The current legal procedure advocated by the Department of Juvenile Services to get the criminal male “child” situation under some sort of control is simply not working. Because these young male offenders are so young, with their “whole lives ahead of them,” there is this misplaced compassion.

There are OP-EDs in The Baltimore Sun pleading for mercy and understanding and to overlook their crimes. Instead of incarcerating them, judges are setting them free again, to the care of their parents, who obviously weren’t doing that great of a job in the first place, and attaching ankle bracelets, which the kids disregard or remove.

The cost of monitoring the defendant via GPS is $450 per month. The state would cover those payments for defendants who could not afford them.

These young males have no moral compass or fears, which is exacerbated by the lack of incarceration when convicted. They are not moved to seriously consider their life choices. It has been shown that they can’t wait to go out with their pals and wreak havoc on innocent citizens again, ankle monitor and all, reaping the rewards of theft and enjoying the thrill of taking out all their aggressions, beating the daylights out of some unsuspecting vulnerable pedestrian.

As more and more people are seriously injured, robbed, carjacked, traumatized and victimized, the taxpaying, good city citizens are now hesitating to go out, and county residents hesitating to come in, which has a domino effect on the entertainment industry as well as other businesses in Baltimore City. The youth of chaos and moral turpitude has taken over the city. The police are spread thin and concerned about getting too physical. Go out, if you dare.

We have become the prisoners. We decline invitations to go out. We don’t want to take the risk of having a nice dinner or drink downtown. Just getting to and from your car can put you in a near death experience and traumatize you for years. You may never recover. You may be so emotionally impacted that you sell your house and move. If you are renting, decline to resign the lease and get the hell outta Dodge City.

The Department of Juvenile Services operates a secure detention center for male youth at BCJJC right there on Gay Street. The detention center serves male youth primarily from Baltimore City.

How about making prisoners of the criminals instead of us, locked in our houses because we don’t want to be victims? After all, we have our whole lives ahead of us as well!

— Georgia Corso, Baltimore