Criminals need to be locked up
Washington Examiner
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Thirteen people were murdered in the nation’s capital in the first five days of August. July saw 10 killings in its first five days. Homicide is up 22% this year in Washington compared to last year, and violent crime overall is up 37%.
This is unacceptable, or should be, in any U.S. city but is particularly so in the city that is seen as representative of the country. The Democratic Party’s experiment with alternatives to incarceration has been a disastrous failure, and unless it is abandoned soon, Congress might need to step in with tough policies needed to restore order to the city over which it has ultimate responsibility.
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“Crime is out of control and getting worse by the day,” D.C. Councilman Trayon White said. “Kids and innocent people are getting killed. It’s becoming status quo with no end in sight.”
The cause of the crime spree is no mystery to district residents. Criminals are not punished for their crimes. D.C. resident Patrick O’Keefe, who has repeatedly complained to police about open-air drug dealing, loud music, and illegal parking in his neighborhood, explained, “They won’t even stop for a day, even with a dozen cops here, because they know nothing will happen to them. We’re not asking the police to come up with a miracle solution. They just need to enforce the laws as written.”
The problem is not that police won’t arrest those who break the law. It is that those arrested are rarely prosecuted, and even when they are, they are quickly released back onto the streets before trial. At a Chinatown community meeting last week, one employer complained that after an employee was assaulted in broad daylight, the criminal arrested for the assault was released “shortly thereafter.”
“Our revolving door and lack of prosecution has had a negative effect on the community,” Crispus Gordon, the director of community affairs for Monumental Sports and Entertainment, said at the meeting.
“I think we have seen a lack of repercussions of those committing these crimes,” Advisory Neighborhood Commission Chairman Michael Shankle added.
Far too many young black men are sent to prison to their detriment and to that of their communities. The urge to keep them out of prison is therefore understandable. But the answer cannot be simply to tolerate more crime and instability. The answer must be to stop crimes being committed, not to pretend they haven’t been committed when they have.
When open-air drug dealing goes unpunished, more crime will follow. The same is true of theft, illegal parking, and even Metro fare-jumping. Tolerating lawlessness breeds more lawlessness.
The Council of the District of Columbia recently passed emergency legislation making it easier for judges to detain people charged with violent offenses before trial. Perhaps judges shouldn’t even have this discretion. Juvenile offenders in particular are being released without any repercussions. There should be a stronger presumption against their release.
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Incarcerating any person, especially a juvenile, is a serious matter not to be taken lightly. But Washington’s citizens deserve safe communities, and Americans deserve a respectable capital.
If the D.C. Council won’t do what is necessary to bring crime under control, Congress should.