The underlying problem we are dealing with – crimes committed by and against juveniles – is very serious. And by most measures, the problem appears to be getting worse.  Even as our city has seen encouraging reductions in crime over the past several years, juvenile involvement in crime seems to be growing more common and more serious.  Between 2002 and 2005, the number of juveniles arrested in the District rose by more than 20 percent.  And while the overall number of arrests was essentially unchanged from 2004 to 2005, arrests are up 14 percent in the first five months of 2006. What’s more, we have detected a very disturbing trend within the aggregate numbers: a surge in juveniles arrested for some of our most serious crimes. 

One out of every six juveniles arrested in DC today is charged with a violent offense, compared with about one out of every 20 adults arrested. The number of juveniles arrested for robbery offenses alone increased 37 percent in 2005, and arrests for weapon offenses rose 30 percent.  These alarming trends have continued, even accelerated, this year. Through the first five months of 2006, juvenile arrests for weapons offenses have jumped another 24 percent, and robbery arrests of juveniles are up an astonishing 85 percent. In fact, 4 out of every 10 individuals arrested for robbery this year in the District has been a juvenile.  Today, it is not uncommon for us to see packs of 3 or 4 or even more juveniles, some of them armed, committing street robberies in our city.  If these trends continue, juvenile arrests in the District will top 3,000 this year, a level not seen since the 1990s

While these numbers are certainly alarming in the short term, the long-term outlook is even more dire, I’m afraid.  With juveniles in DC engaging in more criminal activity, and more violent criminal activity, at younger and younger ages, we can expect to see increases in crime, especially violent crime, in the years ahead as these juveniles enter adulthood – unless, of course, we take meaningful steps today to interrupt their criminal careers.

Reversing these disturbing trends will take more than just the police department, and it will take more than just law enforcement and prosecution of offenders. It will take a comprehensive approach that includes enforcement and prevention. The Metropolitan Police Department recognizes this fact, and we are actively engaged in numerous youth crime prevention, education and intervention efforts. These include the annual “40 Days of Increased Peace” summer initiative, which kicks off this Wednesday, as well as Conflict Resolution Teams, Metropolitan Police Boys and Girls Clubs, Youth Advisory Councils, and more.  Of course, the City Council and our communities recognize this as well, and continually ask for more police-sponsored programs and activities for the city’s youth.  What surprises me, then, is why there is continued opposition to the MPD being able to more easily identify those youth who are at the highest risk of committing crime and being victims of crime, and then engaging those youth in more prevention and intervention programs.