Kids and crime

 More and younger teens are committing violent crime, why?

13 year old murderer?

Something terrible is occurring among some preteens and teens in our country these days. Kids are killing other kids and engaging in violent crime at increasing rates. In Louisiana last week, three girls stabbed and murdered a 15 year old girl in a Walmart. The apparent murderer was only 13 years old and the other two girls were 12 and 14. The three girls live streamed the attack, which grew out of another fight in a nearby theater. These very young murderers seemed proud of what they had done and boasted of their act in the videos they streamed. 

Carjacking in New Mexico

What is causing this violence? Why do some teens appear to hate other kids so much they want to actually murder them in public? Why are some teens so hardened and vicious that they carjack adults and sometimes shoot or beat them, just for sport and for the thrill of a joyride in a stolen vehicle? Clearly something very very wrong is at work among some young people for them to behave liked hardened criminals.  According to a Chicago Crime observer website, CWBChicago:

A 14-year-old boy was charged Thursday with carjacking an off-duty Chicago police officer at gunpoint this week. The teen, who was already on an electronic monitoring bracelet for other alleged crimes, is also charged with seven other robberies and carjackings this month and in July 2020, according to CPD. (Update: 14-year-old charged with carjacking off-duty cop plus seven more hijackings and robberies)

A SWAT team deployed to deal with a 10 year old

As we have said earlier in this blog, carjackings in Chicago are rising at an very high rate in 2021 as well as 2020. The majority of  carjackers in Chicago and in Lake County are in their preteens, teens and early twenties, with most appearing to be between 12 and 18 years of age. Now the violence is moving beyond carjacking to outright murder at a younger and younger age. For example, last summer a 10 year old pointed a shotgun at police that led to a SWAT team being deployed. Thankfully the child was not harmed, but what is causing this rising tide of teen and preteen criminal behavior? Some people have pointed to schools being closed during the pandemic, the riots over the summer, the George Floyd incident, the use of masks which disguises people's identities, the lack of PPE and inadequate parental supervision. After major public disturbances like a pandemic there are almost always rises in crime rates. Which of these explanations are sufficient to explain the rise in juvenile crime?

Question: Why do you think the rate of teen violence is increasing in 2021?

 Four Girls Arrested After 15-Year-Old Stabbed to Death Inside Walmart

Four Girls Aged 12-14 Arrested After 15-Year-Old is Stabbed to Death in Fight in Louisiana Walmart 

Four juveniles accused of stabbing 15-year-old girl to death at Walmart  

Girl boasts 'we stabbed that b**** in her heart' as teen killed on live stream 

The last time a juvenile was charged as an adult with carjacking in Cook County? February 2019. 

10-year-old fires shotgun at police, surrenders after 90 minute standoff with SWAT 

America’s teen killers on the rise—and getting younger 

Editorial: Chicago’s other epidemic: A plague of juvenile carjackers  

Chicago police say 14-year-old charged in multiple carjackings and robberies since July