We do need a new Police Chief. It is not the economy. We can blame the State's Attorney, we can blame the community for not coming together.
But let's put the blame where it belongs more than anything else. The Juvenile System. Juvenile services started out to be for mischief and small crimes and yes an occational crime that probably should have been in adult court. But now, more than ever, the juvenile system is full of kids, playing adult crime and being protected by the Juvenile System. When a kid can do an armed robbery, gun violations including shooting someone or threatening too, rape, molestation and I could go on and on with these serious crimes. The Juvenile System itself needs to be revamped, put capable people in place to carry out the seriousness of these kids being protected by its own system, and take this department back to what it is supposed to do. Don't let these kids and their parents/grandparents hide behind this system and keep the records hidden and these criminals, not kids, protected. These are serious crimes committed by serious criminals that the public should know about. And then, when one passes to adult court, his/her criminal past should be known instead noone ever knows of the serious crimes, the gangs they were and have been associated with.
Again, this is not a Davis Ruark problem. His office does the best that they are allowed to do, it is the Juvenile System that is and has failed. We are not working on a current generation of criminals, we are working in some cases 2, 3 and 4 generations and it is only getting worst.
Schools cannot control the criminals, teachers are not allowed to control the criminals, oh I mean kids and even some turn their backs in order not to know just so they don't have to deal with it. We have lowered the standards so low in order for the kids who were left behind (or just doesn't want to be there) to be considered a No Kid Left Behind, when in fact we have hurt the school system so much that we are not allowing the kids who want to be there to do the best that they are capable of doing. More work goes into handling the problem kid and not teaching. This could go into another whole issue of the Juvenile System with the truancies, but again the system does not work any more. Lets stop finding excuses, hiring more people because we have more juvenile criminals and find a way to make the system work.
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28 comments:
Juvenile services doesn't hold kids accountable. Cases are closed at intake or put on "light" monitoring. Consequences aren't given for what are deemed minor crimes (and some of those so-called minor crimes aren't minor in any way shape or form). And, if another agency is involved (Health Department, mental health, DSS, etc.), DJS tends to pass the buck on to them. So, we end up with 17 and 18 year olds who have been in contact with DJS for years and years- and all of a sudden they and their families are shocked by an adult system that might hold them accountable. Those kids that killed Anitra Pirkle- I bet they had been involved with DJS on at least one occasion.
Its not just the juvenile system, the whole judicial system is screwed up! None of these thugs are worried about getting locked up, they'll have it made when they get there and everyone knows it. But what isnt screwed up with our government and anything it gets involved with? 98% of the people that work for government are screw-offs themselves, very very few are dedicated to what their supposed to be doing, their all just going with the flow, passing the time, doin their 8hrs....just like cheify. So you think we should just let him continue with his feet up in the a/c while these murderers continue their rampage threw our city? So you want us to wait till you or someone brings the juvenile system up to date? Thats never going to happen. Until you make prison a fearful uncomfortable place to be.....its like sending them on vacation....
Another issue is judges that DO NOT listen. Personally I tried to have my son committed because he needs to be incarcerated. At a psychological evaluation the Dr. agreed 100% and recommended he be committed to a juvenile facility. The judge, after telling me I was a bad parent for not supporting him, went against the recommendation and released him back into society where he is a threat to all he is in contact with. I cried like I have never cried during that sentencing because I knew then, just as I know now, he is going to end up killing someone and it kills me to know no one is hearing me when I say it.
I did not support him because he was wrong in what he did. What good is it doing anyone to have him thinking he "got away" with another crime? When I talked the police, social workers, the states attorney's office, etc. they all looked at me like I was an alien when I said I would not defend his actions and I wanted as many charges as he deserved placed against him. Why is it wrong for a parent to hold their child accountable? Society has really developed this haze of allowing blood lines to develop opinion of right and wrong. Personally I think a crime is a crime no matter who commits it or what their relation is to me.
There are so many issues here. Such a huge percentage of children are being raised by single mothers, with no good male role model, so they never lern how to be husbands or fathers. They never learn to be functioning members of a community...mothers living on public assistance, there is no expectation of these kids finishing high school, much less college. There is no expectation of them doing anything except either getting pregnant and living on the state, or fathering a child or two and then going to jail, if they live long enough.
We have a huge problem with an entire generation of people who aren't being taught how to support themselves legally, by getting and holding a job, instead of selling drugs or stealing things, robbing convenience stores.
Is this a vicious cycle? Low expectations bring forth low performance. You betcha. What to do? Who knows. Meanwhile, lock up, arm yourselves, and stay off the streets after dark. And for God's sake, don't stop off on your way home for a milkshake, to use the ATM, or fill up with gas. You'd be taking your chances.
A Grapevine comment in the paper last week was criticizing the Juvenile Court staff for being rude and insensitive and I couldnt help but think that if they are like that,maybe it is because they are burned out by what they see and hear every day in court.Think about it.They know that there is nothing they can do but warehouse and moniter these kids until they become adults and leave the DJS system.A penalty is ankle-bracelets and psychiatric drugs,no real punishment for crimes.
Let's not kid ourselves. If we're going to be honest and put the blame where it rightfully belongs, it's with the parents. To keep kids' feet on the ground, parents have to put some responsibility on their shoulders. Too many parents are either assigning their responsibility as parents to a cell phone or a computer, or they think being their kid's friend is a better idea than being their parent. Kids have buddies. What they need are parents that will set limits and have some level of expectation from their child(ren).
We do not and cannot afford to wait for the Juvenile System to be fixed. We do need a new police chief who is committed and is willing to step up and lead his/her department. But we also can't totally blame our police forces to be able to knock out crime when they are chasing these kids around commiting the same crimes as adults. In fact the system trains these kids. When a child commits a crime they get released to a(responsible?)parent/guardian or sent to a juvenile facility. Many of the parents the child is being released too have a criminal record longer than the juvenile record. Accountability? That same kid is out there committing the same type of crime or worst or at the age of 18 comes out of the juvenile facility with a clean record. Where is the accountability of this system?
I worked in the Juvenile System. I learned:
1. It is broken beyond repair.
2. It is now a system of temporarily warehousing kids until they die in the streets or are old enough for prison.
3. The #1 root cause of the kid's addictions/criminal activities/mental health problems? Their parents. At least 99% of the time, the kids were started on drugs by/encouraged to be thugs by/or horribly abused by their parents. And not neccessarily single parents.
Start prosecuting the parents more harshly. Have zero tolerance for violent crimes. Implement the death penalty much more quickly, with fewer appeals.
'Til then, it is what it is.
When you have a Master, not a Judge yelling in a courtroom maybe it is time to find another profession. In other counties, I hear that a master usually becomes a judge and they can't even handle a courtroom at their level. Why would one think that bothers the kids? They get yelled at most of their lives, their out there on the streets and have no respect for anyone else and then they go to the court and get yelled at. It probably doesn't bother them one bit, they are so used to it. It only makes the court system look more dysfunctional.
How do propose that Juvenile Services change? It basically changes every four years. Everytime there is a new governor the name of the department changes. Unfortunately the Department of Juvenile Services can only do so much because of laws that are put in place to protect the rights of juveniles. Until those laws are changes there is not much to be done.
I have an idea , let DJS bring these kids to my SK8 shop, buy them some of my overpriced boards and let them play in my SK8 park.
Master Seaton has done a great job at forcing Juvenile Justice to their task. However, the system needs to totally reorganzied. 16 year olds need to be waived easier to adult, by that age the criminal is well on their way and the juvenile system can do nothing for them. Krativil ran in his campaign that he is going to revamp the juvenile justice system. We need to call, write, e-mail him asking when is he going to do that. Tomorrow is too late.
I do hold Webster to blame for a lot of the crime here, he has never empowered the police force to catch the criminals. He was not or will not ever be a cop that does that. He spent the majority of his career on the inside and the last tens years as internal affairs. So that is at least a decade away from crime. He has not pushed himself to understand the streets as they are now. He is the last one to get to work and the first one to leave.
For the SPD officers that are carrying him, thanks. It is time to drop the Chief and the Major off at a retirement village and get some positive energy in there.
We have voted for (over and over again) a system that rewards and encourages single-parent, non-working families and punishes the families that work hard and stay together. We are now tearing down the institution of marriage. We have allowed crime to pay. We do not allow our citizens to protect themselves or their families. We protect the criminals. We have removed moral judgment and responsibility from the schools and from all public institutions in the name of "separation of Church and State".
It's only going to get worse.
The entire judicial system is in need of overhaul. Here locally,they need to begin with Davis Ruark. He needs to go. Both the Sheriff and the Police Chief neeed to be replaced. More money needs to be spent on competent officers, not the stiffs that are there now.
Treat the kids as adults at the age of 13.The kids know they can't do anything to them. They sell drugs and steal etc., murder etc..
Poor little things , not.
I totally disagree with the practice of not releasing names of miscreants under the age of 18. We deserve to know if that "nice young man/woman" applying for a job or wanting to date your daughter/son is trouble. These junior thugs know darned well they can do anything they want and get away with it. And "Masters"? What a joke. Judge Kathleen Beckstead used to be a master, and knows nothing about impartiality. This I know from personal experience during child custody proceedings.
Everyone has an opinion and mine is that Social Services and the laws that do not allow parents to disipline there own children is the root cause of all of these problems. Parents of afraid to be harsh with there kids because the kids will turn them in to social services and the parents are the ones that will be in trouble, not the kids. And yes, I agree Davis Ruark needs to go.
10:07 Welcome to Gen-Pop.
Two societies baby, the gap keeps getting bigger. Whats going to happen when the grand-parents that pick up the slack now are gone and this generation are the grand-parents, Good Lord we havent seen anything yet. The gap will continue wden and cost for suppoeting this society will continue to rise. We are spiraling out of control and headed straight to the bottom. When society has no rules, insanity rules society.
9:43 I don't know what you mean by "disciplining." In Maryland corporal punishment, meaning spanking, by parents is still allowed. Parents need to remember they hold a very powerful tool in their hands. In order for someone under 18 to get their driver's license, they need the written approval of the parent. That approval can be revoked by the parent at any time, and if it is, MVA will immediately revoke the driving privilege of the child.
i hate kids
The system is run by over educated people with no common sense at all. It will only get worse as time goes on. Way to many government programs trying to solve every problem society has. If government would just get out of our lives and let the people handle their own problems we would all be better off.
9:43- there is no law that prevents a parent from disciplining his or her child. Spanking is not against the law. I don't think it's a particularly good way of managing behavior (and I don't consider spanking to be a form of discipline).
I rarely spank- I find it's not all that effective. It takes much more energy to actually discipline in other ways.
The govt. needs to stop paying people to have more and more kids for the rest of us to pay for. How about, after the second child on welfare, payments to the family remain the same? No increase in checks no matter how many kids are produced.
Just what do you previous bloggers propose DJS do? Haul everyone in court for every petty offense? Where would they go? If you don't like that DJS resolves cases, get over it. Legislation says that they can do it..and thank god they do in most cases where it is most likely warranted. Maybe the court should stop making DJS the scapegoat for the pitfalls of other agencies. Advocate for DJS to get some of the Board of Educations funding if they have to keep kids in school, isn't that the job of pupil personnel workers? And to all the whinners about the terrible DJS system, when your child, grandchild, niece or nephew gets into trouble..don't cry when they are sent away to the country club. Instead of complaining, why not devote some of your time and money to becoming mentors and making a real difference instead of complaining.
To Master Seaton, a one time or another I have been in the courtroom to listen to your rulings in juvenile cases. As far as I'm concerned you know nothing about underprivledged children or their families. In your perfect world you might think that you know but after all we don't all come from your world. Put yourself in the shoes of some of these kids and see if your unrealistic rulings would apply. I've never seen you in the projects, Church St or on the westside to where most of these kids come from so how could you understand what they go through, give up your seat as a Master of the court because your rulings don't apply to any of the children that are underpriviledged. I've enjoyed your court for the circus or Jerry Springer act that it is but get real this is 2009 not 1959, different era, different kids and your Andy Griffith rulings do nothing for todays children. Where you received your degree from, did that also include poverty 101 because you have no clue and I'm tired of paying a salary to someone who has no common sense of real social issues. Come to the 'hood' and get a real lesson about those that are less fortunate and not all by choice. How many kids have you mentored who come from broken or low income homes or are a minority? How many homes have you visited in these situations? Bet I can tell you the answer...0. Stop holding these families to your white picket fence standards...this is far from being Mayberry or your perfet world. You're just another 'Peanuts' character..wonk,wonk,wonk.
I used to work at a group home in the area. Why is it that Salisbury DJS has an overload of kids per case worker and how are they expected to keep up with the amount of kids on their caseload. Why aren't there more workers to even the caseload. Other counties have a insignificant number of cases compared to Salisbury, so how do we solve this problem with Salisbury getting as big as it is. How do you propose to keep kids active in programs that the state has cut back on? Doesn't make sense does it? We wouldn't have this problem if parents were real parents. Maybe the court should start holding these parents accountable for the misdeeds of their children instead of using taxpayer dollars to institutionalize them. What are our delegates in the legislature proposing to do about this, pave more roads on Delmarva?LOL
Anon 1:42
You seem to dislike Master Seaton but you have to remember he/she did not put those kids in the defendent chair,they did that themselves.
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