Coachella Valley voters will consider in the fall a new method to curb crime in California that aims to punish gang members with harsher penalties.

Riverside County Sheriff Stanley Sniff announced Thursday that Secretary of State Debra Bowen has qualified a statewide anti-gang initiative called the Safe Neighborhoods Act for the November ballot.

"Anything that the state lawmakers do to fight crime will be a tool that would be an asset to any law enforcement agency in the state of California," said Ben Guitron, spokesman for the Indio Police Department. "Laws like this will protect the quality of life for Coachella Valley residents, which they deserve."

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