Airway Heights passes law to fight gang crimes

Gang crimes within Airway Heights are now under tighter restrictions, after city officials passed an ordinance Nov. 3 making it illegal for landowners to knowingly allow gang activity on their property.

The measure comes in response to a slight increase in gang crimes in both Airway Heights and Spokane County over the past few years.

“By taking these steps, we stay ahead of the issue,” Mayor Matthew Pederson said during the first reading of the ordinance in October.

Police Chief Lee Bennett said in an interview in August that Airway Heights doesn’t have an exaggerated issue with gang crimes, but the crimes are increasing.

“Criminal street gangs and associates are becoming more prolific in the Spokane area,” Bennett said in August.

The measure will give police officials more leverage over the parties involved with criminal gang activity when it happens, he said.

Many of the people involved with gang crime in Airway Heights are out of Spokane County.

About 60 to 70 gangs operate in Spokane County, with more than 400 members or associates dealing in drugs, prostitution rings or other organized crime, said Spokane County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Sgt. Dave Reagan.

Bennett said police usually discover gang members in Airway Heights when the person commits some other crime.

Domestic violence is the biggest crime in Airway Heights, Bennett said, followed by theft and assault. Severe addiction to drugs like methamphetamine and cocaine is often the driving force behind these crimes.