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 drug gang 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. ...

and gangs associated with the former

Calliope In Greek mythology, Calliope ( ; ) 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". Mythology Calliope had two famous sons, OrpheusH ...

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 lan ...

. The gang is also held accountable for the double 2010 homicide in which the famous rapper Magnolia Shorty 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 (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

. 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 Central City 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. The gang originated around Third and Galvez street near the

Calliope Projects The B. W. Cooper Public Housing Development, also known as The Calliope Projects, 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 ...

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, United States. The department's jurisdiction covers all of Orleans Parish, Louisiana, Orleans Parish, while the city itself is div ...

, 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 Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

and the

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA; ) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through collecting and analyzing intelligence from around the world and ...

. In 2009 the gang clashed with the Byrd Gang at a

Mardi Gras Mardi Gras (, ; also known as Shrove Tuesday) is the final day of Carnival (also known as Shrovetide or Fastelavn); it thus falls on the day before the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday. is French for "Fat Tuesday", referring to it being ...

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 coercion, coercive, fraud, fraudulent, extortionary, or otherwise illegal coordinated scheme or operation (a "racket") to repeatedly or consistently collect a profit. ...

and

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse committed with the necessary Intention (criminal law), intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisd ...

. 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