Washington state Attorney General Rob McKenna visits Pioneer Middle School

Washington state Attorney General Rob McKenna visits Pioneer Middle School
Washington state Attorney General Rob McKenna visited Pioneer Middle School Thursday to be interviewed by 8th grade student John Martin as part of a student produced video documentary on gangs.

Martin invited McKenna and coordinated the visit in support of his school project. Martin asked McKenna a series of questions addressing state, regional and local issues related to gang activity. Martin and his classmates Hayden Hartwell and Caleb Thompson who served as videographers, plan to have the video documentary completed in January.

In November, McKenna proposed an anti-gang bill to state legislators calling for spending $10 million for gang prevention and intervention, stiffer sentence enhancements for gang crimes and empowering local governments and property owners to keep gangs out of certain areas. He told Martin students are often the key to curbing gang recruitment.

"John and all the students in the school district can help by reaching out to their classmates and making them feel included," McKenna said. "They don't have to join a gang to have a sense of belong, they can be involved in their school."

McKenna also praised Martin for having the leadership skills at a young age to coordinate his visit, formulate his questions and produce a meaningful school project.