D.C. Mayor Muriel Browser and D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith announced the latest initiative on dealing with juvenile crime in D.C. on Thursday — the formation of the Juvenile Investigative Response Unit.
While Mayor Bowser likes to point to data showing that overall crime is down across all eight wards of the District, and that violent crime has dropped by 26% compared to last year, the data on juvenile crime shows a different picture.
“We know that young people are affected by violence in our city, and in some cases, young people themselves are responsible for crime,” Bowser said. “That’s heartbreaking, and it’s unacceptable.”
At a news conference just steps from the Navy Yard Metro station on M Street SW, Smith told reporters that a small group of juveniles are responsible for all the crimes committed by young people.
“Recently, we have seen an increase in fights in our schools, and more serious criminal offenses outside of our schools. We have seen an increase in juvenile suspects involved in criminal offenses district-wide,” Smith said.
Data provided by the Metropolitan Police Department showed that in 2024, juveniles accounted for more than half of all robbery arrests; and in 2025, nearly 50% of all carjacking arrests involved juveniles.
To Smith’s point, in 2024, 196 juveniles that were arrested for violent crimes had prior arrests for violent crime.
The Juvenile Investigative Response Unit will work within the police department’s Youth and Family Engagement Division with a focus on prevention, investigating violent crimes committed by juveniles, and identifying and finding young people with outstanding custody orders.
Bowser said the new unit will “reach people where they are and help us understand their challenges, and connect them to a better path.”
“Some folks say to me, ‘We can’t arrest our way out of this,’ and I agree. But we will hold those young people accountable that are committing serious crimes across our city,” Smith added.
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