Leaving The Gang Behind

Sunday, April 13. 4:00pm-5:30pm. Rainier Room.

Description 

The opportunity to leave a bad situation behind happens regularly for youth involved in gangs. Hear five former gang members tell why gangs are not for them and why gangs should not be for anyone. What does it mean for you if everyone you know is involved in a gang, and you stand alone -- because you want out?

Presenter Bio 

Moderator: Lieutenant John F. Hayes Jr., Seattle Police Department

Lieutenant John F. Hayes Jr. is a 26-year veteran of the Seattle Police Department, with a bachelor’s degree in Social Welfare and Women’s Studies and a master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Washington. Lt. Hayes started as a patrol officer. As a detective, he worked in the Gang Unit, oversaw the Seattle Team For Youth Program, and was a member of the Seattle Police Department Hostage Negotiation Team. He started the first Southeast Seattle Weed and Seed Program and has worked in Internal Investigations. He supervised the Seattle Police Department's Media Relations Unit, the sworn officers in the Crime Prevention Section, and the Employee/Community and Support Bureau. Currently, Lt. Hayes works in the Operations Bureau 2 as the East Precinct Operations Lieutenant, also responsible for supervising detectives in the Seattle Team For Youth Program, Drug Court Unit, officers in the Seattle Police Department Youth Outreach Unit, the Community Service Officer handling runaways, Community Service Officer for the East Precinct, Community Police Team Officers, Crime Prevention Officer and Juvenile/Burglary Theft detectives. He is also a SPD representative on the City of Seattle Racial Profiling Task Force and the Inter Departmental Team (IDT) evaluating all juvenile outreach programs offered by the City of Seattle. Lt. Hayes has served as an advisor for the University of Chicago School of Social Services Administration gang program: National Youth Gang Suppression and Intervention. He was also appointed by the Governor of Washington to the State Task Force on Children’s Justice.

Lt. Hayes continues to be an instructor, facilitator and guest presenter for legal and professional organizations, and has trained thousands of people (locally and nationally) in the areas of family and youth intervention services, gang violence, youth truancy and more specifically in working with high-risk juvenile populations. Lt. John Hayes is a proud graduate of the Leadership Tomorrow Class of 2003. He is a National Board Member of the National Black Police Association (NBPA), past president of the Black Law Enforcement Association of Washington, a member of the National Association of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) and a Life Member of the NAACP. 

Panel of 5 former gang members

(Not Available)