Gangs are not restricted to Los Angeles, Chicago, or New York. A 1996 survey by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention revealed that 57 percent of suburban counties and 25 percent of rural counties reported a gang presence. Consequently, violent gangs are appearing in unlikely areas, such as Utah, where youths reportedly involved in the Straight Edge movement have been blamed for murder and other violence.

The Straight Edge movement began in the early 1980s as an offshoot of the punk scene. Followers eschew alcohol, drugs, smoking, promiscuous sex, and often meat. While most Straight Edgers are not violent, some are less tolerant toward those who do not follow the same lifestyle. It is the more violent adherents that many people charge have been causing gang problems in Utah.

According to an article by Louis Sahagun in the Los Angeles Times...