A good reason for year-round school.

One of many, Bohemian.

Lol, you really think school prevents kids from breaking in cars at night?

1) Bring back the evening curfew
2) Publish the names of offenders
3) Community service for offenders(lots)
4) Locater ankle bracelets for offenders
5) Let parents dicipline their children
All or any of the above should show an immediate and positive reaction to the number of juvinile crimes committed in this town!

all of Poppa's suggestions and the parents pay for damages ie ICBC for the amount etc.

Poppa...

I agree but add
6) Cane them in public
7) Cane the bleeding hearts longside them also!
8) Post video on You Tube titled "Justice Served"

I disagree and think you guys are pulling my leg. A little bit of break and enter into cars by some kids is no big deal. Before you ask, yes, i have been the 'victim' of a few such incidents. Maybe we ought to save the ankle bracelets, canes and community service for the real criminals out there. Certainly there are more serious problems with youth out there these days. For all we know this might be a one time spree by otherwise good kids. Such things do happen after all.
For the record, parents can already discipline their kids (unless you define discipline as 'beat the hell out of', an approach which didnt work anyway). Also, not only does school not take place at night, any seriously troubled kids are not at school as it is. There isnt reason to think they will suddenly start showing up in the summer.
Kids need to be effectively parented from an early age. You cant teach them law and order once they are teens. Given that at least 5 percent of babies in PG are born drug addicted I think we can assume that the level of parental care could be improved. The state cannot make good citizens if the parents are unable or unwilling to raise their children as such. As a society we need to raise our expectations of parental involvement, at least to the levels of previous generations. Remeber the old ad on the TV: its 11 oclock, do you know where your kids are? There is a good starting point if you ask me. Of course if the parents dont even know where they themselves are at 11:00 this could be too much to expect..

They need work and rules from their parents that would help the most they have parents for a reason my kids don't run around town ever they are at home they have chores that way they don't get in trouble and I know where they are at at all times.

And the parents should take the kids to the people where they did the damage and make them give an apoligy and work for them till it is paid for any job they want them to do and the parents should make sure they do it.

Do you really think that the problems lie with the kids? Where are the parents in this equation. No parental skills = problem kids.

Parents need to be held accountable to a point. A large number of the little hellions running loose in this area seem to have parents that deny/don't believe that their little darlings are doing anything wrong. These folks need a wake-up call. On the other end of the scale are the parents that have tried to do everything they can, but have kids that are not able to be controlled. These folks need some help from somewhere else.

Wasn't one of our past governments planning on holding parents financially accountable? I seem to remember this from a while back, but don't remember what came of it.

making parents financially responsible assumes that the parents will actually pay. If you have ever tried to get someone who is chronically broke to pay what he owes you will know this is a pipe dream. Do not bother suggesting the courts can be used as that would mean opening up a whole new area of law and enforcement. They are not going to be interested in spending 15,00 of public money in legal costs to pull 2 grand out of parents who dont even have it. Most ideas here seem to assume that the kids are from regular middle class families. If that is true then yes, they could be shamed into action. The fact is however, that the real problem people here do not CARE about the law or their status in the community. Unfortunately, so many 'solutions ' to the problems of crime and urban decay focus on punishing people who are not the source of the majority of the problem. They do so because it is so much harder to think of ways to control people who do not share our view of the importance of law and order, respect for property and so on. Kind of like fining landlords rather than actually jailing drug makers/dealers or shaming johns rather than pursuing hookers or pimps.
Expediency doesnt equal justice.

So, lock 'em up. Enough is enough. No more sob stories, no more "one last chance", no more alternative programs, etc. Why do we continually try to come up with new ways to "control these people", they need to learn to control themselves. When an individual has shown that he doesn't care to follow the rules that the majority of society follow, take away his/her priviliges for a longer period of time. Don't let them out until they have a plan to make themselves better and then show that they can behave. If they can't do so, put them back in.

caramacil, live in the real world!!
If you think that only kids from poverty stricken homes are doing the deeds, think again. They are from all walks of life.
Also without Johns, we wouldn't have hookers or pimps. What an idiotic analogy!

Hey guys. I have to intervene here because I was one of those kids. Yeah -- that's right, I admit it. Guess what? I got locked up and had to do HARD labor. If you think carrying rocks out of the ocean from a girl guide camp to make a nice beach (Nanoose Bay) is not hard, you try it. When I got out (age 17) I knew I was never going back and I didn't. Now I'm in my late 60's and I say lock em up and make em work because nothing says 'don't do that again' like blisters.

If the parents arn't teaching their kids right from wrong do it in school. Some courses about law and order would be a lot better than courses about Jane has 2 mothers. Also make jail a place of learning and punishment so that persons would not want to come back but have the skills to support themselves. Repeat offenders should be locked up just so the general public is safe.

The parents are just as bad as the kids.
They are probably drunk watching TV while their kids are going out on their little crime trips.
Heck, I would not be surprised if the parents told them to at least hit 5 cars in one night!

It would be interesting to know what neighbourhood these three delinquents came from. I would bet the Hart Highlands, or near by. The "Hood" would be too far away!

foxtrapper has it right. The new way does not work!!!

Caranmacil: "I disagree and think you guys are pulling my leg. A little bit of break and enter into cars by some kids is no big deal."

A little bit of break and enter? No big deal? I think YOU are trying to pull OUR legs!

The little misfits better not break into my crib or my wheels! I have ZERO tolerance!

First of all, delinquent youth do come from all walks of life, including from families who have raised them to know the difference between right and wrong. Even children who have not been "properly parented" learn the difference between right and wrong from school, their peers, the parents of their friends and other family members. Making the parents responsible is one thing, and to a certain degree should be enforced based on the age of the offender. However, all youth must, at some point, start taking responsibility for their own actions. As long as society blames the parents, the children will not have to accept responsibility. And Foxtrapper - you said it, HARD TIME would be the best time. Jail nowadays is akin to a hot vacation spot, once there it don't seem so bad if you have to go back!

It's scary to think of sending our youth to do "hard time" when you think in terms of "years", however, a few weeks or even months of real honest hard time would likely suffice to give any first time offender a wake up call to reality.

Yes, because our judicial system has such a low rate of recidivism (it's a word, look it up). Wake up, you uneducated bumpkins. Being "tough on crime" doesn't work and never has. Prince George is a disgusting pit of a town, but it's not because of the crime and the disadvantaged. It's because of the uneducated, socially-backward conservative ideals that infect the city like a cancer.

shame on you diplomat, really. What are you going to do to someone breaking into your car? Nothing. Call the cops. People always talk so tough when they are being theoretical, or maybe talking about some kids. And yes, a little mischief or B and E (esp. in cars) is not a big deal. There are certainly more important things for folks to worry about. Also, i doubt very much if your son had, say stolen a car stereo you would be in favor of locking him up, giving him a record, ruining his future for lack of bondability, etc. I think a little perspective would be in order. For example, all you folk who have never broken the law or hurt someone, or whose kids are are squeaky clean,please feel free to rip into these kids and me. All the rest of you (myself included) ought to take a breath, or maybe stop being hypocrites and turn ourselves in for that little incident that happened when you were a kid that you never got caught for. I will see you there.
For the record, i never said all crime is done by poor kids. However, most crime occurs in poor neighbourhoods. Anyone want to dispute that? If not then it is just muddying the water to talk about the minority. The point was that the measures being suggested (ie making parents pay, publishing names, etc) would only work on people who give a damn about the law or their reputation. That would be the minority in my view. Parents who dont know or care where their kids are in my view largely at fault for what their kids do. That being said, a lot of kids are out there, unbeknownst to their parents, behaving themselves because they were taught responsibility in the first place.

You've got to be kidding caranmacil! ANY B and E IS a big deal. In your eyes, when does it become a problem? Home invasion? These little munchkins start somewhere and then it escalates as our judicial system is a farce and does nothing to help them change their ways. I was not a perfect child, but NEVER did I damage someone's property or break into someone's place. My son and his friends ARE'squeaky clean'. They involve themselves in the community in positive ways. They are just as frustrated by the little turds running rampant in the cities as many of us adults are. The laws need to change and these scofflaws need to learn.

Shame on me? I think you are having a bad day!

These "little bit of break and enter into cars" acts are criminal acts and if shrugged off soon will turn into bigger crimes!

I don't want anyone breaking into MY car, the one I worked for! Let them break into their parents cars and they will find out how upset they will be!

Why are you defending these misfits?

"There are certainly more important things for folks to worry about."

You don't decide what my priorities are!

*Shame on you* is a worn-out catch phrase.

headshake, what a pompous arrogant post. I really don't care what the sadsack excuse is for the crime or if punishment will rehabilitate. Just lock them up for a term and keep them from stealing my stuff for at least a few months. "Recidivism", good one. You must have just pasted your first year sociology course. Grow up a-hole.