Investigators like to wave around the word 'gang.' They use it to strike fear in the heart of the community. It tends to also involve a lot of puffery and allegations that maybe perhaps aren't 100 percent solid.

As said in a Ventura County Star article about a Mexican Mafia Case Leiderman was defending. http://www.vcstar.com/news/one-man-led-large-prison-crime-ring-in-ventura