The first State of Sacramento County luncheon, hosted by the Metro Chamber on Oct. 26, found a packed house of 260-plus participants for the release of Sacramento County's 2006-07 Report Card. County CEO Terry Schutten called the performance score card the "first in the region and one of few in the state." | View Report Card Among the county's success stories are the conversion of McClellan Air Force Base to a business park, whose employment in 2006-07 exceeded civilian employment numbers present at the time of the bases' closing. The park is now home to 235 businesses. Gangs can have a corrosive effect on society, said Vern Speirs, chief probation officer for Sacramento County. His department at any time oversees 20,000 juveniles and adults on probation. The department has identified some 3,000 gang members or those affiliated with gangs in the county--of those, about 700 are "truly criminally sophisticated." What law enforcement has discovered is that a community cannot get rid of gangs or arrest its way out of the issue. What the Probation Department, can do, however is target individuals and let them know they're being watched--and intervene with young people to divert them from gang activity. Sacramento County has 65 "gang sets," according to Deputy Probation Officer Marc Marquez. A new development is that more females are becoming involved with gangs and are becoming more violent. Where girls used to act as couriers, they are now committing violent acts. The corrosive effect of gangs on the community can be seen in places like Stockton Boulevard, where businesses close early, neighbors fear walking to local shops and boarded up stores attract graffiti and homeless people--creating a cycle of dilapidation, according to Stockton Boulevard Partnership Executive Director Richard Greene. Greene was part of the panel discussion moderated by KVIE Channel 6's David Hosley that also included District Attorney Jan Scully and Sheriff John McGinness. Greene said Stockton Boulevard business people were beginning a program of volunteering time an a hour a week in local schools to mentor students. To break the cycle of gang affiliation--which often is generational--District Attorney Scully and Sheriff McGinness encouraged business people to become more involved in after-school programs so that students have a connection to the community and feel like they belong. Photo above: Panelists District Attorney Jan Scully, StocktonBoulevard Partnership Executive Director Richard Greene and Sheriff John McGinness.