Lynden police step up fair security after last year's violence
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LYNDEN, Wash. -- The bullets and bloodshed at last year's Northwest Washington Fair in Lynden forced officials to implement tough new rules this year.
Chief among those rules is the banning of gang members from the festivities, and it's up to police to decide who gets in and who doesn't.
Security in the small town was stepped up in advance of the fair, which erupted in violence last year.
"We had three people shot and one stabbed," said police chief Jack Foster.
A 15-year-old was arrested for the shooting, which police say came after a fight between rival gang members.
With that violence still fresh in many people's minds, police and fair officials made some drastic changes to who's allowed in the fairgrounds.
"We've determined that our fair going public would be safer if gang members aren't allowed on the fairgrounds," said fair manager Jim Baron.
The main objective, according to police, is to keep gang members out. Police say they've identified about 300 gang members in Whatcom County
"Gangs are a problem everywhere and they're a growing problem," Foster said.
It will be up to police officers to determine who's allowed in. They'll look at clothing colors and tattoos in making their evaluations.
While police will be judging people based on their appearance, Foster said it's not racial profiling.
"Our gangs up here do not follow any racial or ethnic group," he said.
With the added security, Baron said everyone should feel safe at the fair this year.
"It's a great fair and it is hard to have one little thing taint the fair, but I think this is a new year and the weather's beautiful so come on out to the fair," he said.
The teen arrested after last year's melee is facing a 15-year prison sentence.
The fair began Monday and will run through August 18.
Chief among those rules is the banning of gang members from the festivities, and it's up to police to decide who gets in and who doesn't.
Security in the small town was stepped up in advance of the fair, which erupted in violence last year.
"We had three people shot and one stabbed," said police chief Jack Foster.
A 15-year-old was arrested for the shooting, which police say came after a fight between rival gang members.
With that violence still fresh in many people's minds, police and fair officials made some drastic changes to who's allowed in the fairgrounds.
"We've determined that our fair going public would be safer if gang members aren't allowed on the fairgrounds," said fair manager Jim Baron.
The main objective, according to police, is to keep gang members out. Police say they've identified about 300 gang members in Whatcom County
"Gangs are a problem everywhere and they're a growing problem," Foster said.
It will be up to police officers to determine who's allowed in. They'll look at clothing colors and tattoos in making their evaluations.
While police will be judging people based on their appearance, Foster said it's not racial profiling.
"Our gangs up here do not follow any racial or ethnic group," he said.
With the added security, Baron said everyone should feel safe at the fair this year.
"It's a great fair and it is hard to have one little thing taint the fair, but I think this is a new year and the weather's beautiful so come on out to the fair," he said.
The teen arrested after last year's melee is facing a 15-year prison sentence.
The fair began Monday and will run through August 18.
This is so blatantly unconstitutional, tattoos are a protected form of speech.Â
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@caphillkid
This is one I will agree with you on. I make a 6 figure income and have tons of tattoos, and piercings. Only in Lynden where its still against the law to dance in the street. Face palm!
 @caphillkid I wonder what they do if an MC shows up with cuts on, do they allow them to enter?
Let's organize an event where we invite all gang members into a big field, provide them access to drugs and alcohol and let them sort it all out! Â
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- PROBLEM SOLVED!Â
 @Andrew Daisuke We had that last year at the Kent Low Rider Show, aka "Guns 'n Joses
 @бÑÑк змеÑ  @Andrew Daisuke Yeah, according to last year's KOMO report: "Twelve people were injured in a mass shooting Saturday afternoon that may have started with an argument over a paint job at a low-rider car show off Pacific Highway."
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Oh, but aren't they just doing the jobs Americans won't do? No reason to patrol all of our hard-won National Borders to interdict the foreign invaders marching willy-nilly into our territory; or send our forces on internal seek-and-deport missions to find and kick out the millions of infiltrators now despoiling our sovereign soil while parasiting upon our resources; or to reform the 14th Amendment to immediately and retroactively disallow "anchor babies"; or to prosecute those misguided xenophiles for instigating or supporting the illegal "sanctuary areas" while immediately ending those "areas" the confused quislings have already forced down our throats; or to even bother to actually enforce the immigration laws on the books now.
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It's been a year since the "mass shooting" in Kent... how many more are we going to put up with in the name of politically correct lies?
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http://www.komonews.com/news/local/126067653.html
Profiling WORKS!!!
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I hope this takes root.
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I just checked out the British Columbia effort and it seems to be working.
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We need to determine whose Civil rights are being violated and deal with it! Crime against innocent LEGAL citizens means their rights were violated!!
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From the Whatcom County Sheriff's website:
"Today, there are at least thirty-eight active gangs in the county accounting for more than 400 members. These include the Bandidos, street gangs like the Bloods, Crips, and Surenos, and the more loosely defined gangs like the Juggalos and the various white supremacist groups.
Recognizing a gang member based on appearance alone can be problematic. One of the biggest giveaways is gang-related tattoos. Locally, these might include the number â13â and the word âSurâ or âSureno,â which are identifiers for Hispanic gang members associated with the Sureno gang movement. Surenos account for at least ten local gangs and more than 200 gang members."
Good luck dealing with these savages.
@StringerJoe Too bad it isn't as easy to make "identifying with a gang" just as illegal as all the crimes they commit eventually.
While they are at it how about booting (or better yet not letting them in) anyone who dresses "gangsta". I for one could stand to see less guys wearing their pants around their knees. Same goes with the ladies who have a strange need to have both gut and butt hanging out of their pants. And I agree with the posters above - round the gang members up and be rid of them. Either a bullet in the head or weld the doors shut on the prison cell will work for me.Â
"Gangs are a problem everywhere and they're a growing problem," Foster said."
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Thank you Chief Obvious.
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The eradication of gangs should replace the silly War on Drugs.
 @Furd I agree with this. It's time to increase the penalty for being part of a gang - if you're an accessory/accomplice/perpetrator to a gang-related crime, and you're caught two times, you get life in a special prison design I call the "Hell Pyramid". No luxuries, no love. Just pure insanity-inducing hell. Once you go in, you are dead to society.
GOOD! Start barring gang members and "wannabe's" from community events. Yep, it's an infringement on their rights, but it's an infringement on MY rights when I'm being shot at while riding the roller coaster.
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Let's bar them from all public places. If only we could.
@Content_People We don't go to ANY events anymore because of this. *THEY* seem to overrun what used to be pleasant outings, to *be seen* and then you know what happens next. We are older and I guess it's not that important to go to these things anymore, but our kids and grandkids will miss out of alot of fun things......sigh.
 @Content_People In British Columbia they have task force that goes around the bars, clubs, gyms, and restaurants that sign up for the program and they kick out known gang members and their friends. Thing of beauty.Â
"We've determined that our fair going public would be safer if gang members aren't allowed on the fairgrounds," said fair manager Jim Baron.
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The general public would be safer if all so-called "gang members" (aka Domestic Terrorist Traitors) weren't allowed to exist, period.
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I hope this policy helps the fair. Best of luck to you guys with this.