(police sirens in background) - [Interviewer] Alright, Arthur, Arthur, where'd you grow up, first off? - Um, Watts, South Central Watts, Compton. - [Interviewer] Okay, and
you started with which gang? - My first was Bishop, a Blood gang. - [Interviewer] Bloods? - I moved over to Compton
with my cousin and my aunt. My parents died and I went over there and got to gang banging
with them, that same thing. I became a Crip - [Interviewer] Oh, is that right? So you were a Blood at one point, and then you became a Crip? - Yeah. - [Interviewer] How has
the gang life changed? Do you think, in all these years? - Dramatically, now. Now, it's not what it was back then. We used to, could go fight in the alley, street corner, whatever, have a nice little fight, a rumble. So be it. Today, the generation is shooting, going down and just shooting at anybody, innocents, anybody. And we tell them, they're
not organized toady, like we were back them. They have no, no organization, focus wise. One person calls the
shots for his whole crew. Now, everybody wants to call the shots. Everybody wants to be the leader. You can't tell no one nothing. Because now they envy
you, or be against you. It's like, there ain't no thing, I don't think there's no such
thing as gang banging anymore. It's idiot ass kids out
here doing what they do. It is what it is. - [Interviewer] You've done prison time? - Yes I have. I've got probably over 37
years of my life in prison. - [Interviewer] That's
more than half your life. - Yeah. - [Interviewer] What, what were the offenses that you were in for? - First time I went to
jail, it was a robbery. I was gang banging the time, I was young, 15 years old. I robbed a jewelry store and a liquor store on the same night. Got away with a nice little hunk of money. You know, back then
$7,000 was a lot of money. - [Interviewer] Yep. - I got away with it. About six months later,
somebody had told on me. So I stayed free for six months. Spending money crazy. My second time was drug sales. My third time was assault
with a deadly weapon with intent to do bodily harm
against a police officer. - [Interviewer] Was what? Against a police officer.
Attempted murder, - [Interviewer] Attempted murder? - Assault with a deadly weapon
and commit great bodily harm. - [Interviewer] Oh, alright. - And they tried to strike me
out at the time, and didn't. I ended up getting 10 years. I did four and a half of that. In 1984, I got caught up in a murder. A guy raped and killed my daughter. I killed him. - [Interviewer] I'm sorry who-- - A guy raped and killed my daughter. A Blood guy. - [Interviewer] He raped
and killed your daughter? - Killed my daughter. And that's what made me get
away from being a Blood, and I went to another gang. They didn't have no respect
for me and my child, and I straightened the matter. - [Interviewer] How old was your daughter? - She was seven years at the time. - [Interviewer] Seven? - Seven. I was 24. (police sirens in background) And that's when I switched over, hanging out with my cousins and started hanging with
their crew in Compton, and became a Compton Crip. (police sirens in background) - [Interviewer] What does your mind go through when someone
murders your daughter? Do you know who it is? - Get him. Kill him. - [Interviewer] How long did that take? - About a month and a half. - [Interviewer] A month and a half? - A month and a half. - [Interviewer] And you did what? Shot, with a gun? - Shot and killed him in broad daylight, in front of everybody. Didn't run. Got in my car. Drove home. I had pictures of my daughter,
and I was looking at them I had been talking to my
kid through spirit wise, and I told her, "I got him,
It's all over baby, I got him." And she said to my side,
she was smiling, thank you. I ended up being caught. An old lady told on me, got my
license plate and told on me. The police come at my door,
I knew what it was for. I grabbed my gun and tried
to run out the back way. That's when I caught the
attempt on a police officer. I just ran out shooting at him. Ended up getting caught. Got shot, I got a bullet in my leg now. That's why I limp with a cane. I got shot in the leg twice. And right here, by my lung. I nearly died. - [Interviewer] You nearly died? - Yeah. I got convicted by the jury. I fought it, got convicted by a jury. Got found guilty. They gave me 26 to life. I got to say, if it was
yours, what would you do? Bottom line. I told the judge the same thing,
"judge, what would you do?" And I say, what would anybody do? And they really couldn't
say nothing, you know? I kind of felt like I would never get out I had a real bad attitude, anyway. I was young, I was gang banging, I didn't give a damn about the system. Fuck the police and the system. That's the way I saw it, you know? I still had a gang banger mentality. I'm in there, slouched down, sitting, blue rag out of my pocket. They asked me, "Are you a gang banger?" What do you think? You know, I had a smart mouth. I said, "I got a rag in my pocket. It's got to represent something. Fuck yeah, I'm a gang banger." I did some dirty shit,
in my gang banging days. I did some dirty shit. Very dirty. Do I regret it? Yeah I do, I do. - [Interviewer] How many
people have you murdered? - Honestly, honestly speaking? About four. - [Interviewer] You
got caught for the one? - One. - [Interviewer] And that one seemed as justified as anything, right? - Yeah, and that's the one I should, I shouldn't have got no time for. - [Interviewer] Right. - I think, I go places now, and they see whatever
color I'm wearing, blue, "Hey OG, where you from" First I try to ignore
it, if they ask me again, "Wherever your enemy is
from, that's where I'm from." Yeah I mean, Fuck, how can
you ask an old cat at my age, "Where are you from?" Like, that don't sound right. I give them what I feel. Do I gang bang today? Honestly? Slightly. I'm never out of it. I'll be a gang member the rest of my life. I'm gonna be affiliated
the rest of my life. Why? Because I never threw my ring in. Never have, I never will. I would never see myself in the P.C. Once you're in something, you
can't un-join, I can't do it. Some of these cats, cats I grew up with, ganged banged with, and
knew have become P.C.'s. - [Interviewer] What's a P.C.? - Protective custody. Pedophiles, rapists, snitches, all that sorts of heinous crimes, or if you're a well documented, known gang member and you want to debrief. So, in order for you to debrief, you have to give up information from in the pen, or
the pen that you was at and name who, or the town or whatever. You know, the whole thing with that. You know, I don't say it
to be biased or racist but every race have
certain image about itself and with itself, with what they deal with. You can be with a flock of your family and I'll be with a flock of mine and I guarantee you, at least,
out of 30 people in yours and 30 in mine, three of them will hate the shit out of the other race. I guarantee you, at least three. I know for damn sure about mine. They go, "Fuck them crackers." Point blank. And I can see it now, you know, "Fuck them niggers over there." You know, it would just be there, I think because is never going anywhere. Back down in Louisiana
where I was originally born, Shreveport, Louisiana, it's
still down there today. Still down there today,
it ain't going nowhere. I've been trying to, I don't know, I'm trying to change
a little bit by myself I try to tell some of
the kids out there today, you know, gang banging ain't what it was when I was gang banging. I couldn't just close my
eyes and just start shooting. Kill a baby, a five year
old, something like that, because I have to. I'm kind of hanging in there you know? It was nice to have
you listen to me today. - [Interviewer] Well thank you so much for sharing your story. - I appreciate that. - [Interviewer] I appreciate it. Thank you.
