Ridgefield Police Mum on Youth

...Ridgefield Youth Out of Control...

Police busy while students on break

By Susan Tuz

THE NEWS-TIMES ~ February 25, 2006

RIDGEFIELD � High school students pushed the limits this week during their winter break from school.

On Tuesday, a 17-year-old male rolled his car at the parking lot to Tiger Hollow sports complex while driving through the high school parking lot. The teen walked away uninjured; he was cited for reckless driving.

On Wednesday, a 17-year-old girl was caught wandering around Copps Hill Plaza drinking vodka from a plastic container. She was cited for possession of alcohol by a minor.

Then there was a drunken driving charge against a "youthful offender" in the early hours of Friday morning and the three teens who were arrested for alcohol possession in a parked car on Halpin Lane.

Add to that at least 10 instances of vandalism since the beginning of the Presidents' Day weekend, including the egging of one house, the spray-painting of another and damage to a fence at a third home. These incidents occurred randomly throughout town.

Ridgefield police would not respond Friday to questions about the teen troubles.

Ridgefield's First Selectman Rudy Marconi said he thinks there are problems with vandalism, teen drinking and reckless behavior by youths in a lot of communities. "But we can't worry about what other communities are dealing with," Marconi said. "There's no question that there are issues of abuse of alcohol and other substances. Youths today seem to feel a need for release. We need to enlist the help of all parents to solve this."

Marconi said to combat vandalism, neighborhood watches need to be formed Ridgefield neighborhoods. Too often, he said, people feel that because they pay taxes that the police should be taking care of matters. But the police can't be everywhere, he said. "The police are increasing patrols, but if they are dealing with one incident, they can't just drop it and go to another call," Marconi said. "If people committing these acts of vandalism know that people in a neighborhood are watching their neighborhood, that may be a good deterrent to them striking there."

Marconi and Capt. Steve Brown of the Ridgefield Police are scheduling a meeting at Town Hall to discuss neighborhood watches and how to deter vandalism. No date has been set.

Copyright 2006 All Rights Reserved.

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