Community members ask Hennepin County judges how they’re addressing youth crime

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - A heated discussion Tuesday night in South Minneapolis centered around juvenile crime in an area that's seen an increase in everything from car thefts to weapons violations.

At Mount Olivet Church, victims of home invasions, carjackings, and more shared traumatic stories with Hennepin County judges. Multiple questions from community members centered around repeat juvenile offenders.

The judges told the community they share frustrations about crimes involving young people, but they're constrained under the law.

"No one could have predicted the consequences of the pandemic, especially as they related to juvenile crime – the fact that teenage kids didn't have schooling that they could rely on or places that they could go to as outlets for them," said Judge Angela Willms. "It created, obviously, a lot of the crime spikes that you've seen in our community, and that has caused very serious problems, especially as it relates for mental health."

Judges raised concerns about the proliferation of firearms, youth impulsiveness, and the lack of treatment facilities for youth. From the beginning of the listening session, the judges made it clear they could not comment on specific cases.

"What you hear from the juvenile judges is wanting more options. They will make those decisions with the options that they have now and make the best decision that they can, but they're asking for more options, more alternatives to have," said Hennepin County Chief Judge Toddrick Barnette.

Barnette also said the judicial system is facing staffing shortages.

"This is frustrating, and like I tried to explain today, we're in a system with limited resources in a crisis, and we have to be able to respond, but we can only respond with the resources that we have," he said.

Judge Mark Kappelhoff detailed four initiatives the court has implemented in recent weeks to help address the problems with juvenile crime. The changes are centered around earlier interventions:

• A juvenile charged with fleeing a police officer in a car will now be detained and have to appear before a judge within 36 hours.
• A juvenile charged with auto theft must get a court date within three days before a judge.
• There’s a new pretrial services program to help address the needs of young offenders and their families.
• Every carjacking case will be blocked, or assigned, to a specific judge who can learn more about the needs of that particular young person.