Shocking Surge in Juvenile Crime in Maryland: Over 630 Cases Sent to Prosecutors Since October

Over 600 juvenile crime cases have been sent to several Maryland state’s attorney’s offices for official processing in the past two months, yet many doubts remain regarding the young people’s whereabouts.

FOX45 News has been requesting information from the Department of Juvenile Services since Monday about the number of youths referred for charges since the juvenile justice law amendments began on November 1.

Since DJS implemented its own new ankle monitor policy on October 1st, 637 cases have been sent to top prosecutor’s offices, according to data FOX45 News was able to get.

According to the data, the biggest factor driving that number up is motor vehicle theft; since the beginning of October, 108 juvenile cases have been reported for processing.

With 104 cases during the same period, robbery ranks as the second most prevalent offense. Second-degree assault and battery follow with 60 cases, and first-degree assault and second-degree burglaries each have 48 occurrences.

Eight instances involving drugs, 18 cases involving probation violations, six cases involving unarmed carjacking, and 17 cases involving armed carjacking have been referred for processing.

Electronic Monitoring for Community Detention

DJS declared in October that it would begin mandating the placement of ankle monitors on minors who are suspected of committing serious felonies but are not in custody.

According to DJS, 49 minors have now been placed under electronic surveillance in connection with the policy change. “The courts either ordered a less restrictive decision or continued the DJS overnight electronic monitoring or detention decisions related to the policy change the following day, demonstrating that these decisions are in line with court expectations,” stated Michael Sharp, a DJS spokesperson.

According to Sharp, 121 youths were on electronic monitoring for community detention and 125 youths statewide were on GPS ankle tracking as of December 2.

Despite not previously mentioning a distinction, FOX45 News earlier revealed that DJS used the two distinct kinds of ankle monitors.

When questioned about why the agency has never made it known that there are many kinds of ankle monitors, DJS Deputy Secretary for Community Services Lisa Garry responded that the department did not intend to deceive partners or the public.

Since November 1, 70 minors have been arrested for a variety of offenses, including auto theft, carjacking, robbery, and burglary, according to data acquired by FOX45 News from the Baltimore Police Department on Monday.

DJS hasn’t yet disclosed the status of those cases, though, or if any of the 70 youths who were seized were released, held, or put on ankle monitors.

But according to the head of juvenile services, there has been a noticeable rise in the number of youths being detained to ensure that a “catch and release” scenario is not taking place.

The average daily youth population in the state’s juvenile detention institutions has increased by 59.8% since Schiraldi took over as DJS’s leader in 2022, according to the Q2 2024 Juvenile Justice Monitoring Report.

In order to better explain to the people how the process at DJS operates, Secretary Schiraldi stated that he is speaking with the media. Secretary Schiraldi jumped off a prior virtual interview with FOX45’s sister station in Washington, D.C., on Friday, to do the interview with FOX45 News on Tuesday.

In response to a question about what accountability means to him, Secretary Schiraldi stated that there are different levels of responsibility. He clarified that a juvenile’s placement on home monitoring is one type of accountability, as is their detention.

Secretary Schiraldi reaffirmed his commitment to improving outcomes in response to those who believe that DJS lacks adequate accountability.

However, he insisted that what is now happening with the majority of juvenile offenders is a positive beginning. “Violent crimes have victimized me. I have experienced both sexual and property crime, and I have a great deal of empathy for those who have been harmed by crime and their families,” Secretary Schiraldi stated.