Los Angeles: Wild in the Streets

Armed youth gangs have long prowled the streets of east and south-central Los Angeles, terrorizing the poor neighborhoods and fighting bloody turf battles. But the violence during the past month has been especially lethal. In the bloodiest weekend in 17 years, nine people were shot dead and six wounded in a "drive-by" shooting, when gang members opened fire on youths arriving at a party. Five people were murdered in a matter of seconds. Still another shooting last Thursday brought the week's total to ten. The majority of the week's victims were innocent bystanders. Among them: a Hughes Aircraft worker...