In the Wrong Hands

In May, three teenagers placed in secure detention at Oak Hill Youth Center by D.C. Superior Court judges were taken to a cookout at the Northwest Washington home of Vincent Schiraldi, director of the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services.

Instead of chowing down, one young man (readers, choose your term) escaped, absconded, took a powder, split the scene -- i.e., disappeared, and he was not heard from until June 17, when D.C. police arrested him and charged him with cocaine distribution.

The 18-year-old is being held in the D.C. jail.

How many other youths assigned to DYRS supervision are on the loose? Who knows?

The D.C. Superior Court issues custody orders or bench warrants to bring juvenile offenders before judges for, among other reasons, absconding from court-ordered placement.

As of Feb. 25, 47 custody orders were outstanding for youths committed to the department, according to a court official.

Asked the same question about absconder numbers, Schiraldi reported that 20 youths were on escape status by the end of January.

So 27 additional youths absconded between Jan. 31 and Feb. 25, or is there a discrepancy?

Schiraldi's response: "It's not uncommon for different databases to yield different numbers; often it's an apples-to-oranges thing."

I return to the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services because respected police officers, prosecutors and community leaders believe there is a link between offenders in the juvenile justice system and the violence engulfing our city's streets.

Some authorities complain that placing youth offenders in DYRS care is tantamount to giving custody of Jesse James to the Little Sisters of the Poor.

That link, unfortunately, is ignored by D.C. legislators and the administration of Mayor Adrian Fenty in deference to Schiraldi and his supporters in progressive juvenile-advocacy circles.

Schiraldi is hailed for sharply reducing the number of juveniles in confinement at Oak Hill -- a key step in the advancement of his alternatives-to-detention agenda.

But what about youths released into the community under DYRS supervision? The answer depends on who's being asked.

The agency has dispensed millions of taxpayer dollars to community groups to monitor and supervise youths released from Oak Hill. The DYRS claims success but has yet to release recidivism data or program evaluations that can be examined by neutral experts such as the D.C. auditor and inspector general.

(The DYRS, according to a senior law enforcement official, won't even release data on the average length of detention at Oak Hill by offense.)

DYRS workers offer a different perspective on the community release program. They note that so far in 2008:

· One youth was killed on North Capitol Street.

· One youth was killed in Trinidad.

· One youth has been charged with armed robbery.

· One youth was killed in March.

· One youth was charged in drive-by shootings.

· And one teenager was shot at Seventh and O streets NW.

Their common tie? DYRS supervision.

Go to the D.C. jail.

A July 11 report by the DYRS and the D.C. Department of Corrections shows that between May 6, 2005, and Oct. 28, 2007, 60 percent of youths committed to the Department of Corrections (104 cases) had prior contact with the juvenile justice system. Forty-two had been under DYRS supervision before their arrests.

And what, pray tell, is the major juvenile justice initiative before the D.C. Council? Public safety? Guess again.

Council members Tommy Wells and Phil Mendelson are pushing to end placement in the D.C. jail of youths who are arrested in connection with serious felonies. Wells argued in a news release that "youth are more likely to commit a crime after being housed in an adult jail rather than a facility appropriate for their age."

Never mind that Corrections Director Devon Brown told the council that juveniles in the city jail are housed one to a cell on a block that is separate from adults. He said that all activities, such as religious services and education, take place in the self-contained block to prevent youths from coming into contact with adult inmates.

Consider these examples of youth offenders who, under the bill, could be sent back to Schiraldi's care -- even after, claims one veteran law enforcement official, they have been tried as adults and convicted by juries. According to the charging documents filed with the court in pending cases:

· "D.P.," a few months shy of his 17th birthday, and two other young men allegedly decided to rob a 75-year-old barber. D.P. was a lookout. A struggle ensued between the barber and one of the other young men, and the barber was fatally shot in the stomach. D.P. ran. He was arrested on three outstanding custody orders. Police recovered a gun under the couch D.P. was lying on when they arrived.

· "W.W.," 17, allegedly approached a woman, pulled a handgun and said, "I'm going to kill you." He shot her several times, then ran away. A few weeks later, someone said he passed W.W. in an apartment building and noticed that the youth had a handgun. W.W. followed the person and said: "What are you looking at? I should kill you." He then started shooting.

· "D.C.," 16, allegedly robbed three men at gunpoint and was driven in a stolen car to another location, where he approached a woman, pointed a gun at her, stole her money and car keys and drove away in her car.

This is just a small sample of charges of armed robbery, murder, and assault with intent to rob or murder against youths being held at the D.C. jail.

Let Schiraldi have them, say Wells and Mendelson.

What say you, Washington?

kingc@washpost.com