LOS ANGELES, Feb. 9 (UPI) -- More than 200 Los Angeles police officers are being assigned to a coordinated effort to crack down on the city's most dangerous street gangs.
The plan announced by Police Chief William Bratton and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa comes in the wake of a 14 percent increase in gang crime in the city and a 160 percent hike in the San Fernando Valley, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Breaking with tradition, the mayor and police chief released a list of the 11 worst gangs that will be the target of the crackdown by Los Angeles police and federal agents.
Bratton said the 11 gangs were responsible for over 1,700 violence crimes last year, accounting for 6 percent of all the violent crimes recorded in Los Angeles.
"It makes sense to focus our very limited resources on these criminals," he said.
