In August of 2004, Massachusetts Acting Governor Kerry Healey signed into law a gang loitering bill that made Somerville the first city in the state where gang members could be arrested for disobeying a police officers order to disperse from designated public places.2= The impetus for the law dates back to October of 2002, when individuals associated with a nationwide street gang known as MS-13 brutally raped two disabled teenage girls in a Somerville park. At the time of the incident, MS-13 had been tied to a wave of violent assaults against Somerville residents and was estimated to have roughly 100 members in the area. As residents grew increasingly concerned for their safety, Somervilles governing Board of Alderman approved a sweeping antiloitering ordinance, which has sparked debate over the constitutionality of such measures and their effectiveness in curbing violent gang activity. . . .
