Almighty Saints

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The Almighty Saints is a street gang instigated in the early 1960s by Polish juveniles of the Back of the Yards neighborhood of Chicago.

The name Saints was borrowed from the TV series of the same name as you can see by the similarities of the stickman used by the show and the street gang. During the early 1970s, as the Mexican families started moving to the Back Of The Yards neighborhood, the street gang started changing ethnicity dramatically from an all white gang to Mexican. The Saints have maintained the same territory since the 1960s neither gaining nor losing grounds. This is not very common in Chicago as gangs usually lose terrain over the years. By the 1980s, the street gang had became extremely violent and drug trafficking became very lucrative.

In a 1998 feature article, the Chicago Tribune wrote: "In a city known for its fearsome supergangs—criminal enterprises like the Latin Kings and the Gangster Disciples—the Saints stand out as an example of the street corner gang that still hangs on in many neighborhoods".^[1]

The following is a brief description of the Almighty Saints history and the rise of one of the most dangerous streets in the Saints Nation.

1 People Nation
2 The Rising
3 Paulina St.
4 Recent activities
5 References
6 External links

[edit] People Nation

After the formation of the People And Folk Nation during the 1980s the Saints decided to remain renegades, showing no alliance to anyone. By the late 1980s to early 1990s there were many gang members incarcerated in the prison system and the Saints decided to join the People Nation for protection of the incarcerated members. They were brought in the People Nation by the Latin Kings as cousins, hence the addition of the Almighty in front of the name and the five point star.^[2]

The Saints were affiliated with the People Nation by 1992, but there was a tragedy that started a conflict between the Kings and the Saints—a member of the kings shot and killed a member of the Saints. The Saints retaliated by doing the same, starting a gang war.

The Saints then called a truce with the Latin Kings, which lasted for some years until a fight again broke out between the two. While not officially at war with one another, the Almighty Saints and the Latin Kings remain at odds.

[edit] The Rising

The Saints' main rivals are the gangs close to their hood. The Almighty Saints neighborhood is from 43rd St to 47th St From Ashland Ave to Damen Ave the saints are surrounded by Folk gangs all along the borderline 47th St.

While previously the Saints' notoriety was limtited to the south side of Chicago, the annexation of the Paulina Boys/Saints would make them known citywide.

Throughout the mid 90s the Saints had become more aggressive, and violent drive-by shootings were common in the Back Of Yards neighborhood. The Saints were growing in numbers, and some smaller crews in south Chicago (for instance the Wood Boys, the Honore Boys and the Paulina Boys), were faced with the option of either joining the Saints or facing intimidation and harassment. After some hesitation on the part of some, notably the Paulina boys or PBs, most of the gangs concerned had joined the Saints by the summer of 1994. The Paulina Boys however gained the concession that they would be able to use Paulina in front of Saints, and hence their moniker Paulina Saints, or Saints from Paulina St. (This agreement was, however, the source of some contention within the larger Saints gang, and would go on to fuel future animosity within the Saints from 45th in the years to come)

The Paulina Saints were originally a small group with deep roots in The Back Of Yards neighborhood. Having vigorously, yet unsuccessfully, resisted incorporation into the Saints, the Paulina Saints now sought to reaffirm their standing by expanding the Saints into other neighborhoods. They established an offshoot in the Brighton Park neighborhood but, due to lack of material support from the larger Saints group, this Brighton Park branch of the saints was disbanded.

[edit] Paulina St.

The Paulina Saints (PST) made the Saints known city wide. Still seeking to re-establish their reputation, they perpetrated drive-bys in the north side of the city, went to the clubs in large numbers and fought the north side street gangs, spreading the Saints name, colors (Black and Baby Blue) and hand sign abroad throughout the Chicago city area. Meanwhile, in their hood they terrorized members of other gangs (known colloquially by the generic term "flakes"). In the summer of 1996 shootings on the other side of 47th were very common, and by now most north side gangs knew of the Saints by reputation and indeed, in the case their leading members, by sight. But while they still went to the north side to represent the gang, new problems had emerged in the very heart of the Saints' own terrain.

The Saints were worried that the PST were growing too fast in numbers. Also, their increasingly violent attitude towards the Flakes led to heightened police patrols of the hood, and this in turn had a negative impact on other Saints' activities, which allegedly included drug dealing. By this time the PST's had about 75 members on their list who were paying $10 dues every week. The Saint's, worried about the growing power of the PST, decided to break up the group and scatter its members among the other sub-groups. However, the founding members of the PST resisted this move and constant arguments and fights began to break out in the area. At one point, the Saints dismissed the PST from the Saints altogether and sent out an "SOS" ("smash on sight") against all PST members. The PST, refusing to yield, maintained a visible presence on their block throughout the next fortnight, inevitably leading to some outburts of fighting. There were no major casualties however, and subsequently a meeting was called between the Inca (leader) of the Saints and the leader of The PST. Although an uneasy truce was established, fighting still occurred, and tensions still ran high in the locality.

[edit] Recent activities

In 1998 a 12 year old kid shot 2 kids in the Back of the Yards neighborhood after days of joining the Saints street gang.^[3] He was later convicted of murder but because he was under 13 years of age he was tried as a minor and sentenced to prison until 2007 or his 21st birthday.^[4]

In 1999 and 2001, two well-known Paulinas members had been killed by rival gang members. One murder was alleged to be committed by one of the Almighty Saints from Wood Street. Although this was never proved, this also ignited the fighting within the Saints.

The Paulinas remain one of the more ruthless groups in the Saints Nation. In 2004, Some of the Almighty Saints gang members have been charged for murder, kidnapping, drug trafficking, weapons charges and assault. This has resulted in six members charged with murder while more still face trial; if found guilty, they are looking from 10 to 25 years in prison.

In early 2005, there was a police raid in the Saints hood dubbed operation broken halo; 25 members were arrested and detained in prison on drug dealing and weapons charges. The Saints are still very active in the Back Of The Yards neighborhood.^[5]

On February 12, 2006, Francisco Romero, 23 years, a member of the Saints, escaped from cook county jail along with 5 other inmates. He was being convicted of murder and was sentence to 45yrs in prison. He was later captured.^[6]