As crime among youth continues to be a problem county-wide, the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office is taking a new prevention approach in Minnesota.
Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty says the focus will now be on reaching out to youth before they commit crimes, offering them support and opportunities to get away from a life of crime.
“This expansion pilot meets a critical need for services at an earlier point by creating a pathway for intervention from law enforcement referrals of young people who are not already on probation,” Moriarty said at a press conference on Wednesday. “Our law enforcement partners know the young people living in and around this violence in their communities.”
Moriarty says she’s hopeful that this new tactic will address the small group of those responsible for violent crime throughout the metro and possibly deter them from starting down the path of being a repeat offender.
Moriarty and a team of outreach specialists will work off a list of law enforcement referrals of youth who have been impacted by violent crime or are on the brink of being involved in crime.
“We offer one one-on-one mentorship, different programs, and financial literacy,” outreach specialist Muhammad Abdul-Ahad said during the press conference. “One-on-one mental awareness, you know, different things of that nature.”
Moriarty says she believes this new approach can bring down the rates of youth gun violence and homicide.