An Asheville pastor who says he was connected to gangs in his youth told News Outlet that local leaders failed to act on his yearslong call for a youth gang-prevention initiative before a recent burst of violence shook the North Carolina tourism hub.
Dr. Ronald Gates said he first presented the idea to Asheville officials in 2016, asking the city to support early intervention for children he fears could be drawn into dangerous groups and cycles of retaliatory violence.
The concern has become more pressing after a series of retaliatory shootings killed two people and injured seven others. Asheville officials have not labeled the incidents gang-related, describing them instead as retaliation among groups of friends.
Gates says that framing overlooks the broader issue.
Leaders in Asheville, North Carolina, have ignored gang problems for years, one pastor says. (Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
“They did not want to actually acknowledge that it was gang activity,” Gates told News Outlet. “They wanted to make sure that they tried to whitewash the narrative as they’re saying that these are just retaliations between individuals.”
Gates leads Greater Works Church of God in Christ and also serves as a chaplain for the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office. He describes himself as a community liaison who works alongside local law enforcement, and he says those roles have deepened his worries about young people being pulled toward violence by money, territory or the need to belong.
At the center of Gates’ proposal is Gang Free, a Los Angeles-based program designed to teach fourth- through sixth-grade students how gangs target and recruit children, as well as the consequences that can follow involvement.
A view of downtown Asheville, North Carolina, is shown alongside a law enforcement response in the city. (Reuters; Getty)
Gates learned about the program during a 2016 trip to California and returned determined to bring a similar effort to Asheville before youth violence became more entrenched.
“I said, ‘Man, I’ve got to bring this back to Asheville, North Carolina,’” he recalled.
Over the past decade, Gates said, he has presented the proposal to mayors, city and county managers, police chiefs and sheriff’s officials, urging them to give it a one-year trial.
Interim Asheville Police Chief Jackie Stepp speaks during a community briefing about the downtown shooting that killed two people and wounded seven. (Asheville Police Department YouTube)
He questioned why the city had not invested in the program, even temporarily, to see whether it could work locally.
The program, Gates explained, would teach children how gangs operate, including their signs and colors, and explain how older members can use younger people to move drugs, carry weapons or carry out other crimes.
But education alone is not enough, he argued. A prevention model must also provide young people an alternative to the money and status that can make gangs attractive.
“These young men want to help provide for their single mom or their family,” Gates said. “Any money that they can hustle up, they feel like they’re doing something or doing their part.”
Under his proposal, law enforcement officers, mentors and local business owners would work directly with children in their neighborhoods. Along with gang-prevention lessons, the program would provide educational help, mentorship and exposure to entrepreneurship.
People walk through downtown Asheville, North Carolina. (Getty Images)
Local businesses could show students how they operate and offer a path to earning money legally, Gates said, while the city could help fund stipends or similar opportunities.
“Now they’re learning how to make honest money, business money, capital, instead of putting their life on the line,” he said.
Gates also has personal reason to believe early intervention can matter.
Growing up in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Gates had gang ties and was loosely associated with the Vice Lords. He credited his father, older brother and sports with keeping him from becoming more deeply involved.
“I thank God that someone intervened,” Gates said.
That experience shaped his belief that prevention has to begin before children become immersed in street life. Young people without steady father figures or mentors can look to older gang members for guidance and protection, he said, creating an opening for those figures to pressure them into dangerous acts while avoiding the harshest consequences themselves.
“If they would have had the opportunity, a different path, a different choice … could they still be here today?” Gates said, referring to young people caught up in the recent violence.
Gates recalled being told in 2016 that Asheville did not have the kind of gang activity that would warrant the program. He warned at the time that city leaders needed to get ahead of the problem rather than wait for violence to escalate.
An Asheville Police Department vehicle parked in downtown Asheville, North Carolina. (News Outlet)
“I said, ‘Give it two years,’” Gates said. “Two years to the year.”
State data shows Asheville reported 42% more violent crimes in 2024 than in 2016, even as its overall crime index fell 8%. The increase was driven largely by aggravated assaults, which rose from 335 to 558, while reported robberies declined. Violent crime peaked in 2022 and fell for two consecutive years, though the 2024 total remained above the city’s 2016 level.
News Outlet has contacted Asheville officials for comment on Gates’ claim that he repeatedly presented the prevention program to city leaders beginning in 2016, whether the city reviewed it and why it was not adopted.
Gates stressed that he was not arguing every violent dispute in Asheville is gang-related. But he said the city should not wait for a formal gang label before acting when young people are caught in cycles of retaliation.
“You have personal disputes,” Gates said. “But then the thrust behind it, the motivation behind it is because, ‘Look here, you spilled some blood. I’m going to spill some blood also.’ And that’s what it has come to.”
For city leaders, the question is not just how a crime is labeled, Gates argued, but whether young people have enough opportunities to avoid the path that can lead to prison or death.
That means practical support long before a shooting, arrest or funeral.
“The prevention, it works if you put it out there,” he said.
His message to anyone considering retaliation is simple: Speak with an older relative, a business owner or another trusted adult before making a choice that could change or end a life.
“Is it even worth retaliating?” Gates said. “Is it worth losing my life or going to prison for the rest of my life?”
“Let’s use common sense,” he added. “Count up the real costs.”
