.”