Devil's Diciples Motorcycle Gang
Devil’s Diciples Motorcycle Club, with “disciples” intentionally misspelled, is headquartered in Detroit, Michigan with chapters across the United States. It is a violent biker gang with around 250 patched members throughout the country; approximately 60 patched members being in Michigan alone. They prefer to keep their numbers small, making it easier to control them politically. The gang was established in 1967 in Southern California by 12 misfit, mostly Vietnam veterans who all had an interest in motorcycles, making money however they could, and not wanting to conform to mainstream America. A power struggle among the members resulted in the kicking out of one of the leaders, who, without permission, started his own Devil’s Diciples chapters across the country. Violent reputations were built on both sides of the country for both versions of the gang. Crimes, famously homicide, were being committed by them from Pheonix, Arizona all the way to Boston, Massachusetts. In 1977, they all came together in Yuma, Arizona and decided that they would be stronger as one gang than they would ever be as two separate gangs. In the mid-1980s, the headquarters were moved to Michigan and their criminal network was built selling crystal meth. For Detroit, as the car business faded, poverty rates went higher, the reputation for violence got bigger, and gangs became more prevalent. Former DD leader Billy “Wadds” Smith grew up in Brightmoore, one of the most violent and poverty-stricken areas of Detroit. He stated that the reason he became involved with criminal acts was because “you learn to adapt to your environment.” The many environments that the gangs are located in aggravate the problem significantly. In regards to the cultural level of the ecosystems model, the Devil’s Diciples exists due to contempt for mainstream American culture. The members have been deemed “misfits,” and unable to fit into normal society. Rules designated by government and society “don’t apply to