Youth Violence

At age 14, police say, Radames Reyes ordered a pizza with the intention of robbing the deliveryman - and shot him when he failed to comply with the teenager's demands. Reyes, now 15, was identified after police obtained the phone number that placed the order and used cell towers to triangulate its location, a technology that is being increasingly used to track suspects. Witnesses later told police that Reyes told them he had committed the killing Nov. 23 of Adam Diarra, 22, who was shot in the Wakefield community, according to charging documents.

Anne Arundel County police and Broadneck High School officials say they are cracking down on "the pit," an area near the school in Cape St. Claire where residents have complained of loitering, fights and illegal drug use. More than a dozen people, mostly teenagers under age 18, have been charged or issued citations so far in February, police said. Following a videotaped fight after school dismissal on Feb. 8 in which police say one teenager acted as the referee, four juveniles were charged.

In the J. DeWeese Carter Center in Kent County, youths would pick fights that sometimes turned into melees, recalled Rodney Stallworth, who spent four months there last year on a drug charge. The detention system frustrated the 18-year-old East Baltimore resident, but he also called it a refuge. He sometimes acted out violently because he knew it would keep him there — and away from drugs and guns on the street. "Since we can't go home, we would try to send the staff home" angry, he said.

A hard truth about being Baltimore's mayor is that there is almost never a good time to declare progress. Whenever there is good news to report, it will almost inevitably collide with a fresh tragedy. That's what happened to Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake this week, when she pointed to the city's success in drawing crowds to a series of major public events downtown - despite warnings this spring from a pair of Baltimore County lawmakers that people should stay away in the wake of high-profile incidents of violence.

AS MUCH as we would like to deny it, violence in our community plays a major role in the lives of educators. We are charged with teaching young people who have less than favorable home lives and live in distressed and violent communities. Statistics from the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence show that violence among minority youths, particularly African-Americans, has struck with unique force in recent years. Homicide has been the leading cause of death among black males and females between the ages of 15 and 24 for more than 10 years, the center says.

I take it all back. All the glowing things I've written in recent years about Tabitha Soren and MTV's news and public affairs shows, I take them all back.Soren & Co. join the ranks tonight of those TV personalities who have abused the credibility accorded them as journalists in order to shamelessly shill for their corporate bosses. I can't remember being as outraged by a piece of TV journalism as I am by "Generation Under the Gun," at 9 tonight on MTV.The problem here is an old one: It's a matter of allowing the fox to report on what's happening back at the chicken coop, and the fox telling us to ignore all the blood and feathers around its mouth.

A town meeting to discuss youth violence drew a small crowd in Columbia last night, but U.S. Rep. Benjamin L. Cardin had a message for those who stayed away."

BOSTON -- Three years ago, even as overall crime was on the decline here, violent crime committed by juveniles remained stubbornly high. The vast majority of the victims were other young people. Boston saw a record 16 juveniles murdered in 1993 alone.In response, the city launched an aggressive effort to target those they believe to be responsible for most juvenile violence: hard-core members of the more than 30 youth gangs in the city.Police from a special anti-gang unit are assigned to monitor individual gangs.

WASHINGTON -- President Clinton emerged from a White House meeting on youth violence yesterday with a flurry of new proposals, from limited agreements with firearms manufacturers on gun control to a new task force to help parents screen out violence from their television sets and computers.But beneath the harmonious surface, representatives from the entertainment and gun industries continued to insist that their businesses should not be held responsible for incidents such as the massacre at a school in Littleton, Colo.

WASHINGTON -- In the face of reports of rising drug use by youths and the violence associated with it, the Clinton administration is moving to take a visible role with a White House-sponsored conference today on the problem.In the first such meeting during his administration, President Clinton has called together nearly 300 people, including top administration officials, researchers, law enforcement officials and young people, for a daylong meeting on drug abuse and violence among adolescents.

In the J. DeWeese Carter Center in Kent County, youths would pick fights that sometimes turned into melees, recalled Rodney Stallworth, who spent four months there last year on a drug charge. The detention system frustrated the 18-year-old East Baltimore resident, but he also called it a refuge. He sometimes acted out violently because he knew it would keep him there — and away from drugs and guns on the street. "Since we can't go home, we would try to send the staff home" angry, he said.

The departure of Donald DeVore marks the end of yet another secretary who has failed to turn around Maryland's most troubled agency, the Department of Juvenile Services. Mr. DeVore announced Thursday that he would not seek reappointment and was considering career opportunities outside the state. His withdrawal perhaps just saves Gov. Martin O'Malley from having to fire him so that the department, which has been plagued by persistent organizational and security problems, can finally begin to move ahead.

A bad diet may lead to bad health for many inner-city kids. And it may also lead to bad behavior. That's the conclusion of some public health experts who are advocating for vitamins and other nutritional supplements to curb youth violence and to increase learning. The controversial idea is getting a fresh hearing in Baltimore, where advocates for the disadvantaged are considering testing it on city kids. If it's proven that a tablet a day can tick up test scores and dial down violence, it could be a cheaper and easier means of improving a lot of young lives than costly and labor-intensive treatments, according to the Abell Foundation, which wants to determine whether a Baltimore study would be worthwhile.

A terrifying cell-phone video of a Chicago high school honors student being beaten to death by a brawling mob threw a national spotlight on the issue of youth violence and the toll it takes on victims. Last week, U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder and Education Secretary Arne Duncan visited the city to open what they called a national conversation about the homicide epidemic that kills dozens of Chicago students every year. As officials there scramble to adopt new strategies to keep kids safe, they might look to Baltimore, where efforts to quell juvenile violence are focusing on identifying the youngsters most at risk before they are killed or commit a crime.

Rawlings-Blake: I apologize We must hold all of our public officials to the highest possible standard. This is a belief that I hold close to my heart. I work hard to earn the trust and respect of all I serve. Regrettably, sometimes I fall short. On a local radio show, I suggested that Brian D. Morris was being treated unfairly because he was black. Upon reflection, I deeply regret my remarks. Rather than attempting to explain my remarks, I would like to express my remorse. Throughout my public and private life, I have always strived to bridge the divide in our great city.

At age 14, police say, Radames Reyes ordered a pizza with the intention of robbing the deliveryman - and shot him when he failed to comply with the teenager's demands. Reyes, now 15, was identified after police obtained the phone number that placed the order and used cell towers to triangulate its location, a technology that is being increasingly used to track suspects. Witnesses later told police that Reyes told them he had committed the killing Nov. 23 of Adam Diarra, 22, who was shot in the Wakefield community, according to charging documents.

In response to what organizers call a "youth violence plague," city church leaders invited area churches and recreation centers yesterday to join them in providing a safe hangout for youths on some Friday nights this summer. Uniting churches citywide, "Kidz Nite Inn" offers a way for city youths to spend evenings off the streets and out of harm's way during the summer, organizers said in announcing the initiative at Koinonia Baptist Church in East Baltimore. "What we are doing is giving kids the opportunity to make their own decisions.

Wearing a double-breasted suit and a large, white hard hat, the Rev. Robert Turner, pastor of St. John Baptist Church in Columbia, was ready to get down to business.Standing before a panel of Howard County school, police and family service officials last night, Turner launched into a stirring speech.His words were aimed at the panel and an audience of concerned parents, their children and members of the Columbia community who met to discuss how to prevent an incident such as the one at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo.

Six public schools that received city funding for after-school programs last year will not get that money this year, leaving principals scrambling for activities to occupy youngsters and some City Council members crying foul. The shortfall will affect about 450 children ages 5 through 15, according to Baltimore's Safe and Sound Campaign. The reductions are in part because of cuts this year from the city and the school system and because of a new emphasis from the mayor's office on allocating funds to high school students and three neighborhoods with high youth violence rates.