By Nikita Stewart
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, July 19, 2006; B01
A majority of D.C. Council members indicated yesterday that they will support Mayor Anthony A. Williams's emergency crime plan, which would include surveillance cameras in residential communities and a toughened teenage curfew of 10 p.m. for the next 90 days.
Civil rights groups and youth advocates decried the proposals -- and another that would require Family Court to alert police when juveniles accused of serious crimes are released -- as an assault on privacy and a futile way to solve crime.
"The proposals in the Mayor's bill are, at best, constitutionally suspect and, at worst, completely ineffective," Johnny Barnes, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of the National Capital Area, said in a statement.
Williams (D), citing an urgent need for action, outlined his crime plan before the council yesterday after recalling members from summer break. They were scheduled to vote on the emergency legislation at 1 p.m. today.
Williams said he would prefer that the proposals be approved on a permanent basis in the future, but council procedures allow him only to ask for the measures on an emergency basis during a special session.
"While most of the District's youth are enjoying a fun and productive summer, an increasing number are robbing people and using guns. It goes without saying that this is a disturbing and unacceptable trend. . . . We have to take steps immediately to ensure that what has occurred over the past 30 days goes no further," he said.
Hours before yesterday's briefing, Williams appeared before a Senate panel, where Sen. Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii) questioned him about the ACLU's concerns. The mayor said security cameras have been used at malls, which are public spaces. "To me, it follows as a corollary that cameras should be able to be used in public spaces," he said.
There have been 15 slayings since July 1, including the high-profile homicides of British citizen Alan Senitt, who was robbed and stabbed in Georgetown, and community activist Chris Crowder, who was shot in a park near the Washington Convention Center. There have been no arrests in a majority of the cases. The number of juveniles arrested on robbery charges has risen 82 percent from this time last year, and the number of those arrested on weapons charges has increased 27 percent, Williams said.
The new measures would make the midnight youth curfew two hours earlier and expand the circumstances under which a judge could deny bail and detain adults and juveniles charged with robbery.
The mayor is also requesting $8 million to cover overtime costs to put 300 additional police officers on the street, $1 million to pay for employees handling broken streetlights and abandoned vehicles, and $575,000 for youth programs.
Council member Phil Mendelson (D-At Large), chairman of the Judiciary Committee, advocated separate votes on the measures. He said he understood dealing with police overtime and imposing the curfew on an emergency basis, but he questioned the provision for surveillance cameras, which he said could take months to install. He said there was no need for emergency legislation on the juvenile records, which are available to police.
However, City Administrator Robert C. Bobb said the city is prepared to install four cameras today if the legislation is approved.
On the issue of juvenile records, Williams said police have had difficulty obtaining the information despite the current legislation. "It's been interpreted out of existence," he said.
But youth advocates fear that the police will now have a way to track down any juvenile who is arrested.
"Opening up juvenile records to police, where they will be able to target and harass young people who have done nothing wrong, is contrary to best practices and positive youth development," said Jason Ziedenberg, executive director of the Justice Policy Institute.
At the council briefing, U.S. Attorney Kennneth Wainstein and D.C. Attorney General Robert J. Spagnoletti said the proposals were constitutional and would affect only offenders who commit dangerous crimes.
"We're not concerned about the kid who stole a pack of gum from the 7-Eleven," said Police Chief Charles H. Ramsey.
Most council members said they planned to support the mayor's proposal, but several said the mayor was late in addressing crime. Members questioned whether police officers are being properly managed and whether more money should be poured into preventive efforts, such as summer jobs for youths.
Council member Vincent B. Orange Sr. (D-Ward 5), who is running for mayor, was the most vocal and said Williams addressed the issue only after a crime surge on the Mall and in affluent neighborhoods.
Earlier this year, Orange proposed adding 400 police officers to the force, an idea that the mayor and a majority of council members rejected.
Instead, the council approved hiring 100 officers and voted 12 to 1 last week to hire 350 more officers in response to public outcry about the recent slayings.
The mayor's legislation, if approved, would put 300 officers on the street on overtime for six weeks.
Williams said he opposed Orange's plan because he believed that the city needed to review how many police officers should be hired. He said he did not want to waste time talking about who was to blame.
"If I was wrong, I was wrong," he said.
Staff writer Elissa Silverman contributed to this report.