Officials put blame on parents for rowdy teens

New Jersey lawmakers and police officials are putting some of the blame on parents for an outbreak of rowdy behavior at the shore early in the summer tourism season.

Sen. Michael Testa held a virtual public hearing Wednesday with business owners, law enforcement and elected officials to discuss the issues at shore towns from Long Branch to Wildwood.

“Our concern is perception becomes reality and what we have heard from merchants, hotel and motel owners is maybe our boardwalks aren’t as safe,” said Testa, a Republican who represents the First Legislative District, including the Cape May County shore towns.

He was referring to a troublesome Memorial Day weekend at the shore in which a teen was stabbed on the Ocean City Boardwalk May 25, and was treated at the hospital. A juvenile suspect was arrested.

And teens got so disruptive on the Wildwood Boardwalk that the city shut it down temporarily. Among other concerns in the shore towns and other areas of the state is an uptick in juvenile crime from shoplifting to fighting.

Among the shore towns, there was some minor trouble with juveniles in Sea Isle City during the holiday weekend, but “nothing particularly severe,” city Business Administrator George Savastano said.

Savastano told City Council during a meeting Tuesday that Sea Isle has “all the tools in place to keep Sea Isle safe,” including a well-trained team of police officers and other skilled first responders.

“In fact, we are as safe now as we have ever been,” he said.

    Ocean City Police Chief Bill Campbell speaks during a May 25 press conference on the Boardwalk.
  

The crux of this problem is on the parents, Ocean City Police Chief Bill Campbell said. 

“I think the parents don’t know where their kids are half the time,” Campbell said, referring to parents of rowdy juveniles.

Campbell referred to an incident last Saturday night in which six juveniles stole a car.

The six juveniles took off on foot in different directions. Police caught up to them. 

The mother of one of the juveniles never came to get him. He spent six hours at the Ocean City Police Department, Campbell said.

“The officer had to call the town where the kid lived,” he said.

When the officer from that town knocked on the mother’s door she was upset.

“The mother was annoyed that she had to come to Ocean City,” Campbell said. “You tell me she should not be held accountable.”

State laws enacted in 2021 as part of Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy’s juvenile justice reforms put restrictions on police on how far they can go in their interactions with teens. 

Murphy wants to avoid saddling teenagers a criminal record that could hurt them later on when they try to enter college or begin their careers.

Instead of placing juveniles under arrest or taking them into custody, officers are required under state law to give them “curbside warnings” for minor crimes such as underage drinking or marijuana possession.

Officials say juvenile justice reform has emboldened some juveniles to commit crimes such as theft, vandalism, underage public drinking and smoking marijuana, because there isn’t a consequence.

    Ocean City Councilman and Boardwalk business owner Jody Levchuk believes parental involvement 'seems lacking.'
  

Ocean City Councilman Jody Levchuk is co-owner of Jilly’s Boardwalk shops. He emphasized in the panel discussion that Ocean City is a safe town.

“I am very happy to join the panel to discuss this ongoing challenge, not just in Ocean City, but in every shore point. I am glad you pulled this together to get a handle on it before another summer season.”

He said the police do a “fine job” and the department is large enough to handle the summer crowd. The problem lies with some youths who come to town.

In the case of the stabbing, Levchuk noted that the teens knew each other and that it was not a random act on a visitor to the Boardwalk.

“Ocean City is a safe town, a family resort and a family destination,” Levchuk said. “We are just troubled by some of the youth.”

The lack of consequences for actions is what seems to be the crux of the increasing troubles at the shore, he said.

“We want them to have fun and let loose, but shoplifting and starting altercations and drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana in public meant for families to gather is completely unacceptable for me,” Levchuk said. “Parent involvement seems lacking. The kids feel they can’t get in trouble."

    Wildwood is boosting its police presence to prevent trouble on the Boardwalk.
  

Wildwood Mayor Ernie Troiano noted that law enforcement feels “handcuffs have been placed on them” when it comes to handling juveniles.

“They’re lawless,” Troiano said about some teens that gather in groups.

He pointed out that Wildwood is turning to “meter maids” to add to the 90-plus police force for support, just to be a uniformed presence. 

“We’re doing everything we can,” he said.

Wildwood Police Chief Joe Murphy, like Ocean City’s police chief, said there is a lack of respect for law enforcement.

“We are accustomed to dealing with large crowds but what we’ve seen is a juvenile issue and a young adult issue. The crowd has turned extremely hostile to law enforcement officers,” Murphy said. 

Testa said legislators are working together on bills to try and help the towns deal with the issues of rowdy behavior. 

He noted that the lawmakers “really understand our shore economy is the backbone of our economy, especially in the shoulder season.”

    Sen. Michael Testa and other lawmakers are working on legislation to help the shore towns.
  

Testa noted that Republicans have introduced bills to address disturbances. One of them would allow communities to create alcohol and marijuana-free zones. Others would address “pop-up parties.” 

Michael Allegretto, aide to Ocean City Mayor Jay Gillian, sat in for the mayor on the panel.

Allegretto said that the city certainly is working to make sure the public knows Ocean City is a safe, family-friendly resort.

“Of course we are concerned that it could hurt the brand,” Allegretto said, noting that there were some knee-jerk reactions from visitors who opted not to come down after hearing about the recent crimes. “We want everyone to feel 100 percent that they could come.”

Assemblyman Antwan McClellan, who lives in Ocean City, said the towns have to take back their towns and get back their respect. 

“The real South Jersey will do whatever we need to do to protect our Boardwalk, protect our community and protect our police,” he said.

Assemblyman Don Guardian is the former mayor of Atlantic City.

He explained that by “luck” there weren’t any major issues on the Atlantic City Boardwalk over Memorial Day weekend.

But this past Friday night, he was walking on the Atlantic City Boardwalk when a large crowd of about 90 juveniles got loud and out of hand.

Police blocked off the Boardwalk to maintain some order, he said.

“I think there are three things that are critical,” Guardian said. “One is the lack of respect from youth. Police are being hampered, and the courts are not backing up the police officers.”

Guardian believes that a lack of parental involvement is a major issue and said that there needs to be some ramifications for the juveniles.

“I am suggesting community service would be a logical choice,” he said.