D.C. police are concerned by an increase in the number of young people arrested for the first time for a violent crime.
In past years, troubled teens would enter the criminal justice system for a minor crime such as vandalism, theft, or shoplifting. But now, D.C. police tell the News4 I-Team, they're seeing a trend of teens jumping straight to gun crimes.
The Metropolitan Police Department shared data with the I-Team that shows 97 people under age 18 were arrested in D.C. in 2022 for violent crime as their first ever arrest. That is an increase over recent years.
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In 2022, the number of murders and serious assaults overall in the city has been down, but police statistics show juveniles are becoming victims more often than in previous years. The most recent data show 90 separate times in which juveniles have been shot this year in D.C. That's up 78% from 2021.
The statistics come just a day after a shooting allegedly committed by four juveniles on Pennsylvania Avenue SE injured three people.
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Speaking to News4’s Paul Wagner, one resident of the neighborhood expressed concern about the level of violence, but especially for young people. “Our babies are dying,” the woman, who did not want to be identified, told Wagner.
D.C. police don't have a clear answer as to why violent crimes have spiked among young people, but pointed out it is a frightening reality that gives police officers, social service agencies and families less of a chance to re-direct a troubled teen away from crime before it ends in violence.
