{"id":2030160,"date":"2023-09-13T05:10:01","date_gmt":"2023-09-13T09:10:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dc-teens-are-committing-crimes-in-droves-punishment-is-light\/"},"modified":"2023-09-13T05:14:10","modified_gmt":"2023-09-13T09:14:10","slug":"dc-teens-are-committing-crimes-in-droves-punishment-is-light","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dc-teens-are-committing-crimes-in-droves-punishment-is-light\/","title":{"rendered":"DC teens are engaging in rampant criminal activity with lenient consequences."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fdc-teens-are-committing-crimes-in-droves-punishment-is-light%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2030160&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div>\n<h2>Amid youth crime wave, \u2062DC attorney general Brian Schwalb says\u200d &#8216;kids are kids&#8217;<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<blockquote>\n<div>\n<p>A Washington, D.C., teenager who went on a \u200ddays-long robbing spree last month\u2064 cannot be charged as an adult and will thus avoid significant \u2062punishment, the latest example of a juvenile crime surge that critics\u200d say the city refuses to take seriously.<\/p>\n<p>D.C. police in late August <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fox5dc.com\/news\/dc-teens-aged-13-16-arrested-for-multiple-crimes-including-attempted-carjacking-of-grubhub-driver\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">arrested<\/a> five teenagers who were caught on \u200cvideo attempting to carjack\u2064 a man they followed using a different stolen vehicle. For one of the suspects\u2014a 13-year-old girl\u2014that incident came at the tail \u2062end \u200cof a four-day string \u200bof robberies,\u200c which allegedly saw her commit another carjacking, among other\u200b thefts. While those charges could lead to decades of prison time for an adult\u2063 offender, the female suspect and her four accomplices\u200b were all charged as juveniles, as only some 16- and 17-year-olds can be tried \u200bas adults in the nation&#8217;s capital. As a result, one of\u200c the suspects was released immediately,\u200c while the others will face more lenient sentences\u2014D.C.&#8217;s juvenile \u200djustice system has no mandatory minimums.<\/p>\n<p>The ordeal reflects D.C.&#8217;s ongoing juvenile\u200b crime\u2063 surge, an issue that local experts and crime victims say the \u200bcity is failing to combat. More than \u206463 percent of D.C.\u200b carjacking arrests this year have\u2062 involved juveniles, according to a city database, and a 14-year-old district resident was <a href=\"https:\/\/dcwitness.org\/juvenile-among-26-homicide-suspects-in-july\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">charged<\/a> with felony murder in July. D.C. attorney general Brian Schwalb (D.) has nonetheless defended his emphasis on rehabilitation &#8220;restorative justice&#8221; when it comes to juvenile \u2063crime,\u200d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fox5dc.com\/news\/dc-ag-on-prosecuting-juveniles-as-adults-kids-are-kids\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">saying<\/a> during an\u200d April town hall that &#8220;kids\u2062 are kids&#8221; and should not &#8220;be treated as adults.&#8221; Earlier this summer, Schwalb <a href=\"https:\/\/wjla.com\/news\/local\/crime-bill-dc-attorney-general-opposes-mayor-muriel-bowser-council-hearing-brian-schwalb-police-juvenile-crime-interim-chief-ashan-benedict-public-safety-robberies-carjacking-teenagers\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">opposed<\/a> a\u2064 measure to expand pretrial detention \u2064for\u200b dangerous\u200b juveniles.<\/p>\n<p>For former advisory neighborhood commissioner\u200c Denise Rucker Krepp, a D.C. Democrat, Schwalb&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dc-teens-are-committing-crimes-in-droves-punishment-is-light\/\" title=\"DC teens are engaging in rampant criminal activity with lenient consequences.\">approach emboldens violent criminals<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Murder, armed robbery, and armed carjacking are not juvenile crimes,&#8221; Krepp told the \u2062 <em>Washington Free Beacon<\/em>. &#8220;They are adult crimes\u200c and \u200bshould be prosecuted\u2064 as such.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Schwalb&#8217;s office, which \u200cdeclined to comment, handles criminal cases that involve youths under 18 years of\u2063 age. Juvenile offenders in D.C., regardless of the severity of their\u200c crimes, cannot be held in\u2063 jail beyond\u2062 their 21st birthday. \u200dAs a\u2062 result, even \u200djuvenile murderers in D.C. have avoided significant\u200d jail time.<\/p>\n<p>In one case, a 15-year-old \u200dwho shot Washington Commanders running back Brian Robinson Jr. and killed another \u200bteen was sentenced to \u200cjust six years\u2064 in jail\u2014the maximum amount\u2062 allowed for\u200d a juvenile of that age. The \u200bslain teen&#8217;s mother lamented the district&#8217;s inability to \u200bprosecute the offender \u200bas an\u2062 adult.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I think\u200c if \u200dyou&#8217;re old enough to shoot someone or take \u200dsomeone&#8217;s car with a gun, you should be able to do life \u200din jail, you \u200dshould be able to do the time\u200c for \u200dthe crime, \u2064&#8217;cause I&#8217;m never going to see my son\u2064 again,&#8221; the\u2064 mother <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fox5dc.com\/news\/sentence-for-15-year-old-charged-with-shooting-brian-robinson-jr-sparks-outrage\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">said<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Still, the high-profile case \u2064did not prompt Schwalb to \u2062change his tune on juvenile offenders. Just months after\u200c the ordeal, Schwalb in June <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wusa9.com\/article\/news\/crime\/dc-attorney-general-on-accountability-and-rehabilitation-in-the-juvenile-justice-system\/65-c2a236fb-a175-4c4d-b4c0-f07fb319bbbf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">lamented<\/a> that the &#8220;system&#8221; has failed D.C.\u2062 kids &#8220;long before&#8221; they commit crimes, stressing the need to engage in an &#8220;effort to\u2062 rehabilitate.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Included in Schwalb&#8217;s rehabilitation efforts is a &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/philadelphia-d-a-begins-restorative-justice-program-that-may-keep-people-arrested-during-2020-uprisings-out-of-jail\/\" title=\"Philadelphia D.A. Begins Restorative Justice Program That May Keep People Arrested During 2020 Uprisings Out Of Jail\">restorative justice program<\/a>&#8221; that allows a juvenile offender to avoid jail\u2063 time should the\u200b victim agree instead to pursue\u2062 a &#8220;facilitated conversation.&#8221; Schwalb&#8217;s \u2063 <a href=\"https:\/\/oag.dc.gov\/public-safety\/restorative-justice-program#:~:text=It%20is%20a%20victim%2Dcentered,that%20it%20never%20happens%20again.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">website<\/a> notes\u2062 that the concept &#8220;hails \u200bfrom indigenous practices\u200d in Native American, West African, and\u2063 New Zealand cultures.&#8221; D.C. juveniles \u200dcan also be referred to a diversion program that keeps them out of the &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/california-senate-passes-bill-no-longer-requiring-teachers-to-report-certain-student-incidents-to-law-enforcement\/\" title=\"California Senate Passes Bill No Longer Requiring Teachers To Report Certain Student Incidents To Law Enforcement\">juvenile delinquency system<\/a>&#8221; in\u200c favor of &#8220;individual and family therapy&#8221; and other &#8220;services.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>In \u200cthe case of the\u200c 13-year-old carjacker arrested last month, however, the victim\u2014a food delivery driver named Mohamed\u2014will almost certainly decline to \u200bparticipate in Schwalb&#8217;s &#8220;restorative \u200bjustice program.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s very bad for [the] \u200b community. \u2026 I am scared to go\u200b to D.C.\u2062 [to] work,&#8221; the victim told\u200b Fox 5.\u200b &#8220;Why this age\u2014why not go to school?&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Amid a surge in juvenile crime, DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb believes &#8220;kids are kids.&#8221; A Washington, D.C., teen involved in a lengthy robbery spree won&#8217;t face severe consequences as they can&#8217;t be charged as an adult. This case highlights the ongoing debate surrounding the increase in youth crime rates.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2360,"featured_media":2030161,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[544],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2030160","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-free-beacon"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2030160","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2360"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2030160"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2030160\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2030161"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2030160"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2030160"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2030160"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}