Ramsey County Attorney John Choi is weighing in on juvenile crime in St. Paul amid a string of crimes being committed by minors in Minneapolis.
Choi says for kids being arrested in areas like St. Paul there is different underlying issue that keeps landing them back in police custody.
"I think the really big issue as it relates to crime, are the kids that have completely disappeared from school," says Choi. "And oftentimes I hear from police, they'll question a young person who they have arrested, and they might ask the question of 'where do you go to school?' And oftentimes the response is 'I don't go to school.'"
According to new data from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, so far in 2024 only six juveniles have been arrested in Ramsey County for motor vehicle thefts. Youth weapons violations are also down 40%.
It's a far different story in Hennepin County. So far in 2024, there have been 475 cases of vehicle theft. More than half of those were committed by juveniles (those include pending cases), a number confirmed to WCCO by Hennepin County.
With that in mind, Choi says his office still has a lot of work to do to keep kids off the streets and get them back into the classroom.
"Since the pandemic, we've had more juvenile referrals of certain types of offenses, like the more violent ones, and in fact we see some of the young people coming back maybe more than once in a calendar year," Choi explains. "But at the same time, we're seeing reductions in Ramsey County."
Minneapolis has dealt with a rash of juvenile crime with many involving stolen cars. One 10-year old was arrested after driving a stolen car through a North Minneapolis playground, narrowly missing other children.
This past week, Minneapolis Police arrested six juveniles after three armed robberies with ages ranging from 11 to 14, and a mix of boys and girls. They were arrested and after they were involved in a pair of car crashes off I-94 in stolen cars. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara says a third vehicle that was involved in the incident was found abandoned nearby.
While they were arrested, how to handle juveniles in Minnesota that commit these crimes continues to be an issue. O'Hara said without accountability in the judicial system, holding these kids accountable may be difficult moving forward in Minneapolis.
He's not alone in that view. Retired Hennepin County Chief Judge Kevin Burke says the problem starts at home but says it is time for Hennepin County and the State Legislature to start putting resources into dealing with juvenile crime.
"The core would be, at least in our county, Hennepin, the Hennepin County Board is going to have to speak up," Burke explains. "But it is a bigger problem than just Hennepin. And so I think that at the state legislature, when it convenes in January, is going to have to seriously look at investing money in improving how we deal with children."
Burke adds this is not a problem that can be kicked down the road either.
"There's no doubt that they have to and the idea of just saying, 'well, let's wait another year and see how this is gonna play itself out' is silly," says Burke. "We've got to do something quite dramatic, quite quickly."
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