SAVANNAH, Ga. — Mayor Van Johnson said Tuesday that Savannah does have street gangs, but he warned against inflating the problem or treating every group of young people who spend time together as a criminal gang.
The mayor spoke at his weekly press conference after the Chatham County Sheriff’s Office said it had identified 18 street gangs countywide and proposed creating a gang unit of its own. Johnson said he could not confirm or dispute that figure because he did not know what information the sheriff relied on. He said he talked briefly with the sheriff but did not know how the new county unit would be staffed.
Savannah police have had a gang unit for roughly a decade, Johnson said, and its investigators look at crimes for possible gang ties while keeping track of known groups and members. He said gang membership and names shift over time, and that groups built around music or sports may not meet the legal definition of a gang. Police have not called anyone tied to a shooting downtown late last month a gang member.
Johnson said his focus is on cases that hold up in court rather than claims made in the news or online, adding that labeling people without evidence could taint jurors or make it harder for former members to move on. The city also pays for a prosecutor who works inside the U.S. Attorney’s Office, so qualifying cases can be taken to federal court. He also cited two city programs that work directly in neighborhoods, the Front Porch and the city Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement.
Overall violent crime in Savannah is down 9% from 2025, according to police figures, though domestic aggravated assaults without a gun rose from 193 in 2024 to 223 this year.
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