The Minneapolis Police Department's new Curfew Task Force played a role in the quick arrests of six juveniles in a Minneapolis carjacking over this past weekend.
WCCO's Laura Oakes reports the goal of the task force is to get to know at-risk kids before they commit a crime which will help in quickly identifying those responsible for crimes in the city.
Sometimes that's by redirecting them to positive programs in the community, but oftentimes it involves building relationships with their parents.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara says while many are quick to criticize those parents, they shouldn't be painted with a broad brush.
"From what I've seen here over the last two and a half years, is there's a number of parents that are, you know, begging us and begging the system for help," O'Hara says. "And they have not been provided."
However, O'Hara say law enforcement sees just the opposite sometimes too.
"We had a mom who admitted to us that she was hiding a gun for her son and providing it to him, presumably because there's some benefit that she's obtaining off of his crimes, which is just unfathomable," O'Hara explains.
He adds that the program is always a work in progress, but since the task force began last summer, there's been a 66% reduction in new juvenile offenders and substantial reductions in violent crime and auto theft.
"We are targeting as precisely as possible, the kids that we believe are kind of the most egregious repeat offenders that are truly at risk," says O'Hara. "Because they are at risk to get harmed or to die themselves, as much as they are to go out and harm the community."
On Friday, Police say a group of juveniles jumped out of a car, tackled a 62-year-old woman to the ground, stole her car keys and drove away in her vehicle in Northeast Minneapolis. Three hours later, police tried to stop the car near Plymouth and Logan Avenue North, but the kids drove away.
The Minnesota State Patrol initiated a pursuit from the air and tracked the stolen car while police followed, and they eventually found them hiding in a garage near 8th Avenue North and Queen Avenue.
One girl and five boys were taken into custody. They ranged in age from 11-years old, to 15-years old. All of them were already targets of investigations, and a 15-year old boy was wanted for attempted murder.