Push for law enforcement to get tougher on young offenders committing carjackings - Fox Baltimore
Baltimore (WBFF) — There's a push from some in law enforcement to get tougher on this trend of young people committing carjackings. The move comes as Fox45 obtains exclusive footage of the moment a 13-year-old was beaten and his mother's car was stolen. One of the suspects, in that case, is younger than the victim.
The boy was attacked during a carjacking outside his family's home. Anne Arundel County police say he had gone to the car to get his mother's wallet when it happened.
"I started praying that I could escape with the keys and stuff and that nothing that bad would happen," said 13-year-old Angel.
The crime happened in Brooklyn Park last Monday and was captured by a neighbor's doorbell camera.
The video shows the frightening moments when the suspects, 18 and 12-years-old, grabbed Angel, threw him to the ground, and demanded that he let go of the keys. At one point, you can see one of the suspects kicking the boy as he lay on the ground before taking the keys and stealing the family's SUV.
Now, taking a deeper dive into the trend of young people committing carjackings.
Some in law enforcement, including Sgt. Clyde Boatwright, president of the Maryland police union and the Baltimore city school police union, say younger people often commit these carjackings with no concern about the consequences.
"It's simple, there's a lack of consequences for these types of behaviors. Our communities deserve to live without fear that they could be the next victim. But the only way to stop that is to hold people accountable that are committing these acts," said Boatwright.
One option, some observers say, kick the crime up to the federal level, remove it from state prosecutors.
Thiru Vignarajah is a former federal prosecutor.
"Federal prosecutors have jurisdiction over every carjacking, cars are viewed as instruments of interstate commerce. The problem is federal prosecutors don't take responsibility for juvenile cases. There are actually special protocols that require main justice approval for those kinds of cases," said Vignarajah.
But for those offenders charged as adults, the thought of a federal charge could make a criminal think twice before they act.
"There's a long-standing faith that the federal prosecutors do the job effectively. They have resources, they have fewer cases. They have an expertise with certain categories of crimes. That's a system that the criminal element knows is not to be trifled with," said Vignarajah.
In Angel's case, police have charged a 12-year-old boy and 18-year-old Tishawn Parker--who according to charging documents, was spotted driving the vehicle and caught with the keys in his pocket.
source: https://foxbaltimore.com/news/local/some-in-law-enforcement-pushing-for-tougher-punishment-carjacking-trend-young-offenders
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