If Kody "Monster" Scott Were My Client

Today I wanted to  examine the young life of Monster Kody Scott, a South Los Angeles gang member of the Eight Trays.  Kody had dreams of being a gang member since he was a small child; he was drawn to the loyalty between the members, the notoriety that they held in the “hood” and the cash flow that some seemed to have.  Kody rose through the ranks of the Eight Trays and became a notorious “banger”.  We will be examining his life as a youth then pose a treatment plan for young Kody with different approaches developed from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Examining his behavior and possible interventions that may have gotten him off his path and onto a different one.

DISCLAIMER

Until we change the actual systems in place that create this style of human, we can only treat the subsequent behavior and will never truly get to the root cause of this behavior. 

Lets Get Started 

 I read this book in my twenty's and again in my thirty's, both times I was intrigued about intervention points that could have helped Kody and countless teens like him out of this lifestyle and into a morse sustainable one.  

Thinking for a Change

This intervention is tailored to guide offenders into a more aware state.  He will learn to become more aware of himself and the people in the community.  This intervention teaches problem solving while examining the offenders way of thinking, his feelings, beliefs and attitudes (Milkman & Wanberg 2007).  This intervention is delivered in twenty-two sessions that last one to two hours per session.   

 Application of Cognitive Therapy with Kody Scott 

Assessment

The assessment is done based uniquely on Kody Scott self-narrated autobiography; Monster: The Autobiography of an L.A. Gang Member by Sanyika Shakur (formerly Kody Scott) (Shakur, 1993).  A summary of his story follows.

Sanyika Shakur born Kody Scott in 1963 decided to become a member of the Eight Tray Crips a few weeks prior to his sixth grade graduation.  Kody was raised in a single parent home with the only contact from his father being strained and maladaptive.  He never could get an understanding of why his father disliked him.  Kody enjoyed the feelings that the street life offered him.  He admired other members of the gangs and was honored when he was initiated, taking his role as a new recruit with extreme seriousness.  His first night he was initiated he was also given a sawed off twelve gage pump which he was to use on the enemy.  Kody did not hesitate when it came to serving his new collective.  He emptied all eight shots watching his multiple victims fall by his hands.  He informed us in the book that once he was alone and the drugs and alcohol induced fog was lifted he could not get the scene out of his head; he tried to justify his actions but was unable to do so.  He got little sleep on nights when he committed murders.  Kody earned the nickname Monster after his failed attempt to rob a man which retaliated with hand combat, once his crew arrived and subdued the man, Kody beat the man so badly that he was disfigured and in a coma.  The police stated that whoever had done this to that man had to be a monster.  With this new name Kody had a reputation to live up to.  Always angry Kody main mission was to protect his set from opposing gangs and to execute as many bloods as humanly possible.  Kody entered the judicial system at age 13 and would be a frequent participant throughout his lifetime.  Collectively Kody has spent at least 15+ years of his life caught up in the system.  He worked with the crooked police on a reoccurring basis.  They would inform Kody and other Eight Trays of the whereabouts of rival gangs then inform them of how much time they could give them to “get the job done”.  Kody begrudgingly obliged with the cops for his own survival.  After being set-up by some neutral females he began to suffer from symptoms of PTSD, but did not feel that a man should suffer from anything so he never sought treatment for this condition.  Instead he relinquished himself to the re-occurring nightmares that accompanied his condition.  He would often use drugs and alcohol to fall into a stuper and thusly a dreamless sleep.  Kody’s actions were often so monstrous that they would repulse even fellow gang-members.  His overall goal was to reach O.G status.  This was cut short by an extended prison sentence for attempted murder, where he met Muhammad Abdullah and sub-sequentially tried to change his life from being a gang member to becoming an advocate against gang violence.  His reputation has not allowed for him to be very effective with this approach and he is often harassed by the LAPD and has recently (in 2006) been sentenced to prison for a car-jacking that he claims he had nothing to do with. 

  Working Conceptualization

Kody Scott has the following problem behaviors.

Anger

Kody has shown signs of extreme anger in his interactions with other human beings.  He took his first life when he was eleven and continued through his teenage years.  Kody has a heightened sense of awareness when it comes to rival gangs and complete disregard for their lives or the lives of anyone that happens to be in company of any of his enemies.  He treated his mother with disrespect and initiated his younger brother into the same gang that he was in. Kody was also eager to please others with expression of his disregard for human life and would often “suit-up” and ride around with a loaded gun “mean-mugging” individuals to get a response so he could justify harming them. 

Alcohol and Drug Use

Kody has been using drugs since he was eleven years-old.  He and his fellow gang-members would often smoke marijuana before and after “missions”.  They would drink alcohol before they faced their rivals on the battlefield and was an avid user of PCP.  Kody has never been treated for his drug addictions and does not admit to having a problem.  He has been ambushed on occasion due to his lowered sense of awareness caused by the drugs and alcohol. 

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Living in a proverbial war zone can be extremely challenging for the most adjusted of individuals.  Kody has not only been a victim of extreme violence he has witnessed it and has partaken in the violence as well.  He has re-occurring nightmares which he has tried to silence with drugs and alcohol.  After suffering multiple gunshot wounds Kody often woke up screaming and sweating. 

Other Underlining Problems

1) Conduct disorder

2) Inadequate work skills

3) Poor cognitive functioning

4) Low educational attainment

Treatment Plan

Aggression Replacement Therapy along with anger, aggression intervention will be the first stage of treatment with Kody Scott.  This decision was made because Kody has exhibited extreme anger and disregard for human life.  Kody fist needs to undergo anger control therapy where he will first identify the internal and external triggers that cause him anger, what situations cause you the most anger, what happens when anger occurs are the questions that we will focus the first sessions on (Milkman & Wanberg 2007).  Then we will begin to explore his physical reactions to the anger once it has been established.  We would then go through his anger reducers and how he can reduce or control his anger in high risk situations, this is followed by self-evaluation and thinking ahead.  To obtain these goals Kody must be taught some social skills which will include; a) giving a compliment b) understanding the feelings of others c) preparing for difficult conversations d) dealing with someone else’s anger e) keeping out of fights f) helping others g) dealing with accusations h) dealing with group pressure i) expressing affection and j) responding to failures (Milkman & Wanberg 2007).  The interventions that Kody will go through will increase his coping skills and thusly decrease his anger reaction to subsequent stimuli.  The Phoenix Gang Intervention and Prevention program has laid out an effective curriculum that addresses anger and aggression as well as gang violence from a cognitive behavioral therapeutic approach.  This curriculum has twenty components that help gang members effectively gain coping skills and self-efficacy to better engage them in behavioral management.  This includes a) basic skills for better communication b) becoming a better listener c) learning to be assertive d) where does his anger come from e) where does his anger go f) keeping out of fights g) when he is accused of doing something h) handling provocation i) handling when someone is angry with you j) preparing for stressful situations k) what to do when he feels the need to complain l) handling peer pressure m) expressing support and appreciation n) offering specific help in situations o) what to do when he has made a mistake p) assertion skills practice q) protecting boundaries r) conflict resolution practice s) refusal skills and t) using escape skills (Phoenix Gang Intervention and Prevention Programs, 2011).  Some of the major social and life skills that Kody needs to learn are; communication skills, assertiveness skills building, improvement of relational skills, conflict resolution and aggression management (Davis & Flannery 2001).  Since CBT focuses on external behaviors addressing Kody’s behavior may give him some relief of his PTSD symptoms.  One major goal of Kody’s is to develop the skills that are needed to live in harmony with the community and engage in positive behaviors that contribute to society and guide him away from the judicial system (Frew & Speigler 2008).              

Other Aspects to Address

Through all of Kody’s lifetime he has not addressed the drugs and alcohol aspect of his behavior.  Throughout the autobiography Kody makes reference of heavy drug use and never seeks treatment for this, even into adulthood.  He addresses the gang behavior and decides that his life would have turned out differently if he had not been involved in this behavior.  He would have finished school and got a proper education and thusly been a more employable citizen.  Kody also talks around the fact that he is a father of two girls who he had not been in their life much.  He was present for the birth of his first daughter but in jail when the other was born.  Because of Kody’s aggressive behavior the only work that he is able to get is self-employment, and he is constantly being harassed by the local police in L.A.  Kody may benefit from some reality therapy, to see his part in these circumstances. 

References

Davis M. S., Flannery D. J. (2001) The Institutional Treatment of Gang Members. Corrections Management Quarterly, 2001, 5(1), 37–46

Frew J., Spiegler D. M. (2008) Contemporary psychotherapies for a diverse world. Houghton Mifflin Company, Lahaska Pennsylvania.

Milkman H. Wanberg K. (2007) Cognitive behavioral treatment: A review and discussion for correctional professionals. National Institute of Corrections. Washington D.C.

Phoenix Gang Intervention and Prevention (2011) retrieved on October 22, 2011 from http://www.gangprograms.com/gang_violence.php

Shakur, S. (1999) Monster: an autobiography of an LA gang member. Turtleback Books. N.P