Politicians speak out about violent teens on Jersey Shore boardwalks – NBC10 Philadelphia

Parents should be held civilly or criminally liable for their children’s behavior that causes disruption or damage to public places, a group of New Jersey police chiefs and Republican lawmakers said Wednesday during a forum convened after disturbances along some New Jersey Shore boardwalks over Memorial Day weekend for the second year in a row.

The unrest included the stabbing of a teenager in Ocean City and waves of unruly young people that prompted the town of Wildwood to close its boardwalk overnight.

The panel was made up entirely of Republican state and local lawmakers whose party blames the juvenile justice reforms of recent years under the administration of Democratic Governor Phil Murphy for creating an atmosphere of lawlessness and disrespect for police among teenagers and young adults who feel their behavior has no consequences.

The changes included restrictions on what officers could say or do to youths suspected of drinking alcohol or using marijuana while underage.

When asked which Democratic lawmakers, if any, were invited to participate in the online forum, the state’s Republicans did not respond.

Democrats said the reforms were necessary to keep young people out of prison, but many police officials and the national police union say the measures have handcuffed officers when dealing with unruly youths.

“The juveniles and their parents should be held accountable,” said Ocean City Police Chief William Campbell. “The entire juvenile justice system needs to be reformed.”

Campbell cited a recent case in which a disruptive youth was taken into custody and held at the police station while his parents were called, a tactic recommended under juvenile reform in lieu of arrest in some situations. Six hours later, the youth’s parents still hadn’t shown up at the station, so Ocean City police contacted police in the youth’s hometown, who went there to speak with the parents.

“The mother was upset that she had to come to Ocean City,” Campbell said. “They tell me she shouldn’t be held accountable.”

The governor’s office and the attorney general’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment Wednesday. A spokeswoman for the leadership of the Democratic-controlled state Assembly declined to comment, while a colleague in the Senate did not respond to a request for comment.

Wildwood Police Chief Joseph Murphy said New Jersey’s juvenile justice reforms “don’t seem to be working.”

“We do not hold these children accountable and we do not rehabilitate them,” he said.

Diversion programs, designed as an alternative to prosecution for young offenders, should last at least 24 to 36 hours. And it is not practical to issue warnings to young people when groups of 300 or more are causing unrest, he said.

Senator Michael Testa said the Jersey Shore remains safe for visitors, but he fears its hard-earned reputation could be lost if vacationers no longer view the area as family-friendly.

“They shouldn’t be thinking about improper behavior or the clouds of marijuana smoke they have to put their children through,” he said.

Assemblyman Don Guardian, a former mayor of Atlantic City, said he was walking along the city’s boardwalk a few days ago when a group of 80 loud, disruptive young people blocked the path.

When a police car arrived, the Guardian reported, “they spat on the car. They showed the police their butts and the middle finger.”

Wildwood said the town was forced to close its boardwalk overnight on Sunday of Memorial Day weekend when it feared it was losing control of the situation and was unable to respond to a flood of calls for help.

New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin blamed Wildwood for not having enough police officers assigned to patrol the boardwalk, but Mayor Ernest Troiano Jr. said 40 officers were deployed there.

“When you have to send 40 police officers across 26 blocks on the boardwalk, that speaks volumes,” he said.

In the wake of the unrest, Republicans have introduced numerous bills. Among other things, they would allow municipalities to establish alcohol- and cannabis-free zones, impose traffic restrictions and other restrictions on large “sudden parties,” and increase penalties for attacks on police officers or emergency workers.

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