CLEVELAND — The number of stolen cars in Cleveland has accelerated by more than 94% from this same time last year.
In the Cleveland Police First District, the number of stolen cars has increased by more than 65%, in the Second District 169%, the Third District 189%, the Fourth District 19%, and the Fifth District 51%.
“People having their cars stolen — we work hard for our stuff, so I’d be kinda mad if I just walked outside and my car is gone,” said Brittany Powell, Cleveland resident.
The drivers behind the wheels of stolen cars aren’t just dangerous, but deadly. Last week, a 21-year-old woman was killed after the car she was in was hit by a stolen Kia in Cleveland’s Old Brooklyn neighborhood. Last month, a 30-year-old man was killed by two teenagers speeding through a red light in a stolen Kia.
According to police, most stolen cars are taken at the hands of teenage thieves. In an attempt to put the brakes on the dangerous drivers, the Cuyahoga County Juvenile Court has rolled out a pilot program in collaboration with the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office and Cleveland Police.
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“The juvenile facility is reaching capacity as a result of all this juvenile crime we’ve been having, so we are trying to...and the court is trying through probation to try to monitor kids through ankle bracelets, and that way, we’re not bursting at the seams at the detention centers,” said Mike O’Malley, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor.
The pilot program allows incarcerated teenagers to go home with an ankle monitor. There are requirements to be part of the program, including not having been arrested with a gun. There is also a review to see if the teen is eligible for home monitoring.
“It allows them to return home, it allows them to continue their education if they’re going to school, it allows them to continue their jobs if they’re already working so it doesn’t disrupt their lives in the same way as a pretrial detention would do,” said Professor Michael Benza, Case Western Reserve University.
But just weeks into the new program, there has already been a problem — a 12-year-old girl in the program who violated the rules.
“She was given an opportunity to remain home, she was ordered to stay home with her ankle bracelet, and she violated the first day, violated the second day, and I believe on the third day she cut her ankle bracelet off,” said O’Malley.
O’Malley said she was with a group of teenagers in a stolen car when a violent beating took place. Although she wasn’t involved in the beating, she now faces charges for being in that stolen car and is being detained.
“I think it’s a good thing to give them an opportunity to try to respond to additional oversight, but if they fail, that’s on them as well as their family that they’re doing enough to maintain the conduct that we and society expect,” said O'Malley.
