New Orleans District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro says efforts to fight back against juvenile crime are showing signs of success. He made the statements when announcing the indictments of three teenage suspects in the murder of a Mid-City woman last May.
Cannizzaro said the courts and the police department have put into action some of his eight-point plan to deal with juvenile crime
"I am pleased to say, many of the suggestions have been enacted," he said. "Since these and other measures were implemented around June first, we have finally started to see a decline in violent juvenile offenses."
Metro Crime Commission president Rafael Goyeneche said it was a problem recognized across the board.
"When you see a problem emerge, you expect your criminal justice officials step up and inform the community what needs to be done," said Goyeneche. "I think what happened earlier this summer was that the criminal justice system officials acknowledged there was a small but very violent group of youthful offenders."
Goyeneche says many parties involved in the juvenile justice system seemed to realize there needed to be action.
"They've connected and identified certain problematic groups in the youthful offender, juvenile and young adults, and will continue to see arrests and prosecutions going forward," he said, "and that's a healthy thing."
Goyeneche said the bottom line is that targeting and prioritizing violent offenders can eliminate a lot of problems.