2 Dallas 14-Year-Olds Arrested For Armed Carjacking, Chase: 'We Are Seeing Way More Younger Offenders'
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - Two 14-year-old boys were captured Monday night while trying to escape on foot after leading Dallas Police on a high speed chase and crashing a stolen car into a sign post.
Police say they used a shotgun to carjack a woman who lived in a Northeast Dallas apartment complex.
The kids were taken into custody for a crime that has officers shaking their heads.
"We are seeing way more younger offenders," says Frederick Frazier, Dallas Police Association Vice President.
He says this latest act of violence along with the arrest of a 16-year-old for the murder of a Preston Hollow woman back in May are part of a disturbing trend since schools have been closed.
"They are running the streets, they are not going to bed, they're staying out drag racing all night," says Frazier. "This is another reason why a lot of us wanted to see the school start back up."
Dallas City Councilman Adam McGough says budget proposals that would cut police funding of youth outreach programs could make the situation worse.
"One of the things you see some of my colleagues cutting his programs that center around our law enforcement officers working in the community working specifically with our juveniles and our kids, says McGough.
DPD's nationally recognized Project Safe Neighborhood Unit is credited with arresting the two 14-year-olds.
They target high crime areas and have captured more than 130 violent offenders this year alone.
But none as young and as violent as the two arrested last night.
