Atlantic Drive Compton Crips

Full Name: Atlantic Drive Compton Crips
Also Known As: A-Drive Crips, ADCC
Founded: Late 1970s to early 1980s
Founding Location: Compton, California
Years Active: Late 1970s–present
Territory: Southeast / East Compton; 
Ethnicity: Predominantly African-American
Identifiers: Oakland Athletics caps, powder blue handkerchiefs
Notable Members: BG Scarface, G Bone, Compton TG, Killa Mike

 

The Atlantic Drive Compton Crips (ADCC), also known as the Atlantic Drive Crips or A-Drive Crips, are an African-American Crip street gang based in the southeastern section of Compton, California. Their neighborhood is generally described as running from Atlantic Drive to Caldwell Avenue, between White Avenue and the 710 Long Beach Freeway, in a section of East Compton surrounded by older Crip and Piru neighborhoods.

Atlantic Drive is best known for its longtime alliance with the South Side Compton Crips. Over the years, the gang has also been involved in conflicts with the Santana Blocc Compton Crips and several East Side Piru neighborhoods.

Atlantic Drive never drew the same attention as South Side, but the gang has been active for decades and shows up in murder cases, gang prosecutions, narcotics investigations, and Compton rap history through members connected to Bloods & Crips and Nationwide Rip Ridaz.

Foundation and Early History

The Atlantic Drive Compton Crips formed during the late 1970s to early 1980s as East Compton’s Crip neighborhoods splintered into smaller sets. Like many older Compton gangs, Atlantic Drive grew out of a specific neighborhood and took its name from Atlantic Drive and the surrounding blocks.

By the late 1980s, Atlantic Drive was already established on Compton’s East Side and active in local gang conflicts. During that period, the neighborhood formed a close alliance with the South Side Compton Crips. Because both gangs operated in the southern section of East Compton, their alliance became known as South Side Atlantic Drive or simply South Atlantic. Through that relationship, Atlantic Drive was also allied with the Nutty Blocc Compton Crips as part of Nutty South Atlantic.

The phrase “Atlantic, don’t panic” traces back to OG Killer Mike, who coined it in 1980 while at  , and it later became one of Atlantic Drive’s best-known slogans.

One of Atlantic Drive’s oldest rivalries is with the Santana Blocc Compton Crips. Street accounts trace the split between the two gangs to a drug deal during the 1980s, and by the end of that decade, Santana had become one of Atlantic Drive’s main enemies.

Territory

Atlantic Drive Compton Crips claim a section of East Compton generally described as stretching from Atlantic Drive to Caldwell Avenue, between White Avenue and the 710 Long Beach Freeway. The neighborhood sits in a compact part of East Compton where Crip and Piru territories meet, and that has kept Atlantic Drive in both Crip-on-Crip conflicts and Piru rivalries for years.

One of Atlantic Drive’s main gathering spots is the Alondra Apartments on Alondra Boulevard between White Avenue and Butler Avenue. The complex has long been associated with Atlantic Drive members and affiliates and is frequently mentioned in street accounts tied to the neighborhood.

Music and Media

Atlantic Drive also had a place in West Coast gang rap through members such as BG Scarface and G Bone, both of whom were affiliated with Atlantic Drive and appeared on projects tied to Bloods & Crips and Nationwide Rip Ridaz. Both men appeared in the Nationwide Rip Ridaz and Wish You Was Here videos, linking Atlantic Drive to the Bloods & Crips / Bangin’ on Wax era of Compton gang rap.

BG Scarface later died in Spokane, Washington, on October 2, 2012, years after Atlantic Drive members had already been tied to narcotics investigations in the same city.

Documented Incidents

The Kelly Park Shooting and the Death of Earl Solomon (1989)

One of the earliest documented incidents tied to Atlantic Drive Compton Crips took place in April 1989 during the gang’s feud with the Santana Blocc Compton Crips. According to later court records, a large group of Crip gang members and associates had gathered at Kelly Park in Compton when rivals opened fire with an AK-47 into the crowd and a nearby parked car.

Among those killed was Earl Solomon, a 17-year-old Atlantic Drive associate. The shooting was one of the earliest documented killings tied to Atlantic Drive and one of the clearest examples of the gang’s role in East Compton gang conflicts during the late 1980s.

Spokane Drug Investigation and Homicide Probe (2010)

In 2010, Atlantic Drive’s name came up in a criminal investigation far outside Compton when authorities in Spokane, Washington, tied several suspects to an Atlantic Drive drug operation. The case began after a fatal shooting at a party in January 2010. During the homicide investigation, detectives connected several of the people involved to an alleged crack cocaine ring run by Atlantic Drive affiliates.

Search warrants were later served at two Spokane-area homes, where authorities seized crack cocaine, cash, and firearms. News reports at the time specifically described the investigation as involving suspected drug dealing by members of the Atlantic Drive Crips. Although no murder charges came out of the Spokane killing, the case still showed Atlantic Drive members tied to drug trafficking and violent investigations outside California.

Allies and Rivals

Atlantic Drive Compton Crips have long remained closely aligned with the South Side Compton Crips, the gang’s closest ally. Former allies of Atlantic Drive Crips are the Kelly Park Compton Crips and Neighborhood Hood Compton Crips. The gang has also been associated with the Ward Lane Compton Crips at different points.

Atlantic Drive Compton Crips have feuded with the Santana Blocc Compton Crips since the 1980s, and remain their oldest Crip rivals. The gang has also been identified as a rival of several East Side Piru neighborhoods, including Cross Atlantic Piru, Mob Piru, Lueders Park Piru, Elm Street Piru, Holly Hood Piru, and Lime Hood Piru.

News

• S.C. Upholds Death Sentence in Compton Drive-By Shootings