Fourteen-year-old boy arrested 3 times in weekend auto thefts, Wichita police say
Wichita police say a 14-year-old boy on a weekend crime spree has been arrested for auto theft not once — but three times since Saturday.
Wichita police Chief Gordon Ramsay, in a prepared statement included in an emailed news release announcing the boy’s arrests, said changes to a state law that outlines how juvenile offenders can be handled “has impacted our ability to address juvenile offenders swiftly.”
Agency spokesman Officer Charley Davidson confirmed the chief is referring to Senate Bill 367, which shifted the Kansas juvenile justice system to cheaper, community-based programs aimed at helping young offenders in lieu of incarcerating them. The evidence-backed overhaul has drawn criticism from some lawyers, judges and law enforcement officers who contend the reforms created problems with enforcement. The changes took effect July 1, 2017.
“This has been especially concerning during this pandemic,” Ramsay said in his statement.
“WPD will continue working with legislators and state associations to help address issues of juveniles who lack support, care, and oversight.”
The police department, in the news release, said Derby police officers first arrested the boy at about 9:30 p.m. Saturday after he was allegedly found in possession of a vehicle that had been stolen in Wichita earlier in the day.
On Sunday around 6:30 p.m., Wichita police officers responded to a suspicious character with a weapon call where two minors were reportedly trying to break into a locked vehicle and arrested the teen again. Police said they caught the 14-year-old after he was seen running away from “a stolen vehicle that had been left running earlier on Sunday.” The break-in attempt happened in the 2700 block of North Greenwich.
The teen’s third arrest came just over 12 hours later, at about 7:20 a.m. Monday. Police say the teen stole a vehicle that had keys inside of it from a business in the 3400 block of South West Street and struck its owner as he fled.
“WPD officers quickly located the stolen vehicle and arrested the 14-year-old without further incident,” the news release says.
The teen, who has also been listed and cleared as a runaway eight times this month, was booked into the Juvenile Detention Facility on suspicion of multiple counts of auto theft and one count of aggravated battery, police said. Formal charges are pending.
The Eagle does not identify juvenile suspects in criminal cases by name unless they are charged as adults.
This story was originally published April 27, 2020 at 4:32 PM.
