Task force out to stop Santa Barbara County gangs

Keynote speakers and panel discussions made up a majority of Monday’s gang task force summit.

Around 200 people filled the Carrillo Recreation Center in Santa Barbara as part of the South Coast Task Force on Youth Gangs.

Community service organizations, law enforcement, school administrators, city and county representatives and youth organizations all came together to try to find ways to end gang violence in Santa Barbara County.

Several speakers lent first-hand accounts of how tough it is to get out of a gang situation and law enforcement is using the meeting to increase coordination between local services.