Local law enforcement concerned by rise of teenagers committing serious crimes

Rise in teens committing serious crimes

Violent crimes have spiked over the last couple weeks and several involved teenagers. The most recent was a teenage boy shot near Foster High School on Sunday afternoon.

TUKWILA, Wash. - Local law enforcement are voicing concerns around youth and violence.

Violent crimes have spiked over the last couple of weeks and several involved teenagers. The most recent was a teenage boy shot near Foster High School on Sunday afternoon.

Police on Monday confirmed that teenager died.

These are the crimes law enforcement is concerned with. Crime volume naturally goes up in the summertime, but it's the severity of crimes that young people are committing that is especially worrying.

In the last month, teenagers have been involved in very serious crimes.

Last week, a 19-year-old was shot and killed at the AMC movie theater in Kent. Investigators police said that shooting was targeted and they are still searching for the suspect.

Earlier this month, a 17-year-old brought a loaded gun to a graduation ceremony at Civic Field in Bellingham.

On May 24, a teenager was shot in Seattle's Central District neighborhood. The teenager is in stable condition, but police haven't located a suspect in this case either.

Then, Sunday afternoon, a teenager was shot and killed at the bus stop near Foster High School in Tukwila. Police said an argument broke out between the shooter and the boy before bullets were fired.

These incidents are all very serious. Regionally, law enforcement said we're seeing more young people involved in these dangerous crimes, from homicide to gun violence to auto theft.

In Pierce County, deputies arrested four teenagers for robbing a 7-Eleven using a stolen car.

"The kids tried to break into another vehicle near the Eatonville Police station," said Sgt. Darren Moss of the Pierce County Sheriff's Department. "When they saw them, fled from there, and crashed the car."

That car had two 16-year-old boys, a 15-year-old girl and an 18-year-old man.

As for why younger people are getting involved with more serious crimes, law enforcement said it could be a number of factors at play.

"Each thing is an individual basis," Sgt. Moss said. "We can't just kind of blanket it and say the teachers aren't doing something or the prosecutors aren't doing anything, police officers aren't doing this anymore. It's just been a wave of lots of things taking effect."

Get breaking news alerts in the FREE FOX 13 Seattle app. Download for Apple iOS or Android. And sign up for BREAKING NEWS emails delivered straight to your inbox.

As school gets out and the summer season allows more daylight, law enforcement say now is the time to really keep track of where your kids are and prioritize communication.

"It's really true," said Cyndie Morris with Renton Police. "Nothing good happens after midnight. There is just no reason for any youth, that young especially, for them to be out there at those times in the morning. There's just nothing but negative activity out there and dangers and risks that they're not able to completely absorb."