Washington Mayor Calls for Crime Summit as Capital Rocked by Wave of Juvenile Offenders, Some as Young as 12

The mayor of Washington, D.C., Muriel Bowser, is convening a public safety summit to address the rise in crime in the nation’s capital, as rates in the district skyrocket in part due to the illegal activities of juveniles.Ms. Bowser, who blames the crime wave partially on a lack of police, has scheduled the summit for Wednesday. “MPD is at a historic low in terms of staffing,” Ms. Bowser said, referring to the Metropolitan Police Department that serves the nation’s capital. “We continue to do everything possible as it relates to recruiting the best of the best to serve at MPD.”According to the police chief, Robert Contee, the district employs about 3,350 officers; about 200 are expected to leave the force by the end of the 2024 fiscal year.In 2020, Washington was at the forefront of the police reform movement following the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis and the subsequent social unrest across the country, including the push to “defund the police” or transfer police funds to other programs.At the time, the police chief, Peter Newsham, praised Ms. Bowser and the city council for enacting new regulations on police but warned that the change in funding could affect recruitment and lead to other problems.“Funding is required for training,” Mr. Newsham told WTOP News. “It’s required for recruitment and hiring of the best people, people who are service-minded and look at this job in that regard.”He added: “I think if you look at agencies that have run into similar problems, underfunding or inappropriate funding would be one of the reasons why they got themselves into that position.”Although reports of every offense except burglary have increased this year — burglary has decreased by 10 percent year to date — certain crimes in particular are driving the wave.Theft is up 24 percent year to date in 2023, sex abuse cases are up 53 percent in 2023, and motor vehicle thefts are up 110 percent. In total, crime is up 27 percent. For comparison, 2022 saw a 4 percent decrease from the previous year.Contributing to the increase in the crime rate is an apparent increase in violations by minors, highlighted most recently by the arrest of two children for allegedly going on a carjacking and robbery spree last week.According to police, one 12-year-old boy was arrested last Wednesday and is facing charges for allegedly trying to rob a business, carjack a driver, and rob a pedestrian in quick succession.Police say a second boy committed six armed carjackings, two armed robberies, and an assault between late March and the end of April.In response to the uptick in juvenile crime, Ms. Bowser has instituted a curfew that forbids people under the age of 17 to be “in or on a street, park or other outdoor public place, in a vehicle or on the premises of any establishment within the District of Columbia during curfew hours,” according to the police.As of now, the curfew begins at 11 p.m. and lasts until 6 a.m. Sunday through Thursday and midnight to 6 a.m. Friday and Saturday nights. Starting in June, the curfew will begin at midnight all week.It’s unclear whether minors are being picked up for curfew violations, as the Metropolitan Police Department does not have readily available data on the subject.According to reporting by the local Fox affiliate, local high schoolers have expressed doubts that the curfew will change the behavior of juveniles. However, the victim of one of the alleged 12 year-old carjackers, only identified as Shelton, disagrees.“I think it would help, I really do. Because at 12-years-old, what do you need to be outside at 10, 11, 12 o’clock at night?” Shelton told Fox 5.

Washington Mayor Calls for Crime Summit as Capital Rocked by Wave of Juvenile Offenders, Some as Young as 12

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