Police see uptick in juvenile summer crime

STARKVILLE, Miss.(WCBI) – It’s an issue that seems to grow when kids are out for the summer.

School has been out for several weeks and Starkville Police Detective C.j. Windship says this time of year often sees a natural uptick in crime.

“It does go up in the summer months. The hotter it gets, the more people move around outside. So, with more people being outside and more people interacting with each other, then personal crime does go up,” said Windship.

Starkville’s latest robbery involved a juvenile suspect. Residents, like Phil Silva say the only cure for that is to keep the young folks busy until school is back in session.

“In the summertime they get bored. They got to find something to do. They need to have a little job like working here at Wal-Mart. Maybe working at different places. Something that’s going to take up a lot of time from them. Just sometimes they’re going to get in trouble. Some kids are going to get in trouble. That’s just normal for kids,” said Silva.

MSU student Jamorious Smith says influences at home can also play a role in the desire to be active as a young person.

“When I was younger my grandmother would take me to the water park. Every year I would always spend time with my family. So, in the summers I wouldn’t have any inclination to do anything bad because I didn’t really have the opportunity. Not that I was even interested, but it was like they kept me interested in doing things that were positive and good influences on me,” said Smith.

Windship says there are several tips to staying safe this season and year long while moving through the community.

“Staying aware of your surroundings anytime that you’re alone or with a small group of people. Just know who’s around you. Whether that’s people or vehicles that are following close behind. Anything that your gut tells you that’s probably not right, it’s OK to trust that. Especially if you are alone make sure that you do have your head on the swivel, that you scan just because you’re in a crowded place doesn’t mean everybody is watching out for you. It can actually be the opposite. The more people you have around you, the more opportunity for crimes there are,” said Windship.

The Monday strong armed robbery is still under investigation.