Authorities working on solutions to unruly acts

The police chief says he's stationed officers on the North Side.
YOUNGSTOWN -- One day, a driver confronted by teenage boys who stroll in the middle of streets will panic and drive right through them, a school official says.
"We hope no student gets struck in these situations, where they don't cross at lights," said Ted Terlesky, schools' security chief. "The cars have right of way."
Terlesky's comments came after reports of teenage boys' forming a human chain across Fifth Avenue near the Crandall Park bridge and taunting motorists in mid-May. A Vindicator editor said her car was pounded by the boys as she used her cell phone to call 911.
The boys -- about a dozen with their hands joined -- slowly filed across both northbound lanes of traffic on Fifth around 8 p.m. They smirked as they loudly encouraged drivers to hit them.
Terlesky said he gets complaints from time to time about kids' clogging streets in that area when The Rayen School lets out at 2:15 p.m. but not in the evening. Police are called to disperse the after-school crowds, but the kids are usually gone when officers arrive, he said.
He said there was no defense for what the boys did to motorists on Fifth.
What public wants
A Bertram de Souza column in the newspaper ("Swarmed! What would you do?") describing the human-chain event drew a large response to the Vindy.com Web site discussion group. In essence, those posting reactions called upon Mayor Jay Williams and police Chief Jimmy F. Hughes to deal with the juvenile crime problem.
"We've stationed officers there since this happened," Hughes said. "If we can identify the kids, they'll be prosecuted."
The chief said that, aside from patrol officers, he's had the Street Crimes Unit in the area. "If we get a call, cruisers know to make it a priority," he said.
Williams said the city will add more patrols in areas where congregating kids could become a problem.
He said he is looking into hiring more police by the end of summer.
Williams also said he is going to name a city youth director soon. The director will oversee a program that will focus on activities for kids while they aren't in school. Williams said the city will partner with the school district and the juvenile justice system to provide activities and places for them, and to identify kids who would benefit from participating in them.
Williams said there are already activities going on for kids, but often kids aren't aware of them. It will be the director's job to make them aware, he said.
Investing in program
He said the program will take an investment of "tens of thousands" of dollars, but he would not be more specific about how much the new director will be paid. He said he will announce the new director's name and more details about the position within seven to 10 days.
Williams also said parents are going to have to be held accountable for their kids.
"Asking city officials what they'll do [about the problem] is a legitimate question," he said. "But parents are ultimately responsible."
Hughes said he's heard similar complaints at block-watch meetings about crowds on South Avenue when Wilson High School lets out.
He said the complaints center on the time right after school, not in the evening.
"We'll continue to station officers up there," Hughes said of Fifth Avenue. "If this human chain is a regular thing, I'd be the first to say I'd be there to break it up. I agree with the seriousness of what happened."
The chief said he's considering videotaping large groups of kids for identification purposes.