N.J. Police Chief to Newsmax: People Are Tired of Juvenile 'Lawless Behavior'

Gloucester Township, New Jersey, Police Chief David Harkins told Newsmax that many people in his state are tired of juvenile "lawless behavior."

Harkins told Newsmax's "National Report" on Monday that his township, about 30 miles southwest of Trenton, has enacted a local law that comes down hard on parents after repeat incidents involving their minor children. "We're just tired of it," he said. "Something's got to change the lawless behavior that we've been seeing from many of these juveniles."

The new township enforcement effort was developed after a community day last year was marred by juvenile violence, including street assaults. When the township posted the date for this year's event, some people posted they would be back for a repeat of the violence.

Harkins said that prompted a cancellation of the event for this year. "We were seeing social media posts that were threatening violence, saying, 'We're going to show up again, we're going to do it again, you thought last year was bad,' things like that."

He said there was no way he could support setting the township up for more violence. "So when we were seeing that, I just made the presentation to the mayor, and we all agreed that we can't have that, what happened in 2024, happen again. So it was a painstaking decision, but it was the right decision that we decided to cancel the event this year."

All the more reason, he said, to ensure that parents understand that if their kids get involved with the law, the parents may end up paying a price along with the juvenile.

"We want parents to know they're responsible, and there's a whole warning process. So if their juvenile gets into some kind of trouble with us, contact with us, we make them aware," Harkins said. "And then it's only after repeated offenses, if we don't see corrective action being taken through either court-mandated programs for the juvenile, that's when this would kick in for them to be held accountable."