nge of criminal activities including "extortion, home invasion, prostitution, gambling, and drug trafficking however, robbery is still their crime of choice" (Lam, 1994, p.3). A common method of robbery is for gang members to break into homes of Asian immigrants or business owners, tie up their victims and beat them until they produce valuable items or money. (Lam 1994) Several factors have made fellow Asians their primary targets. First Asians, especially the recent immigrants and business owners do not put money in banks. For many of these immigrants, banking is a completely new experience. This is because they come from countries have limited banking services established. Because of this, many of them keep their money at home, or invest in jewelry. From their point of view, buying gold is not only the safest way to protect their money, but also the best form of investment since the price of gold rarely falls. Secondly, Asian gangs also recognize that they are not likely to get prosecuted for their crimes against other Asians. Many of the victims are unlikely to call or report crimes to the police. Many Asian's try to avoid dealing with law enforcement officials or agencies for as long as possible. This problem is not the result of police actions or practices, but rather an ill-conceived notion about the role of law enforcement officials in the community. To many Asians, the law represents an extreme source of terror rather than a source of help or service. This misconception grew because of the social and political conditions from which they came. (Webb, 1995). "For years, many Asian governments (e.g., China, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Taiwan, North and South Korea, Indonesia, and Burma) have used the police as a political weapon to suppress political discontents and to protect their powers rather than as an instrument to protect justice" (Lee, 1992, p.205). Unlike the legal system of the United States where and individ...
