The "39ers gang," is a “hybrid” force of the Upper 9th Ward's G-Strip (Gallier Street) gang and 3-N-G, a notorious

Central City In urban planning, a core city, principal city metropolitan core, or central city, is the largest or most important city or cities of a metropolitan area. A core city is surrounded by smaller satellite cities, towns, and suburbs. A central city i ...

drug clan named for its stronghold around Third and Galvez streets. Several of the alleged members also hailed from the Florida housing development. The gangs combined forces in early 2010 to press for control of the heroin trade in both areas, federal prosecutors allege, often through bloodshed against associates of rival gangs, such as " Ride or Die gang" from the

8th Ward of New Orleans The 8th Ward is a section of New Orleans, Louisiana. It is one of the Downtown Wards of New Orleans, with a Creole history. The 8th Ward is a narrow strip stretching from the Mississippi River on the south to Lake Pontchartrain in the north. Ea ...

and gangs associated with the former

Calliope In Greek mythology, Calliope ( ; grc, Καλλιόπη, Kalliópē, beautiful-voiced) is the Muse who presides over eloquence and epic poetry; so called from the ecstatic harmony of her voice. Hesiod and Ovid called her the "Chief of all Muses" ...

and

Desire Projects Desire Projects was a housing project located in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans, Louisiana. These projects were the largest in the nation and consisted of about 262 two-story brick buildings, containing about 1,860 units across 98.5 acres of land ...

. The gang is also held accountable for the double 2010 homicide in which the famous rapper

Magnolia Shorty Renetta Yemika Lowe-Bridgewater (September 30, 1982 – December 20, 2010), known by the stage name Magnolia Shorty, was an American rapper in the New Orleans-based bounce music scene.Cadogan, Garnette (August 2007). Bounce Back: Not even Katrina ...

was killed. Authorities have connected the 39ers to over 45 murders.

History

G-Strip

The G-Strip gang Gallier Street is a gang that operates in the 9th Ward of

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

. The gang is based around Gallier Street nicknamed "G-Strip". Members also controlled dope houses around the Desire and Florida Housing projects. NOPD Homicide detectives have linked the gang to various homicides around the 9th Ward.

3-N-G

The "3-N-G" gang" 3rd and Galvez is a feared street gang operating in the

neighborhood of New Orleans. They are well known for their murderous reputation in the streets and violent acts towards other gangs including the

Young Melph Mafia Young may refer to: * Offspring, the product of reproduction of a new organism produced by one or more parents * Youth, the time of life when one is young, often meaning the time between childhood and adulthood Music * The Young, an American roc ...

. The gang originated around Third and Galvez street near the

Calliope Projects The Calliope Projects, also known as B. W. Cooper Public Housing Development, was a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans and one of the housing projects of New Orleans. This project of New Orleans gained notoriety for its extremely high violent ...

in the early 2000s and controlled the drug trade in Central City before joining forces with G-Strip gang to form the 39ers gang. In the early 2000s they were known to feud with another Central City gang called the "Calliope Porch Boyz". According to the

New Orleans Police Department The New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) has primary responsibility for law enforcement in New Orleans, Louisiana. The department's jurisdiction covers all of Orleans Parish, while the city is divided into eight police districts. The NOPD has a ...

, the Porch Boyz where completely "whipped out" by 2003. This gave the gang notability in the city and attracted attention from the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...

and the

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...

. In 2009 the gang clashed with the

Byrd Gang The Byrd Gang also known as the Piff Gang, is a criminal organization located in New Orleans, Louisiana. Detectives with New Orleans Police Department's Multi-Agency Gang unit previously described the Byrd Gang as "one of the most murderous gangs ...

at a

Mardi Gras Mardi Gras (, ) refers to events of the Carnival celebration, beginning on or after the Christian feasts of the Epiphany (Three Kings Day) and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday, which is known as Shrove Tuesday. is French for "Fat ...

Parade which left seven people wounded by bullets.

Indictment

* In February 2017 10 members of the gang were indicted on various charges including

racketeering Racketeering is a type of organized crime in which the perpetrators set up a coercive, fraudulent, extortionary, or otherwise illegal coordinated scheme or operation (a "racket") to repeatedly or consistently collect a profit. Originally and of ...

and

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

. All men received maximum sentences in prison. The defendants were implicated in 14 murders, including the death of a local rapper and a federal Informant. The jury found all 10 guilty of a racketeering charge.

References

{{Organized crime groups in the United States Organizations established in 2009 2009 establishments in Louisiana African-American organized crime groups Gangs in New Orleans Organized crime in Louisiana