The number of people joining gangs is not decreasing. In fact, just last year Metro identified more than 60 new gangs from the year before.

Police also say even with the number of gangs going up, the number of gang crimes, like shootings, stabbings and murders, is going down.

But the Clark County District Attorney says they still can't waive the victory flag in this war on gangs. In fact the DA's office is beefing up its army in the fight by adding another prosecutor to their gang unit.

Read the Clark County Homicide Report

For years gangs have wreaked havoc in the valley and Metro has been working to take them down. The latest numbers show metro's winning the war.

Gang related shootings are down from 274 in 2006 to 185 in 2007. Killings by gang members have dropped from 63 to 40.

“We have to continue keeping the full court press on the gang members,” said Clark County District Attorney David Roger.

Read the Crime Blotter

Roger says the success is a combination of good police work and his office's commitment to keep the bad guys locked up.

The DA's office has a team of prosecutors whose main responsibility is to build strong cases against these criminals.

“We started off with one prosecutor then added a second and this year will add a third,” he said.

Street officers have changed their strategy to battle gangs because gang members have revamped their lifestyle as well. The gangs of 10 years ago aren't the same anymore.

“Gangs are less territorial. They are getting more involved in crimes of opportunity and more sophisticated crimes,” said Roger.

He says his office is seeing more crimes like financial and identify theft. But Roger warns citizens — don't let your guard down. Violence is still a common thread.

The gangs of today are less likely to battle each other. They are also joining forces to mixing an matching members.

“Today we have hybrid gangs so you might have Crypts and Bloods as part of a hybrid gangs,” he said.

Although the fight to take down gang members is showing progress, the community can help speed the process along.

The DA says the biggest hurdle they face when it comes to keeping these gang members off the streets is finding people to speak up against them. Unless they have witnesses who can point the finger at these gangsters and speak up about the crimes being committed, suspects will not be prosecuted and come back to terrorize the community again.

A Clark County middle school teacher is on administrative leave after allegations that he inappropriately touched a female student.  This same teacher was suspended a few years ago for a similar incident.

According to the arrest report, Harney Middle School teacher Dale Scharpf, called a 13-year-old female student into an office to discuss her absence from school earlier in the week. The student told police that Scharpf touched her breasts and hugged her. The student said she left the office in tears and later reported the incident to the principal, who called police.

The incident allegedly took place on Jan. 16, 2008. Another teacher told police she witnessed the girl go into an office with Scharpf and she also witnessed the teacher hug the student.

Scharpf is currently on administrative leave. He did admit to police that he received a 10-day suspension in 2005 for reportedly touching a female student's breast. Scharpf told police that he did not believe he had done anything wrong at that time and that he is a touchy kind of person who cares for kids. 

Police are investigating a fatal hit and run that happened on Tuesday. The accident happened at Nellis and Harris.

Police say an Acura made a left hand turn in front of a Ford Explorer. The Explorer struck the Acura on the passenger side. The driver of the Acura fled the scene on foot after the collision.

A passenger in the Acura was transported to UMC where he later died. The driver of the Ford was also transported to UMC and is listed in serious condition.

Police are looking for the driver of the Acura and ask that anyone with information to call CrimeStoppers at 385-5555.

On Wednesday, January 16, 911 dispatchers received a medical call about a 17-year-old bleeding from her head.

When medical personnel arrived, they discovered that the teen had been shot. She died at the scene.

Read the Clark County Homicide Report

Homicide detectives were called and they interviewed witnesses at the scene.

According to witnesses, 20-year-old Omar Rodriguez, an ex-boyfriend of the victim, was seen near the victim's apartment just prior to the shots being heard.

Rodriguez was located in the northeast area of Las Vegas and was taken into custody with out incident.

Omar Rodriguez was booked into the Clark County Detention Center for murder with use of a deadly weapon.

Rodriguez also had two outstanding arrest warrants for attempt murder with use of a deadly weapon and battery with use of a deadly weapon, from an incident that occurred in November 2007.

The November incident involved Rodriguez stabbing the victims new boyfriend.

Nellis Air Force Base says be prepared for extra military aircraft noise for the next couple of weeks in the northern part of the Las Vegas valley.

The Air Force is conducting Red Flag air combat training exercises through January 26th. The exercises involve more than 80 aircraft ranging from the B-1B bomber to the F-22A Raptor. Missions will take place during day and night over a 15,000-square-mile Nellis Air Force Test Range.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

The families of about 100 soldiers with the U.S. Army Reserve 257th Transporation Company gathered at Nellis Air Force Base to say goodbye to their loved ones.

The transportation company is deploying to Iraq where it will be responsible for moving heavy equipment such as tanks, conex containers and broken down Humvees or generators in the battlefield.

The unit was previously deployed to Kuwait and Iraq in 2003 and 2004.

Nellis Air Force Base says be prepared for extra military aircraft noise for the next couple of weeks in the northern part of the Las Vegas valley.

The Air Force is conducting Red Flag air combat training exercises through January 26th. The exercises involve more than 80 aircraft ranging from the B-1B bomber to the F-22A Raptor. Missions will take place during day and night over a 15,000-square-mile Nellis Air Force Test Range.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Nicco Tatum, the accused ring leader in a bus stop shooting, appeared in court in court for the second time in as many days.

The 18-year-old is accused of shooting six people at a school bus stop in Dec. 2007. He faced a judge Wednesday morning in North Las Vegas and was assigned an attorney.

He's charged with six counts of attempted murder and six counts of battery with the use of a deadly weapon. If convicted he could spend at least 24 years in prison. His three co-defendants in the shooting will be in court Thursday for their arraignments.

His preliminary hearing is set for Jan. 23. Tatum also faces attempted murder charges in a separate shooting involving a woman.  

The accused ringleader of a group that opened fire at a school bus stop in December made his first court appearance Tuesday morning on another shooting.

Police arrested 18-year-old Nicco Tatum a few days after the shooting in Denver, Colorado. Six people were wounded in that shooting.  Tatum was in court Tuesday morning on another shooting involving a woman which occured before the bus stop shooting. The victim, 40-year-old Tracy Beavers, survived the shooting.

Police say Tatum shot a woman several times after she got into an argument with him for taunting her dog.

In court, the judge asked Tatum if he had read the Criminal Complaint against him. He told the judge he didn't understand what she meant. The judge then read the charges against Tatum which include attempted murder, battery, possession of stolen property and carrying a concealed weapon.

Tatum is expected to be in court Wednesday morning on charges stemming from the bus stop shooting on Dec. 11, 2007. In that case, he is also facing attempted murder and battery charges.

Three other people have been arrested in the case and are currently being held in jail.

A Las Vegas homeowner is cleaning up after a CAT bus slammed into her house Thursday night. The bus clipped a car, then plowed through a block wall and into the house. There were no serious injuries, but the house was severely damaged.

Residents say they've been afraid for sometime that something like this might happen. Metro police say the cause of the crash is still under investigation, but residents in the neighborhood tell Eyewitness News they've been afraid for some time that something like this might happen.

Robert DiGuilio has lived in this northeast Las Vegas neighborhood for 27 years. “It's getting more dangerous every day,” he says. As the traffic has increased — so have the speeds.

“The speed limit is 25, but we've seen cars and trucks come through here at 60 and 70 miles per hour,” he said.

And that's why DiGuilio wasn't surprised when a CAT bus collided with a car in the busy residential intersection.

The bus left a big path of destruction in its wake. It was traveling southbound on Christy and was turning left on Maple when it collided with the driver of a Mustang. First it took out a block wall, plowed into a backyard shed, took out a second block wall and landed on the backyard patio of another home.

“I think all that stuff slowed the bus down, thankfully, because only 20 feet away was a 2-week-old baby sleeping in the next room,” said homeowner Michele Navarro. Her house suffered the most damage. But no one was seriously hurt, and Navarro is the first to point out property can be replaced — lives cannot.

While a construction crew shored up and boarded up Navarro's house, Metro Police continued their investigation into the cause of the crash, with the full cooperation of the Regional Transportation Commission.

“An incident like last night's is truly an isolated incident. I can't even recall the last time something like this happened but we will cooperate with police to find out what occurred,” said Tracy Bower of the RTC.

Part of that investigation will include a post-accident drug test of the bus driver. But Metro says its preliminary investigation reveals that drugs and alcohol do not appear to be a factor. No arrests or citations have been issued yet.

Eyewitness News received a statement Friday from Veoila Transportation, the RTC's CAT bus service provider.

They said: “Coach operators must qualify for a driving position which includes a pre-screening process and a training program approved by the Department of Transportation. No driver is released for public service until he or she has met all the criteria to safely operate a CAT bus.”